Electrician Victoria BC — Licensed and Open 24 Hours
The Wire Guys are a licensed electrical contractor across Greater Victoria, open 24 hours for homes, strata and businesses — panel upgrades, older-house rewiring, EV chargers, heat pump circuits, lighting and repairs. We pull the permit from the City of Victoria or Technical Safety BC and attend the inspection.
4.7 from 137 Google reviews on our Abbotsford profile. Read them on GoogleAcross Greater Victoria: City of Victoria · Saanich · Oak Bay · Esquimalt · Langford
Licensed Electrical Contractor
Licensed and insured in British Columbia.
WorkSafeBC Registered
Active and in good standing.
BBB Accredited
Accredited since 2023.
Open 24 hours.
What counts as an emergencyDo you take electrical work in Victoria, and what kind?
We are The Wire Guys Electrical Ltd., a licensed electrical contractor in British Columbia, and we take residential, commercial and strata electrical work in every Greater Victoria municipality. The address decides who issues the electrical permit, the City of Victoria or Technical Safety BC, and we pull it either way. Our Victoria address is 300-1095 McKenzie Ave, and the number is 778-708-0451.
- One outlet or a full rewire
- Free written quote
Our Victoria address
That address is in Saanich, and our service area runs from Oak Bay to Langford. Wherever in that area the job is, the rate and the way we quote it are the same.
Get directionsWhat does an electrician cost per hour in Victoria?
The electrician hourly rate for work in Victoria is $135 an hour for a Red Seal electrician plus a helper, and it is the same rate at 3am as at 3pm.
An electrician quote from us is priced on what we can see, and if the scope changes, such as something found once a wall is opened, we tell you before we do it.
Hourly labour
$135/hr
This rate pays for a Red Seal electrician and a helper, which puts two people on site for the hour. Many jobs are priced at a flat rate instead, and we tell you which applies once we see the work.
Quote and consultation
Free
778-708-0451The quote is free, and so is the consultation. You get the price in writing before you decide anything.
Hidden-fault diagnostic
$165/45 min
Tracing a fault you cannot see is charged at $165 for a 45-minute diagnostic. It tells you what the problem is and how we will fix it.
Does your job need a City of Victoria electrical permit?
If the address is inside City of Victoria limits, a job that needs a permit gets it from the City, which also does the inspection. Technical Safety BC's jurisdiction page lists the City of Victoria as one of only ten municipalities in BC delegated to issue their own electrical or gas permits. In Saanich, Oak Bay, Esquimalt and Langford, the same work needs a Technical Safety BC electrical permit instead.
We pull the permit before the work starts, so you fill in no forms, and we attend the inspection that closes it.
Panel upgrade, step by step
- 01 We pull the permit and book the disconnect with BC Hydro.
- 02 The old panel and meter come out and the new ones go in.
- 03 The inspector approves the reconnection.
The City of Victoria enforces the Canadian Electrical Code, and a service BC Hydro has to connect or reconnect needs a permit first.
How to check you are hiring a licensed electrician in Victoria
Ask any electrician these questions before you accept their quote:
Ask for written confirmation that the company is a licensed electrical contractor in British Columbia. Ask who pulls the permit, whether it is filed before work begins, and who meets the inspector on site. Check that the crew has WorkSafeBC coverage.
Our credentials, in full:
- We are a licensed electrical contractor in British Columbia, licensed and insured.
- Jasjot Kohli, the owner, is Red Seal certified and our designated Field Safety Representative.
- We are WorkSafeBC registered, with continuous coverage since 30 September 2019, which is workers' compensation and separate from insurance.
- We are BBB Accredited.
- We are Canadian family owned and have served British Columbia since 2019.
What happens if something is wrong after we leave
If something we installed is not right, we come back. We give a one-year guarantee on new construction, six months on renovations.
If an inspection does not pass
After a failed electrical inspection on our work, we put it right, call the inspector back and cover the cost. The permit stays open until the work passes.
If we find something else
If we find a hazard unrelated to the work you booked, we tell you what it is and get your approval first. Nothing is done about it until you say yes.
Four checks before we leave the job:
- If we find anything unexpected, we talk it through with you and get your approval before any extra work begins.
