Electrical Repair in Toronto: Knob-and-Tube, Insurance and What the ESA Requires

What the ESA requires of every job

Ontario’s Electrical Safety Code is enforced by the Electrical Safety Authority. A business doing electrical work for hire must hold an ECRA/ESA licence, and the licence number belongs on its trucks, invoices and advertising. For most jobs beyond replacing a like-for-like device, the contractor files a notification of work with the ESA and an inspector may visit; the record of that inspection is what a future buyer or insurer will ask you for. Use the ESA’s public contractor lookup to confirm the licence before paying a deposit.

Homeowners may do some electrical work in their own home in Ontario, but they must file the notification and pass the inspection too, and insurers take a dim view of undocumented work. A handyman who offers to swap a panel or add a circuit without a licence is offering you an uninsurable house.

• ECRA/ESA licence number on the quote
• Confirmation that a notification of work will be filed
• Copy of the ESA inspection certificate after the job
• Photos of the panel before and after
• Your insurer’s written requirements, if any

Knob-and-tube, aluminum and the insurance question

Knob-and-tube wiring, common in Toronto houses built before about 1945, has no ground conductor and relies on air space around the wires to shed heat, which is why blown-in insulation around it is a concern. It is not required to be removed, but many insurers require an ESA inspection or a replacement plan before they will insure a house that has it, and mortgage lenders often follow the insurer. A licensed contractor can assess how much remains and quote a phased replacement that follows renovations room by room.

Houses built from the mid-1960s to mid-1970s may have aluminum branch wiring instead, which needs the right connectors at every device and periodic checks rather than wholesale replacement. Either way, ask the electrician to write the assessment down; a written report with photos is what settles the insurance conversation.

Panels, service upgrades and Toronto Hydro

Many older Toronto homes still have a 60-amp or 100-amp service. Adding an EV charger, a heat pump, an induction range or a basement apartment can exceed it. A service upgrade involves three parties: the electrician who replaces the panel and service equipment, the ESA which inspects it, and Toronto Hydro which disconnects and reconnects the supply and may need to change the service drop. Lead times for the utility appointment can run to weeks, so plan the upgrade before the equipment is delivered.

If you do not need a full upgrade, ask about a load calculation and an energy-management device that shares capacity between the charger and the rest of the house; the ESA permits these and they are often cheaper than new service. In a condominium, an EV charger goes through the corporation under Ontario’s condominium rules, and the building’s electrical capacity, not your suite’s, is the constraint.

Getting a fair quote

Electrical quotes in Toronto vary widely because the access varies: fishing a new circuit through a plaster-and-lath wall in Cabbagetown is a different job from running it through an open basement ceiling in Scarborough. A good quote states the number of devices and circuits, whether walls will be opened and who patches them, the panel and breaker brand, the permit and inspection, and the warranty.

Ask whether the work will be done by a licensed electrician or by an apprentice under supervision, both of which are legitimate, and whether the quote is fixed or hourly. Consumer Protection Ontario’s rules on written contracts and cancellation apply to home repair contracts signed in your home.