If you cannot answer this question with confidence please ask yourself…  WHO DID I JUST LET INTO MY FAMILIES HOME?  Many people have made this mistake and some paid the ultimate sacrifice.  Some just fell victim to theft, such as the scam where a handyman would offer services to gain access into someone’s home and then steal from them.  You can read more about this crime here.  Unfortunately, there have been more victims experiencing much worse crime.  We do not need to get into the details for the purpose of this blog but we have all heard about them on the news, social media and the stories are very easy to find and numerous.

An electrician on drugs is a recipe for disaster.  Yes an electrician on drugs may not intentionally try to harm you, but how many traffic deaths happen every single hour in the US from people under the influence of drugs or alcohol?  You wouldn’t let a person under the influence of drugs or alcohol drive your children to school, so why would you let them perform electrical work in your home?  Our service electrician’s undergo a drug screen and are also subject to random checks throughout the year.

Our service professionals undergo a thorough background check before being hired.  We won’t just send anyone into your home.  We are going to send a true professional that meets our stringent guidelines.  He is not going to steal from you.  He is not going to harm you.  He is there to help you.  Our electricians truly care about you and the work they are performing for you.

We are here to serve YOU, our customer!  We want a customer for life.  We are not here to steal from you or take advantage of anyone!  We are here to provide a VALUABLE service to you.  We will stand behind our work and make sure you are 100% satisfied.  We guarantee it with the way we act in our organizations culture, and also in writing.  If for some reason you are not 100% satisfied please let us know.  We will not leave until we get it right.  It’s our guarantee to you, our valued customer.

Many contractors say that.  You win some you lose some.  Not with us!  No we do not get every job we bid on, but we realize there may be other factors at play.  What we care about is you truly understand the price presented to you.  You know what options and solutions you have.  You know what will be done, how it will be done, and that we will stand behind our work.  You know the value you are getting when you choose Custom Electrical Services.

It’s common to be nervous when a service person shows up to your home.  Your thinking how much is this going to cost me?  Am I getting the best bang for my buck?  Do I have other options?  At Custom Electrical Services, our technicians are trained for this.  We will work to put you at ease and make sure you fully understand everything presented to you.  We will take the time to fully evaluate your situation and present it to you in a professional manner that you can understand.  Price is not everything.  We will not change the price of the work performed.  The straightforward price you receive will not change if it takes our electrician longer than expected.  You won’t be left thinking, “I hope he can work faster so my bill will be less”.  Lets think about this common statement for just a second.  Would you really want a mechanic hurrying up to put new brakes on your families car?  Of course you wouldn’t!  You would want the mechanic to perform the job as best as possible.  And that is our promise to you.  Give you the best possible job and the most reasonable rate possible.  We are professionals.  We are Custom Electrical Services.

But wait!  A Custom Electrical Services technician is not just there to give you an estimate or fix that minor problem you called about.  We are here to truly help you.  When is the last time someone checked the connections in your electrical panel?  1 year, 10, or never?  Electrical connections can loosen over time.  Electricians are trained to look for this.  As part of our service fee we will inspect your breaker box or electrical panel.  Identify any problems such as loose connections, non code compliant breakers, under sized wire, corrosion, heat, and more!  What if you have an old Federal Pacific Panel and you didn’t even release the dangers they present.  Our technician will identify and let you know of any potential safety problems.

Are all of your smoke alarms and carbon monoxide alarms functioning properly?  For no additional charge we will test all your smoke alarm units and identify any that are not functioning properly.  We will also replace all your batteries at the same time.  It is all part of the service designed to keep you, your family, and your home safe.  Our commitment to you!

One of the easiest ways to increase your home’s security and beauty is to install outdoor lighting. By combining beautiful outdoor lights with your home’s landscaping, you can increase the value of your home while creating a gorgeous outdoor area that you can enjoy at any time of the day. But what outdoor lights are the best? Let the electrical experts at Kolb Electric help.