- A Red Seal electrician or a Field Safety Representative checks an apprentice's work, every time.
- We test the work before the tools are packed up.
- We show you it working before we leave.
Wiring in older Victoria homes
Statistics Canada's 2021 Census dates 59.0% of Oak Bay homes to 1960 or before, and what is behind those walls decides what a renovation costs.
Early 1900s to the 1940s
Knob and tube wiring was the standard across Canada from roughly 1900 to the late 1940s. It carries no ground conductor, and insurers ask about it: some restrict cover on a house that still has it, and some decline outright.
Mid-1960s to the late 1970s
Houses built in those years often have aluminum wiring, because high copper prices pushed builders to switch. Aluminum is not automatically a hazard, but the connections at outlets, switches and the panel are where it gives trouble.
The Capital Regional District's 2018 emissions inventory put home heating oil ahead of natural gas as a source of household emissions. Replacing an oil furnace with a heat pump adds a large new load, so we calculate the load first.
Have an electrician open an outlet, a switch or the panel and look before you plan a renovation or an electrical panel upgrade around it.
Useful local contacts in Victoria
Some of these problems are not ours to fix, so it is quicker to call the right office directly.
City of Victoria — electrical permits and inspections
Inside City limits, permits and inspections are handled by the City's Building and Inspection Services, inspection requests go in online through MyCity, and the rules are on the City of Victoria's electrical permits information. Call them yourself if you are taking out a homeowner permit on your own house.
City Hall, 1 Centennial Square, Victoria Building and Inspection Services: 250.361.0344BC Hydro — anything before your meter
A sagging service line or a damaged meter is reported to BC Hydro first. The morning after the November 2024 windstorm, about 90,000 of the 95,000 BC Hydro customers still without power were on Vancouver Island and the Gulf Islands. We size a standby generator installation to the circuits you want kept running.
BC Hydro: 1 800 224 9376
A power line down on the ground is a 911 call. Stay well back and treat it as live, even if it is silent.
Before you call
Electrical emergencies: what to do first
Switch the affected circuit off at the panel if you can reach it safely, then call The Wire Guys Electrical Ltd. on 778-708-0451.
Six signs to switch off and call about:
- A burning plastic smell near an outlet, a switch or the panel.
- Sparks from an outlet, or a scorch mark around one.
- A panel cover that feels warm, hums or buzzes.
- Part of the house without power while the rest works.
- A breaker that trips again straight after a reset.
- Anything electrical that has got wet.
We lay out the checks to run before you call.
A quote for work we can see is free, while tracing a hidden fault is $165 for a 45-minute diagnostic.
- A panel cover that hums, buzzes or feels warm is one of the six signs.
- If you can reach it safely, switch that one circuit off at the panel first.
Electrical services in Victoria
These are the electrical services Victoria homeowners, strata councils and businesses can book with us, from one dead outlet to a whole-house rewire:
We take on basement suites, additions and kitchen renovations as a residential electrician Victoria homeowners and landlords can book. Our residential electrician work also covers single repairs and new outlets.
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Panels and service upgrades
When an older Victoria house swaps an oil furnace for a heat pump, the panel has to carry a large new load. A load calculation tells us first whether you need a new panel at all. Our electrical panel upgrade work uses Eaton, Square D and Schneider equipment.
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House wiring and renovations
Statistics Canada's 2021 Census dates 59.0% of Oak Bay homes to 1960 or before, so a Greater Victoria renovation often opens up older wiring. Our electrical work for renovations covers new circuits, moved outlets, basement suites and rewiring a house room by room. We plan the wiring with you before the walls close.
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EV charger installation
Every EV charger installation Victoria drivers book with us starts with a load calculation, so we know the panel can carry the charger. We install Tesla, Leviton, ChargePoint, Wallbox and Grizzl-E chargers, and Grizzl-E units are built in Ontario. In a strata building, we work with the council before we run a circuit to a parking stall.
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Lighting
Our light fixture installation covers indoor fixtures along with Leviton, Legrand and Lutron switches and dimmers. Outside, we wire landscape lighting for gardens, paths and decks, with fittings and connections rated for wet coastal winters.
