Upgrade

A lot of homes around Baltimore were wired for a different era: fewer appliances, no home offices, no electric cars. If your electrical system is struggling to keep up, or you’re planning a renovation, an upgrade makes the house safer and more useful. Kushner Electric is led by master electrician Shlomo “Sol” Kushner, who has more than 20 years in the trade and is licensed in Maryland, Baltimore City, Baltimore County and Howard County.

What an upgrade can include

Service and panel upgrades

Your electrical service is how much power the house can draw from the utility, and the breaker panel is where it’s divided into circuits. When you add big loads like an EV charger, a hot tub or a kitchen full of new appliances, the service or the panel can become the limit. We upgrade services, replace breaker panels, and reorganize crowded panels so every circuit is clearly laid out. You can see examples of service upgrades and panel organization in our portfolio.

We take care of the permit, the inspection and scheduling with BGE, so you don’t have to.

Dedicated circuits

Some equipment should have a circuit of its own: microwaves, washers, dryers, computers and home offices, and A/C units. If a breaker trips whenever two things run at once, a dedicated circuit is often the answer.

AFCI and GFCI protection

GFCI outlets and breakers cut power when they detect a ground fault, which protects people from shocks near water in kitchens, bathrooms, laundry areas and outdoors. AFCI protection guards against arcing faults in wiring, a common cause of electrical fires. Adding them is one of the most cost-effective safety upgrades for an older home.

Renovations and remodels

Kitchen renovations, bathroom remodels, room additions and tenant improvements usually mean new circuits, new outlets and new lighting. One customer had us rewire their kitchen for a renovation and said we explained the options well and were upfront about pricing.

EV charging, hot tubs and pools

We install electric vehicle charging stations and wire pools and hot tubs. These are large loads, so we check whether your panel and service can handle them before we start.

Lighting and fans

Recessed, indoor, outdoor, security and landscape lighting, wall packs, ceiling fans, chandeliers, and exhaust and attic fans. See Aesthetics for more on lighting design.

Network cabling and surge protection

Cat 5 cabling and wiring for a reliable wired network, and surge protectors to protect electronics. Whole-house surge protection is covered on our Safety page.

Code corrections and generator maintenance

If an inspection or a home sale turned up code problems, we correct them. We also maintain existing generators so they’re ready when you need them.

Signs it may be time to upgrade

• You still have a fuse box, or the panel is old, rusty or full
• Breakers trip when you run the microwave and toaster together
• Lights dim when the A/C or another big appliance starts
• You’re relying on extension cords and power strips
• You’re adding an EV charger, hot tub, addition or new kitchen
• The house has older wiring that has never been checked

What to expect

We start by looking at what you have and what you want to add. Sol will explain what’s needed and why, give you options where there are options, and tell you what each will cost before work begins. On bigger jobs, customers tell us we stick to the quote, keep them updated, and work to keep the disruption small. On one whole-house rewiring, another electrician had said the walls would have to come down; we kept the work minimally invasive and patched the holes we made.

Common questions

Do I need a bigger service or just a new panel?

Not always both. Sometimes the service is big enough and the panel is the problem; sometimes it’s the other way around. We’ll check and tell you.

Can you work around my schedule?

We try to. Customers have told us we worked with their timeline on large projects and around work schedules on smaller ones.

My panel needs a repair, not a replacement. Can you help?

Yes. Panel and breaker repairs are on our Repair page.