Smart Home Electrician Across British Columbia
Need smart switches, dimmers or a smart thermostat installed? The Wire Guys wires them into homes across British Columbia, checking your switch boxes and thermostat wiring first.
Licensed Electrical Contractor
Licensed and insured in British Columbia.
WorkSafeBC Registered
Active and in good standing, with continuous coverage since 30 September 2019.
BBB Accredited
Accredited since 2023.
Canadian family owned, working across British Columbia since 2019.
Get a quoteWhat does a smart home electrician do in British Columbia?
A smart home electrician wires smart switches, smart dimmers and smart thermostats into homes and runs any new wiring or circuit they need, and that is what we do across British Columbia. A smart device often asks more of the wiring than the switch or thermostat it replaces, so the box and the thermostat wires decide how big the job is.
- Most smart switches need a neutral wire in the switch box, which many older boxes lack.
- Most smart thermostats need a C wire to stay powered.
- A straight swap in the same box usually needs no permit. New wiring does, and we pull it.
When does a smart device need an electrician?
A smart switch, dimmer or wall thermostat that replaces a wired one is electrical work; a smart bulb or plug-in device is not.
The smart version can need steady power at the switch, more room in the box or a C wire at the thermostat, so we check the wiring before any work starts. If a smart home upgrade is part of a bigger job, we plan it into the wiring for a renovation.
Before a smart switch goes in
Will your wiring take a smart switch? Neutral wires and switch boxes
Most smart switches and dimmers need two things an ordinary switch never did: a neutral wire at the switch location and more room inside the box. The neutral keeps a smart switch's electronics powered, even while the light is off. In British Columbia, today's electrical code asks for a neutral at the switch itself, not just at the light, so boxes wired before that rule often have none.
What decides whether your switch box can take one:
- Room in the box. The Canadian Electrical Code limits how much fits in a box, called box fill, so a bulky smart dimmer can need a deeper box.
- No-neutral models. Some smart switches are built for boxes without a neutral, but not every model suits every job.
- The usual fixes. An electrician can run a new cable with a neutral to the box, or fit a deeper box.
A warm switch plate, a burning smell or a tripping breaker is a fault we trace and fix before any smart switch goes in.
- An ordinary switch only breaks the live wire.
- A smart switch also needs a neutral in the box.
- A bulkier smart device needs more room in the box.
We check the switch box for a neutral and for room first, and tell you which fix it needs before we go ahead.
The four questions
Smart switches and dimmers we install
We install Lutron, Leviton and Legrand switches and dimmers, and you choose the model when your box can take it.
A smart light switch replaces an ordinary wall switch when the box has a neutral and room for it. A smart dimmer switch is usually the bulkiest, so it is the most likely to need a deeper box. A three-way switch, which works one light from two places, needs a matching companion switch.
We also fit regular switches and dimmers as part of our lighting work.
Smart thermostat installation and the C wire
Most smart thermostats need a C wire, a "common" wire that carries a small, steady supply of power from the furnace or heat pump so the thermostat stays powered all the time. A simple heat-only thermostat can run without one. A spare wire in the wall only counts if its other end is connected at the C terminal on the furnace control board.
The smart thermostat wiring already in the wall decides the fix: a new thermostat cable, a connection at the furnace's C terminal, or an adapter kit. We check the thermostat wiring first and tell you which fix your system needs before we go ahead.
A baseboard heater's line-voltage thermostat runs on full household power and needs no C wire, so thermostats for baseboard heat are a separate job.
How much does smart switch installation cost?
We charge $135 an hour for a Red Seal electrician plus a helper, and many jobs are priced at a flat rate once we have seen what your smart switches or thermostat need. The consultation and the estimate are free. We hold 4.7 stars across 137 reviews on Google.
What changes the price:
- A box that already has a neutral is a smaller job than one that needs a new cable.
- The smart thermostat installation cost depends mostly on whether a C wire is already there and connected.
- More devices, or a wall that has to be opened, add time.
If a switch or circuit has already stopped working, tracing a wiring fault is $165 for a 45-minute diagnostic that tells you what the problem is and how we are going to fix it.
Do you need a permit or a new circuit for smart devices?
Swapping a device already in the wall and adding new wiring follow different permit rules.
A licensed contractor can swap a switch, dimmer or thermostat for a smart one in the same box, on the same circuit, without a permit. New wiring or a new device location needs one, and then we pull the permit and attend the inspection.
A device that needs power where there is none may need a new outlet nearby or a new circuit, and we check whether your panel has room.
An older switch box can hide original knob and tube wiring or aluminum wiring, and if so we show you what we found and what the fix is.
A hardwired smart smoke alarm or smart CO detector is wired in the same way as the interconnected smoke and CO alarms we install.
Our smart home wiring process
If we find anything unexpected, we get your approval before any extra work begins.
- 01
You get the quote in writing first. It is priced on what your boxes and wiring need.
- 02
We pull the permit when the job needs one. We file it before new wiring begins.
- 03
We install and wire. We fit the devices you chose and run any new wiring, following the quote you approved.
- 04
We test it and show you. We work to a checklist on every job, marked complete as we go, and we show you each device working before we leave.
What if a smart switch or thermostat we installed is not right?
Call us if a light flickers, a switch will not turn off or a thermostat keeps losing power.
If something we installed is not right, we come back.
Phone 778-708-0451 and tell us what it is doing.
If an inspection fails. If our work does not pass, we put it right, call the inspector back and cover the cost.
Our guarantee. We give a one-year guarantee on new construction and six months on renovations.
Your smart home electrician
The 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.
Most smart home installation requests come with a renovation or an upgrade. We work across the province, from electrical work in Abbotsford and homes in Chilliwack to smart wiring in Vancouver and houses in Victoria.
We are licensed and insured.
What our customers say
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I spoke with Jas to set up installing a 36 inch ceiling fan. Two guys arrived on time and did a great job with the installation and installing a switch. They even offered to sweep up the little bits of dust from the install. Excellent prices and professionally run.
Frequently asked questions
Our services page lists every kind of electrical work we do.
We are open 24 hours.
Any questions? Call 778-708-0451 Do you need an electrician to install a smart thermostat?
Not always. A furnace or heat pump thermostat runs on a thin, low-power wire, and it only becomes a wiring job when there is no C wire. A baseboard heater thermostat carries full household power, so it is electrical work from the start.
Will you leave holes in my walls?
A straight swap usually needs no opening. When a new cable has no path through an attic or basement, we may make a small opening and patch the drywall afterwards.
Why is my final bill higher than the quote?
A quote is priced on what we can see, and we tell you before the job changes. On smart jobs, the usual cause is hidden in the wall, such as no clear path for a new cable or older wiring behind the box.
How do I check an electrician is licensed and insured?
Ask for licensed-contractor status and proof of insurance in writing, and ask who pulls the permit. Check for active WorkSafeBC coverage and read reviews on a site the company does not run.
We have held WorkSafeBC coverage continuously since 30 September 2019.
Have this ready when you call:
- Tell us which smart devices you plan to use, and whether they need a neutral or a C wire.
- Tell us how many switches you want changed, and whether any light has two switches.
- Say whether you heat with a furnace, a heat pump or baseboard heaters.
- Tell us roughly when the house was built.
Other electrical services we offer
Book your smart switch or thermostat estimate
Call 778-708-0451 for a free estimate. If something has already stopped working, tracing the fault is $165 for a 45-minute diagnostic.