Older homes in McLean were built for a different set of demands. The wiring that served a household in the 1960s or 1970s was sized for far fewer circuits than a modern home runs, and the panels that came with those houses were not designed to carry today's loads. If you are living in one of those properties, or managing one, the electrical system underneath the walls is worth understanding. We handle the full range of work those homes call for, from tracing a fault that has been nagging for months to replacing a panel that has simply run out of room.
We also take on newer construction, additions, and commercial spaces throughout the area. Call us and we will scope the job on the phone before anything is scheduled. We are available every day from 5:30 AM to 9:00 PM.
Call (571) 933-9789 for a quote.
A ceiling fan that has been sitting in a box is usually waiting on one thing: a properly rated box in the ceiling and wiring that supports both the motor and the light kit. Older homes often have a standard fixture box where a fan needs to go, and swapping them without addressing the wiring is a shortcut that causes problems later. We install the right box, run the circuit if one is not in place, and test the fan before we leave.
Replacing a fixture is straightforward when the wiring is already there. Recessed and LED lighting installations sometimes involve running new circuits, especially in rooms that were never set up for overhead lighting. We handle both ends of that job: the wiring and the fixture, finished and tested in the same visit where the scope allows.
A panel where half the breakers are labeled "misc" or not labeled at all makes every electrical job harder than it needs to be. We trace each circuit back to its source, label the breaker correctly, and document what feeds where. For older homes that have had work done by multiple people over the years, that kind of clarity is genuinely useful before any larger project starts.
A safety inspection covers the panel, the branch circuits, grounding, and the presence of GFCI and AFCI protection where current code requires it. For a home purchase or a rental property, the inspection gives a clear picture of what the system looks like and what needs attention. We document what we find and explain what, if anything, needs to be corrected.
A dryer, a range, a refrigerator, or a Level 2 EV charger each needs its own circuit. Running a high-draw appliance on a shared circuit is what causes lights to dim when the appliance starts, and it puts stress on a breaker that was not designed for that load. We size the breaker, run the wire, and install the correct outlet for the appliance. Arc-fault and ground-fault breakers go in where code calls for them.
A light that needs to be controlled from two ends of a hallway, or from the top and bottom of a staircase, requires three-way switching. Older homes sometimes have these wired in ways that made sense at the time but do not meet current code. We install new three-way and multi-location switching in both new and existing construction, and we correct wiring that has been done incorrectly before.
It usually is. The gap between tenants is the easiest window to do work that would otherwise mean coordinating around someone's schedule or cutting power to a space that is in use. When no one is living in the property, we can open walls, pull circuits, and run new wiring without the back-and-forth that comes with an occupied home.
Access is arranged on the call. If you are managing the property remotely, we work through the details before the visit so nothing is left to chance on the day. Landlords and property managers in McLean use that window to handle outlet replacements, hard-wired smoke and carbon monoxide detector installation, GFCI protection in bathrooms and kitchens, and any code corrections that came up during an inspection. Getting that work done between tenants means the next occupant moves into a property that has been checked and corrected, not one where the issues are still outstanding.
We protect your floors and finishes while we work. That matters in a finished property where the goal is to hand it back in good condition.
The price for an electrical job is shaped by what the fault turns out to be, what has to be opened up to reach it, and whether the existing circuit or panel can carry what is being added. A single outlet replacement is a different scope from a repair that uncovers a wiring problem behind the wall. A dedicated circuit for a new appliance is a different scope from the same circuit in a panel that has no room left and needs work before anything can be added.
When you call, we talk through the job and give you a rate before anything is scheduled. That applies to a small repair and to a larger project like a panel upgrade or a whole-home rewiring. You know what the work covers and what it costs before we arrive. If the scope changes once we open the wall or pull the panel, we tell you before the work expands.
What can move a quote in either direction includes the age of the existing wiring, whether the panel has available capacity, how much access the work requires, and whether permits are part of the process. We confirm what applies to your job on the call. Quick response. Code-correct work. Tidy finish.
A real person answers when you call. They know the trade and can scope the job on the phone, so you are not leaving a message and waiting. We are available every day from 5:30 AM to 9:00 PM, and we take short-notice calls for problems that will not keep.
For a business that has to stay open, or a tenant who cannot be without power for a full day, we talk through the timing on the call and find an approach that fits. Some repairs can be isolated to a single circuit so the rest of the building stays live. Others need a full shutoff for a short window, and we plan that around the tenant's schedule. The goal is to finish the work without making the day harder than it needs to be for whoever is in the space.
Dependable service. A price agreed before we start. Local know-how.
Not every electrical fault is on our side of the meter. When a home loses power partially or completely, the first question is whether the problem is inside the panel or upstream of it. We work through that on the call and, if needed, during the visit. A partial outage that affects one area of the home is usually a breaker or a wiring fault. A complete outage with no other houses affected points inside the property. A complete outage where neighbors are also without power points to the utility.
