Outlets & Lighting
Outlet, switch, and lighting installation in Spokane.
Added outlets, GFCI protection, recessed lighting, fixtures, ceiling fans, and outdoor power for homes across Spokane, Spokane Valley and Liberty Lake.
What we do
- Adding outlets and switches
- GFCI and AFCI protection
- Recessed lighting
- Fixture replacement
- Ceiling fans and fan-rated boxes
- Dimmers and smart switches
- Outdoor and landscape lighting
- Dedicated circuits
Common jobs we handle
- Add outlets to a room that came up short
- Replace two-prong receptacles
- Install recessed lighting in a plaster ceiling
- Hang a ceiling fan where there's only a light box
- Add weather-rated outdoor outlets
- Wire a garage or workshop circuit
When to call an electrician
- You're running extension cords
- Two-prong outlets in the house
- A room is too dark to use well
- You want a fan where a light is
- You need outdoor or holiday power
- A new appliance needs its own circuit
Outlets and switches
Most homes were wired for how people lived when they were built, which is why so many rooms are one outlet short of usable. We add receptacles where you actually need them and make sure the circuit behind them can carry the load.
- Adding outlets in rooms that came up short
- Replacing two-prong receptacles with grounded ones
- GFCI and AFCI protection where code requires it
- USB-C receptacles
- Weather-rated outdoor outlets with in-use covers
- Garage and workshop circuits
- Dedicated circuits for appliances
- Dedicated circuits for home offices
Recessed and interior lighting
Recessed lighting
Layout, joist coordination, and clean cuts, including the slower, more careful work that plaster ceilings in older Spokane homes require.
Under-cabinet lighting
Task lighting for kitchens and workbenches, switched and dimmed properly rather than plugged into whatever's nearby.
Fixture replacement
Swapping out dated fixtures, adding new ones, and correcting the box and support while we're in there.
Dimmers and smart switches
Compatible dimming for your actual bulbs, and smart switches where the box has the neutral to support them.
Ceiling fans and fan-rated boxes
This one surprises people often enough to be worth spelling out: the light box already in your ceiling usually cannot carry a ceiling fan. Standard fixture boxes are rated for the static weight of a light. A fan adds weight plus continuous vibration, and it needs a fan-rated box braced to the framing.
Swapping in a fan-rated box is ordinary work, and in many cases we can do it from below without opening the ceiling. When we can't, we'll tell you before we start rather than after.
Outdoor and landscape lighting
- Exterior wall and soffit fixtures
- Landscape and path lighting
- Weather-rated boxes, covers, and in-use covers
- Motion sensors and photocells
- Outdoor receptacles for tools and holiday power
- Gear rated for Spokane winters, not just the catalog photo
Two-prong outlets and older homes
Grounded three-slot receptacles weren't required throughout a home until the 1962 code. Laundry receptacles came in 1947, and outdoor, garage, and basement receptacles were added in the 1956 code. So if your Spokane house predates 1962 and has two-prong outlets, that's how it was built, not something that went wrong.
The right fix depends on what's in the wall. If a ground path exists or can be run, we ground the receptacle properly. If it can't, GFCI protection with the required labeling is the code-compliant alternative. What we will not do is put a three-prong receptacle on an ungrounded circuit with no GFCI behind it. That only makes the outlet look safe. If most of the house is ungrounded, it's worth reading about whole-home rewiring.
When a small job isn't small
Sometimes adding one outlet is adding one outlet. Other times the cover comes off and there's a double-tapped breaker, an open splice buried in a wall, a circuit already at its limit, or a panel with no room left. We say so, explain what we found, and let you decide, rather than working around it and leaving the real problem in place.
Cost on this kind of work comes down to access, circuit capacity, device and fixture count, and wall or ceiling construction, so we quote your actual job rather than publishing a number that wouldn't apply to it. Related: panel upgrades and troubleshooting and repairs.
Have a list of small electrical jobs?
Outlets, fans, fixtures, dimmers, outdoor power: batch them into one visit. Bigger loads like a spa are their own dedicated circuit, not a device swap: that's hot tub and spa wiring. See all our residential electrical services.
Outlet and lighting work across Spokane Valley, Liberty Lake, the South Hill, and Millwood.
Service Areas
Local electrician across Spokane County & North Idaho
Frequently Asked Questions
Can you add an outlet to an existing room?+
Almost always. What varies is the routing: whether we can reach the location from a basement, attic, or crawlspace, and whether the nearby circuit has capacity for it. We look at both before we cut anything, and tell you if the honest answer is a new home run rather than a tap.
Why won't my ceiling fan mount to the existing box?+
Most standard light boxes are rated to hold a fixture's static weight, not a fan's weight plus its vibration. A fan needs a fan-rated box that's braced to the structure. It's the single most common surprise on a fan install, and swapping the box is normal work, not an upsell.
Can I put three-prong outlets in an older house?+
Only if the fix is real. Grounded three-slot receptacles weren't required throughout a home until the 1962 code, so pre-1962 Spokane houses frequently have ungrounded circuits. Putting a three-prong receptacle on an ungrounded circuit with no GFCI protection is not a fix: it just makes an ungrounded outlet look grounded. The correct options are running a ground, or GFCI protection with the required labeling.
What is GFCI and where is it required?+
A GFCI device shuts the circuit off when it detects current leaking to ground, the failure that causes shocks. Code requires GFCI protection in wet and damp locations: kitchens, bathrooms, garages, unfinished basements, crawlspaces, outdoors, and near laundry and utility sinks. Requirements have expanded over successive code cycles, so an older house rarely has full coverage.
Can you install recessed lighting in a plaster ceiling?+
Yes. Plaster and lath is slower and less forgiving than drywall, so we plan the layout and the joist locations first and cut carefully. We're upfront about where the ceiling will need patching before we start.
Do you install smart switches and dimmers?+
Yes. Dimmers, smart switches, and multi-location setups. Two things matter: the fixture and bulb have to be compatible with the dimmer, and many smart switches need a neutral in the box, which older Spokane switch boxes often don't have. We check both before we order anything.
Do I need a permit to add an outlet?+
It depends on the scope. New circuits and most added wiring require an electrical permit and inspection; a straight device replacement generally does not. Everywhere in the Spokane region except the City of Spokane, that permit comes from Washington State Labor & Industries: inside the city, the city runs its own program. We'll tell you which category your job falls into up front.
Can you install outdoor and landscape lighting?+
Yes. Exterior fixtures, landscape and path lighting, motion sensors, and weather-rated outdoor receptacles with in-use covers. We spec gear that will survive a Spokane winter rather than the cheapest thing on the shelf.
Ready to get electrical work handled the right way?
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