Electrical Repair Services Durham, NC
Lights that flicker, outlets that quit, breakers that trip. Brian Electric repairs electrical problems in homes across Durham and nearby towns. We find the cause before we fix it, so it stays fixed.
- Licensed in North Carolina
- Same-day visits often open
- Price before any work starts
Find Your Problem
Common Electrical Problems We Repair in Durham
Pick what you are seeing. You will get the usual cause, how soon to call and where to read more.
Lights flicker
Usual cause
One light flickering is often a loose bulb, a worn switch or a loose wire in the box. Lights flickering across the whole house can mean a loose main connection.
How soon
Whole house: call today. One light: book a visit.
Outlet is dead
Usual cause
Check for a tripped GFCI in a bathroom, garage or outside first. If that is not it, a loose wire upstream has likely let go.
How soon
Book a visit, unless it is warm or smells burnt.
Breaker keeps tripping
Usual cause
An overloaded circuit, a short, a ground fault, or a breaker that is wearing out.
How soon
Book a visit. Hot or buzzing breaker: call now.
Half the house lost power
Usual cause
Often a problem with one leg of your service, at the main breaker, the meter or the utility line. It can damage appliances.
How soon
Call now. Check with Duke Energy for an outage too.
Switch or outlet is hot
Usual cause
A loose connection or a worn device is heating up. Dimmers run slightly warm, but hot is not normal.
How soon
Turn it off and call now.
Burning smell
Usual cause
Something is overheating, in a device, a box or the panel.
How soon
Turn off the breaker if you can do it safely, and call now.
Fan or light will not work
Usual cause
A failed switch, a loose connection in the box or a worn fixture.
How soon
Book a visit.
Old or ungrounded wiring
Usual cause
Two-prong outlets, cloth wire, knob and tube or aluminum wiring that is wearing out.
How soon
Book a visit.
How We Troubleshoot
We Find the Cause, Not Just the Symptom
As a licensed electrician in Durham, NC, we treat the problem you see as a clue. Here is how we track down the real cause.
Trace the Circuit
We find every outlet, light and switch on the circuit, so we know where the fault can be hiding.
Test Under Load
Some faults only show up when power is flowing. We test voltage and current, not just whether a wire is live.
Open the Connections
Loose, burned or backstabbed wires cause most repairs. We check the boxes along the circuit, not just the one that failed.
Everyday Repairs
Home Electrical Repairs We Handle in Durham
Not every repair starts at the panel. These are the calls we get most often, from one silent doorbell to a dryer that stopped heating.
Light Fixtures
- You notice
- Buzzing, flickering or no light at all
- We check
- The socket, the switch and the wires in the box
Doorbells
- You notice
- The doorbell went quiet
- We check
- The transformer and the wire to each button
Smoke Detectors
- You notice
- Chirping, false alarms or units over 10 years old
- We check
- New detectors, tested so they all sound together
Dryer Circuits
- You notice
- The dryer tumbles but will not heat
- We check
- The dryer outlet, the wire and the breaker, before you pay for appliance repair
Range Circuits
- You notice
- Dead burners or an oven that will not warm up
- We check
- The range outlet or hookup, the wire and the double breaker
Water Heater Circuits
- You notice
- No hot water from an electric heater
- We check
- The breaker, the wire and the connection at the heater
Sparks, smoke or a burning smell? Do not wait for a repair visit. Turn off the breaker if it is safe and call our emergency electrician line.
Older Homes
Repair or Rewire? Older Durham Homes
Many Durham homes, like those in Duke Park, still run on their original wiring. Often a single fix solves it. But when the wire itself is worn out all through the house, patching it one box at a time stops making sense, and our house wiring and rewiring page is worth a read.
- Knob and tube runs
- Cloth-covered wire
- Aluminum connections
- Ungrounded outlets
Signs a Repair Will Hold
- The problem is in one box, one device or one circuit
- The wire insulation is still flexible where we open it up
- Aluminum wire with connections we can redo using parts made for aluminum
- The rest of the circuit tests fine after the fix
Signs the Old Wire Is Worn Out
- We find brittle or cracked insulation in box after box
- New faults turn up on a different circuit every few months
- Most of the house has no ground wire
- Your insurer or a buyer’s inspector flags the old wiring
We show you what we found, so you can decide.
More Repairs
Inspection Reports and Rental Repairs
Home Inspection Repair Lists
Buying or selling? We work through the electrical items on your inspection report, like missing GFCIs, open grounds, double-tapped breakers and loose outlets.
- We fix the items on the report
- Clear notes on what was done
- Work timed around your closing
Rental Properties and Landlords
For landlords and property managers, we handle repairs between tenants and the calls that come in while a unit is occupied.
- Repairs between tenants
- Smoke detector replacement
- Updates on what we found
The Visit
How an Electrical Repair Visit Works in Durham
Call and Describe It
On the phone we tell you what kind of visit you need and what it costs for us to come look.
Find the Cause
We trace the circuit, test it and open the connections until we find the fault.
Price Before Work
You hear what is wrong and what the fix costs before we start.
Fix and Test
We make the repair, test the whole circuit and show you what we did.
Service Area
Electrical Repair in Durham and the Triangle
We are based in Durham and repair electrical problems in homes all over the Triangle. Not sure if we come to your town? Call and ask.
Neighborhoods We Serve
View All Service AreasFAQ
Electrical Repair FAQs
Not sure what is wrong? Call and tell us what you are seeing, and we will tell you what comes next.
Call (984) 271-2113How much does an electrical repair visit cost?
When you call, we tell you what kind of visit you need and what it costs for us to come look. Once we find the cause, you get the price of the repair before any work starts.
Can you come out the same day?
Often, yes. Same-day repair visits are common when the schedule allows. If it is an emergency, our line is open 24/7.
Do you fix items from a home inspection report?
Yes. Send us the electrical part of the report. We fix the items on it, like missing GFCIs, open grounds and double-tapped breakers, and tell you what we did.
Why do my lights flicker?
One flickering light is usually a loose bulb, a worn switch or a loose wire. If lights flicker or dim all over the house, it can be a loose main connection, and you should call right away.
Why did half my house lose power?
Most homes have two legs of power. When one fails, at the main breaker, the meter or the utility line, half the circuits go dead. Check for a Duke Energy outage, then call us.
Will you come out for a small repair?
Yes. One dead outlet, a broken switch or a light that will not turn on are all worth fixing, and small problems often point to a bigger one nearby.
Do you do repairs for landlords and property managers?
Yes. We handle repairs in rental homes, between tenants and while units are occupied, and we keep you updated on what we find.
Do electrical repairs need a permit?
Small repairs, like replacing an outlet or switch, usually do not. New circuits, panel work and rewiring usually do. When a permit is needed, we pull it and set up the inspection.