If the fault turns out to be on the utility's side, we tell you that clearly and walk you through what to report and to whom. We do not bill for work that turns out to be the utility's responsibility. What we can do is confirm the fault is not on your side so you are not waiting on a repair that is not coming from inside the house.
We keep you informed from diagnosis to final test, which matters especially when the answer is that the problem belongs somewhere else.
We handle electrical work throughout McLean and the surrounding parts of Fairfax County, including Pimmit Hills, Tysons, Cabin John, Glen Echo, and Brookmont. If your property is in this part of Northern Virginia, we cover it.
The process is the same regardless of which community you are in. A call, a quote, and a scheduled visit. We are not going to ask you to work out whether your address is in our range. A quick read of our page of electrical services covers the rest.
Call us at (571) 933-9789 and we will confirm it on the spot.
Homes built in the 1960s and 1970s frequently have panels that were sized for far fewer circuits than a modern household runs. Common issues include breakers that trip under ordinary loads, outlets without GFCI protection in kitchens and bathrooms, and branch circuits that were added over the years without documentation. A safety inspection is usually the clearest way to get a picture of what the system looks like and what, if anything, needs to be corrected.
An inspection report covers the condition of the panel, the branch circuits, outlets, grounding, and the presence of GFCI and AFCI protection where current code requires it. It identifies anything that falls outside code compliance and describes what the correction would involve. The report gives the property owner or buyer a clear picture of the system's current state.
If we discover unsafe work during a visit, we explain what we found and what it means before doing anything additional. Work that poses an immediate risk is addressed with your agreement before we leave. Work that is substandard but not immediately dangerous is documented and quoted so you can decide how to proceed.
If the same fault returns, call us and describe what is happening. We assess whether it is related to the original repair and handle it accordingly. A fault that returns in the same location shortly after a repair is not treated as an unrelated new job.
Yes. We cover McLean and the surrounding communities, including Pimmit Hills, Tysons, Cabin John, Glen Echo, and Brookmont. The same process applies regardless of which community the property is in.
Call us at (571) 933-9789 and we will confirm your address is covered before anything else.
Work that involves open trenches, exposed connections, or fixtures being wired in wet conditions is scheduled around the weather where safety requires it. We confirm the plan on the call and let you know if conditions are likely to affect the timing.
We assess the condition and the installation standard of existing outdoor wiring before deciding whether it can be reused. Wiring that is not correctly rated for outdoor use, is improperly protected, or does not meet current code requirements is replaced rather than extended. We explain what we found and why before any work is done.
Coordination is needed at the rough-in stage, when framing is open and cable is being run, and at the finish stage, when fixtures, outlets, and the panel connections are completed. If the renovation involves significant structural changes or a staged build, we may need to be involved at interim points as well. We work that out with the builder or project manager at the start.
Flickering lights and warm outlets are warning signs, not quirks. You do not need to have the answer before you call. Describing what you are seeing is enough. We take it from there, scope the job on the phone, and tell you what it will cost before anything is scheduled.
Call (571) 933-9789.
We are available every day from 5:30 AM to 9:00 PM. Reach out to us at [email protected] if you prefer to start that way.
Close by, we also take electrical work in: Bethesda, West Falls Church, Oakton, Annandale, Silver Spring.
The rest are on our coverage details.
Below is a look at the electrical work we handle for homes, rental properties, and businesses across McLean. Each service is scoped on the call before anything is scheduled, so you know what the job covers and what it costs before we arrive. Whether the need is a straightforward repair or a larger project like a panel upgrade or whole-home rewire, the process starts the same way: a call, a clear price, and a scheduled visit.
| Electrical Service | Scope of Work | Best For | Good to Know |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wiring & Circuit Installation | New circuit runs from the panelWiring repairs on existing circuitsHard-wired smoke and CO detector installationBathroom exhaust fan wiring | Any property adding circuits or correcting wiring that is not performing to code | We walk through the scope and access requirements before scheduling. |
| Electrical Panel & Service Upgrades | Panel replacement and load calculationService entrance workAFCI and GFCI breaker installationSubpanel installation for garages and additions | Older homes with 100-amp service, fuse boxes, or panels with no room for new circuits | McLean homes span a wide range of ages and panel types. A load calculation confirms what size service the property actually needs before any panel work is scheduled. |
| Lighting Installation | Recessed and LED fixture installationExterior and security lightingLandscape lighting circuitsCommercial workspace lighting | Residential and commercial properties updating fixtures or adding lighting circuits | If the existing circuit does not have the capacity for a new lighting layout, we handle the circuit work as part of the same job. |
Call (571) 933-9789 to talk through the job and get a price before anything is scheduled.
(571) 933-9789