How to Evaluate an Electrician

Construction and home repair are two industries where contractors are constantly scrutinized. However, it is usually with good reason. There are numerous contractors working in the field who have no problem charging customers extremely high prices for sub-standard work.

In each trade, there are good and bad contractors. The key is to know how to avoid the bad ones. How can you ensure that the electrician you hired is a good one? How can you tell if he provided quality work? The only way you can prevent becoming a victim of a sloppy job is to learn how to evaluate an electrician's work and the electrician himself prior to hiring him.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• A good eye for detail
• Pencil
• Notepad

1. Your first step to evaluating your electrician is to meet him before you hire him. Have him come out to your home to inspect the job prior to doing it. If he wants to give you a quote for the job without seeing it, find someone else for the job.

2. When the electrician pulls up to your home, try to get a glimpse of how he keeps his truck or van. Is it filthy inside? Are there used parts lying all around?
   
   In most cases, an electrician who keeps his truck filthy will not be very effective at cleaning up the mess he makes in your home.

3. You will also want to pay attention to how the electrician presents himself. Does he act and look professional? While he is scoping out the job, is he complaining about things? Does he look frustrated about the job before he has even started it?

4. Next, evaluate the electrician's contract. Does it specify the installation date you agreed on?
   
   The details of the job, along with all materials to be used should be clearly outlined. This includes any name-brand fixtures or equipment to be installed. The cost of materials and labor should also be included on the contract.

5. Once the electrician has completed his work, be sure to walk over the job site with him. Look for any signs of a sloppy clean-up, like drywall dust still lingering around.

6. If the job required wire to be run, the wire should be secured at regular intervals and not hanging loose. If the job required an installation of a switch or receptacle, make sure that they are mounted flush to the wall and installed evenly.

7. Most importantly, make sure everything works before the electrician leaves your home. If something doesn't look right or work properly, have him fix it right then and there. If he can't fix it that day, then tell him that he will be paid upon final completion of the job. Write down any imperfections or additional repairs on the notepad so you have a record of it.

8. At the end of the day, the electrician's work should look as if it has always been there, and there should be no evidence of work having been performed.

Tips & Warnings

• Always hire an electrician who has a valid electrical license.
• Hire a master electrician for wiring work, not a journeyman electrician
• Get a written contract upfront.
• Ask the electrician for a list of references (previous clients).
• Avoid hiring friends to do your electrical work unless they are a licensed electrician.
• Avoid hiring an electrician without knowing their contact information (business address and phone number).

[Sprice]

on 7/9/2008 Great advice. Too many people these days want to give you the shaft so its nice to know what to look for! thanks!

[JASCOTT]

on 3/16/2008 Finally someone says not to have friends to the work, although working for an electrical and plumbing company for 10 years, the owner was the master electrician and plumber, so a company doesnt have to have all workers as master electricians, or journeymen for that matter, so asking for a master electrician is ok but typically companies have employees who are just as capable of doing the same work as the master electrician, also phone estimates are very common, when you do typical jobs over and over, i.e. adding ceiling fans, you know what your getting into and a good electrician will ask the appropriate questions to get the information he needs, such as age of the house, attic access, adding switches, etc. so dont be quick to call elsewhere if they are professional and good you will know by a phone call.