Licensed Electrician Burnaby BC — Kato Electrical

Most electricians in Burnaby charge in the range of $90 to $150 per hour — but we prefer to quote per project, so you know the total cost before any work starts rather than watching a meter run.

Costs vary more than people expect, and in Burnaby the biggest variable is the age of the home. An outlet or switch installation is a small flat-rate job. A 100-amp to 200-amp panel upgrade runs into the thousands, depending on the condition of your existing mast and meter base. A Level 2 EV charger install depends heavily on the run distance from your panel to the parking spot. And in older Edmonds or North Burnaby homes, existing wiring or panel issues often need addressing before new work can be added on top.

Kato provides free, written, itemised quotes based on an actual site assessment — not a number over the phone. Request a free quote →

Yes, for most work. And this is where Burnaby differs from Vancouver in a way that catches people out.

Permits are required for panel upgrades, new circuits, EV charger installation, hot tub wiring, rewiring, and essentially all new electrical work. Like-for-like fixture replacement generally does not require one.

A licensed electrical contractor must pull the permit under their own licence — a homeowner cannot pull one for this class of work in BC. Kato handles the entire permit and inspection process on your behalf, and it's included in the quote.

Possibly — it depends on what you have and what you're trying to add.

Burnaby has a large stock of homes built between 1950 and 1980, particularly across Edmonds, South Burnaby, and the neighbourhoods around Burnaby Lake. Many are still running 60-amp or 100-amp service. Those panels were adequate for their era but were never sized for induction cooking, EV charging, heat pumps, or a secondary suite.

Signs you're overdue: breakers tripping under normal household load, lights dimming when a large appliance starts, no spare breaker slots, a fuse box rather than breakers, or any scorching, warmth, or burning smell at the panel.

We'll tell you honestly whether you need a full service upgrade or whether a sub-panel solves it more cheaply. Panel upgrade service →

In most cases yes — but it requires strata approval and a proper electrical assessment first.

The Brentwood and Lougheed corridors have seen heavy condo and townhouse development over the past decade, and EV charger installation in strata buildings is one of the most common requests we handle in Burnaby.

The usual obstacle isn't the charger — it's whether the building's electrical service can support the additional load. This is where load management systems matter: they let multiple chargers share available capacity without requiring a full building service upgrade. In many Burnaby buildings that's the difference between a feasible project and an unaffordable one.

Kato works directly with Burnaby strata councils, handles the BC Hydro EV Ready incentive process, and manages permitting and inspection through Technical Safety BC. EV charger installation →

Age of construction is the best first indicator.

Homes in North Burnaby and around Capitol Hill built before 1960 have a meaningful chance of containing knob-and-tube wiring — often still live behind walls that have since been cosmetically renovated. Homes built roughly between 1965 and 1978, which describes a large share of Burnaby's residential stock, may contain aluminum branch circuit wiring.

Both are routinely flagged by BC insurers at renewal or at point of sale, and both can affect whether a property is insurable at all.

You can't reliably identify either from a wall outlet — it takes an electrician to inspect the panel, accessible junction boxes, and attic or crawl space runs. If you're buying an older Burnaby home, get this assessed before subject removal, not after.

We inspect and remediate both wiring types and provide the documentation insurers require. Knob-and-tube rewiring →   Aluminum rewiring →

Yes. We respond to urgent electrical situations across Burnaby, including complete power loss, sparking outlets or switches, a burning smell from the panel or from inside a wall, exposed or damaged wiring, and breakers that won't reset.

Call Kato Electrical: 604-239-5752