Your insurance company gave you 30 days to remove the knob and tube wiring. Every other electrician you’ve called says they’ll need to cut open your walls, patch everything back up, and you’ll be left matching 100-year-old horsehair plaster that doesn’t exist anymore.
That’s not how we work. We insert a specialized camera system directly through your existing outlets to locate, inspect, and remove old wiring from inside your walls. No cutting. No notching. No damage to your original plaster, trim, or wallpaper.
You get a fully updated electrical system that satisfies your insurance requirements and keeps your home looking exactly the way it should. Most of our clients in East Providence have their coverage reinstated within days of completion—with the documentation insurance companies actually need to close the file.
We’ve been serving Rhode Island homeowners for over 30 years. We’re master electricians who specialize in historic home electrical upgrades—the kind of work that requires more than just technical skill.
East Providence is full of beautiful older homes. Victorians, Colonials, bungalows built between 1880 and 1950. Many still have their original plaster walls, intricate molding, and architectural details you can’t replace. We developed our camera-based process specifically for homes like yours, where preserving what’s original matters just as much as upgrading what’s unsafe.
No other electrician in the area uses this system. Everyone else will tell you they need to open your walls. We don’t.
We start with an inspection. Our camera system gets inserted through your existing outlets and light fixtures to see exactly what’s happening inside your walls. We’re looking for the wiring itself, but also for mouse damage, bad connections, covered junction boxes, and open joints that create fire risks.
Once we map out your system, we remove the old knob and tube wiring using the same access points—your outlets. The camera guides the process. We’re not guessing where wires run or cutting exploratory holes to figure it out.
Then we install your new wiring, update your panel if needed, and make sure everything is up to code. We handle the permits and schedule the inspection. You get full documentation that your insurance company will accept, and your home looks untouched. If there’s any wall access needed at all—and usually there isn’t—it’s minimal. A small notch at most, not the kind of damage that requires a plasterer and a painter to fix.
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You’re not just getting wiring pulled out. You’re getting a complete electrical upgrade designed for how you actually live now. That means enough circuits to handle your appliances, computers, TVs, and anything else you’re plugging in. It means grounded outlets that protect your electronics. It means a system built to current code that won’t trip breakers every time you run the microwave and the coffee maker at the same time.
In East Providence, most of the homes we work on are between 1,200 and 2,500 square feet. The timeline depends on your home’s layout and how accessible everything is, but most projects take one to three weeks from start to finish. We’re not the fastest option, but we’re the only one that won’t leave you with a repair bill on top of the electrical work.
You also get the documentation your insurance company requires. That includes proof that licensed electricians completed the work and that it passed inspection. We’ve done this enough times to know exactly what they’re looking for, and we make sure you have it before we consider the job done.
Yes. Most insurance companies won’t cover homes with active knob and tube wiring anymore, and the ones that do usually require you to remove it within 30 days of finding out it’s there. It’s not a bluff.
The reason is fire risk. Knob and tube wiring was installed between the 1880s and 1940s, and the cloth insulation deteriorates over time. That leaves bare wires in contact with wood framing. Add in the fact that these systems were designed for a fraction of the electrical load we use today, and you’ve got a real problem. Insurance companies see it as a liability they’re not willing to take on.
If you’ve received a cancellation notice, you’re usually looking at a tight deadline. The good news is that once the wiring is removed and you provide the right documentation, most companies reinstate coverage quickly. Some clients even see their premiums drop because the fire risk is gone.
We use a specialized camera system that gets inserted through your existing outlets and light fixtures. The camera lets us see inside your walls so we can locate the wiring, inspect its condition, and map out how it runs through your home.
Once we know where everything is, we remove the old wiring through those same access points. We’re not cutting exploratory holes or opening up sections of wall to figure out what’s there. The camera does that work for us. Then we install the new wiring using the same non-invasive approach.
This is especially important in historic homes with horsehair plaster. That material is nearly impossible to match if it gets damaged, and traditional methods require cutting it open. Our process keeps your original plaster intact. If any wall access is needed—and it usually isn’t—it’s minimal. You’re not hiring a plasterer and a painter to put your house back together after we leave.
Most homeowners in East Providence pay between $12,000 and $36,000 for a complete knob and tube wiring replacement, depending on the size of the home, how many circuits you need, and how accessible everything is. A 1,200 square foot bungalow costs less than a 2,500 square foot Victorian with multiple stories and limited attic or basement access.
The cost includes removing all the old wiring, installing a new system that meets current electrical code, updating your panel if necessary, and handling the permits and inspections. You’re also paying for a process that doesn’t damage your walls. If you go with a traditional electrician who cuts open your walls, you’ll save money on the electrical work itself—but then you’re paying for drywall or plaster repair, painting, and potentially matching materials that don’t exist anymore.
We’ll give you an accurate estimate after we inspect your home. No guessing, no surprises halfway through the job.
Insurance companies typically want it all removed. Even if some sections are in decent condition, they’re not going to make exceptions. They see knob and tube wiring as a fire risk, and they want it gone.
From a safety perspective, it’s the right call. Knob and tube wiring doesn’t have a ground wire, which means no surge protection for your electronics. The insulation deteriorates over time, especially in areas where it’s been exposed to moisture or rodents. And the system wasn’t designed to handle the electrical load that modern homes require. You’re running computers, TVs, kitchen appliances, and HVAC systems on wiring that was built for a few lights and maybe a radio.
Removing it all also means you’re starting with a clean slate. You get a system that’s built for how you actually use electricity now, with enough capacity and the right safety features. Trying to keep some of the old wiring and patch in new sections just creates more problems down the road.
Most projects take one to three weeks, depending on the size of your home and how accessible the wiring is. A smaller home with good attic and basement access goes faster. A larger home with multiple stories, finished ceilings, or limited access takes longer.
We’re not rushing through the job just to finish quickly. We’re using a camera system to inspect and remove wiring without damaging your walls, and that takes more time than traditional methods. But it also means you’re not spending weeks after we leave dealing with plaster repairs and repainting.
The timeline also includes permits and inspections. We handle all of that, and we make sure everything is scheduled properly so you’re not waiting around for the city to show up. Once the inspection passes, you get the documentation your insurance company needs, and the job is done.
We insert a specialized camera through your outlets and light fixtures to see what’s happening inside your walls. The camera shows us where the knob and tube wiring runs, what condition it’s in, and whether there are any immediate safety issues like mouse damage, bad connections, or open joints.
We’re also looking for covered junction boxes, which are a code violation and a fire hazard. A lot of older homes have them because previous owners or electricians took shortcuts. The camera inspection catches those problems before they become bigger issues.
The inspection gives us everything we need to map out the removal process and give you an accurate estimate. You’re not paying for guesswork or exploratory work where we cut into walls just to see what’s there. We know what’s there before we start, and we can show you exactly what we’re dealing with.
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