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Faults and repairs
In a Victoria home, a tripping breaker, a flickering light or a dead outlet usually means a loose connection or an overloaded circuit. In an older house it can also be wiring that has outlived its insulation. Our electrical troubleshooting and repair finds which one it is and fixes it.
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New circuits
A heat pump, an electric range or a hot tub needs its own dedicated circuit from the panel. We run those circuits, including the wiring for a hot tub. Inside City of Victoria limits the permit and inspection come from the City; in Saanich, Oak Bay, Esquimalt and Langford they come from Technical Safety BC.
Commercial Electrician Victoria — shops, offices and strata buildings
We do lighting, renovation fit-outs and the circuits that serve a building's common areas.
We work as an electrical contractor Victoria shops, offices and strata councils can book, and our commercial electrical work is quoted free before it starts.
The same job is priced differently in a shop than in a house. Houses are wired in Romex cable, while commercial buildings use conduit cut and bent to fit, which adds labour and material to every circuit.
Areas we serve across Greater Victoria
We take work in every Greater Victoria municipality, including these five:
Choose a municipality to move the map.
Our address at 300-1095 McKenzie Ave sits in Saanich. We work as an electrician in Saanich and do electrical work in Langford. In Langford, a new building covered by the zoning bylaw's EV clause needs a memo from an electrical engineer at building permit application, confirming the building's load capacity can supply Level 2 charging to all parking spaces. Under Saanich's current garden suite rules, the parking space for a garden suite has to be wired for a Level 2 charger even if none is fitted. On the mainland, the company is run from our Abbotsford office, and we also take on work as an electrician in Vancouver.
Find us in Victoria
Have the job and the address ready when you call.
What our customers say
Both are from our Abbotsford profile, word for word:
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Hired The Wire Guys to install basement sub-panel, outlets & potlights. Great experience - good communication, offered suggestions, very happy with final result. I've added a couple of pics of the project getting close to completion.
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Replaced breakers and separated the microwave on a separate plug. This avoided the overload in Deming of light that we were experiencing.
Great work.
Jas and team will ensure renovations are properly wired!
Frequently asked questions
Two of our four electricians hold a Class B Field Safety Representative certification.
Any questions? Call 778-708-0451The Wire Guys Electrical Ltd. is a licensed electrical contractor serving Abbotsford, Vancouver, Victoria and communities across the Lower Mainland, Fraser Valley and Greater Victoria, handling residential and commercial electrical work for homeowners, landlords and business owners in British Columbia.
How much do electricians charge per hour in BC?
Hourly rates vary between BC electricians, and a rate only compares fairly once you know how many people it pays for. We charge $135 an hour for a Red Seal electrician plus a helper, and many jobs are quoted at a flat rate.
What is the minimum charge for an electrician?
We come out for one outlet or one switch on the same terms as a full rewire, and you pay for the time and materials the job takes. The estimate is free whatever the size of the job, and the quote comes in writing before any work starts.
Do I need a permit for electrical work in Victoria?
Work that adds or changes a circuit, or connects new electrical equipment, generally needs a permit before it starts. The authority depends on the municipality the property sits in, and a Victoria mailing address can sit outside City of Victoria limits.
Who can do electrical work in Victoria?
Inside City of Victoria limits, an electrical permit can only be taken out by a registered electrical contractor, or by a homeowner who meets the requirements of the Safety Standards Act. Contractors apply online, and homeowners apply by email to electricalpermits@victoria.ca.
What is a Red Seal electrician?
A Red Seal electrician has passed the interprovincial Red Seal exam, so the qualification is recognised across Canada and it belongs to the person rather than to the company. Jasjot Kohli, the owner, is Red Seal certified and our designated Field Safety Representative.
Do I need to upgrade my panel for a heat pump?
Not always. A load calculation shows how much load your panel already carries, and we do one before anything new goes on it. It tells you whether the heat pump needs a new circuit, a larger service or no panel work at all.
More from us
Other electrical services we offer
Tell us about the electrical job in Victoria
Call and tell us the job: the estimate is free, and tracing a hidden fault is $165 for a 45-minute diagnostic.