Like everything, it depends on what you’re looking for with your outdoor lighting. Do you want security for your home, or landscaping? These questions will point you toward not only what style lights you need, but how bright your lights should be.

When you choose to use outdoor lighting for security, you can go in two different directions. You can either:

If you’re choosing to install outdoor lighting for landscaping purposes, it’s important to keep these few things in mind:

Kolb Electric offers outdoor lighting that will increase your home’s:

Beauty – landscape lighting can be used to showcase interesting features in your home’s architecture or your yard! At Kolb Electric, we can design and install outdoor lighting that will illuminate and call attention to your landscape at night. Landscape lighting is a fully customizable way to improve the look of your house after the sun goes down, particularly if you enjoy entertaining or you want to improve your home’s curb appeal.

Security – dark spots in and around your yard can be dangerous, particularly if they are around entry points into your home. With low-voltage landscape lighting, you can shine a light on potential problem areas in your home and deter intruders late at night!

Safety – in addition to keeping your home safe from intruders, low-voltage outdoor lighting can make walking around your yard safer. It can be used to light up stairways, paths, etc. to prevent tripping and injuries.

If you are planning on renovating or sprucing-up your kitchen, it’s probably a good idea to map out a detailed lighting plan as well. Most people find this a little strange as they feel that lighting in a kitchen isn’t something that needs too much of consideration or planning. It’s just a place where you cook and probably where you have an informal meal after all.

However, the fact is that it’s important to plan kitchen illumination well if you want to make optimal use of your kitchen spaces. Here, we would like to share some basic lighting ideas to create the right balance of functionality and aesthetics.

If you want to get a better idea about what type of lighting would work best for your kitchen, it’s vital to understand how your kitchen spaces relate to the different type of lighting. Let’s start off with understanding what type of bulbs you can use for the best effects:

These bulbs emit a yellowish light and you will now find many artistic versions of these on the market today.

These bulbs throw off a flat, cold light that has a bluish tinge, which lends a very harsh effect to the room.

These have a warm light that makes the place look very inviting and comfortable

These are the latest in light bulb technology and are available in a range of effects including white, cool daylight, warm light, yellow and a range of other colours and hues. Aside from this, LED bulbs are also 80% more energy-efficient than standard bulbs; and most property owners are now opting for these fixtures.

In addition to the types of bulbs used, the style of lighting or the lighting effects are what impact the ambience and appearance of a room. With this in view, here we discuss the different lighting effects that can be used in your kitchen:

This is one of the simplest ways to create the right lighting effect in your kitchen. This type of lighting is designed to help you move comfortably around the room. In most instances this type of lighting comes from grid-style can lighting, widely-spaced, wall and ceiling lamps, semi-translucent skylights or even the natural light that streams in through glass windows and doors. This is the base layer of any lighting plan.

In your kitchen, task lighting would be required to illuminate kitchen counters and food preparation spaces. Since you will be cooking in your kitchen every day, it’s important that the task lighting be planned and installed well. If you have only recessed lighting fixtures in your kitchen, you will feel the lack of focused light when you are cleaning, cooking or prepping in that space.

If you install one-dimensional lighting in the kitchen, it creates unsightly shadows in different areas of the room, while ceiling lighting is ineffective in illuminating spaces like sinks, under counter or cabinet areas etc. On the other hand, if you add special pendant lamps over the counters or even your kitchen island it can prove to be a more practical solution. Under-cabinet lighting can also help in illuminating the cabinets that are positioned there.

This effect doesn’t seem as necessary as ambient or task lighting does in a kitchen space, as the illumination it provides isn’t as functional as the first two. However, it can have a significant impact on the way your kitchen spaces look. If you want to enhance the appeal of your kitchen (regardless of whether you are getting it entirely renovated or are opting for a lighting upgrade), it’s important that you plan your accent lighting well.