Electrician in Altadena

What we do in Altadena

Everything we do in Altadena, with what each job usually involves here. The photos are from our own jobs.

Panel upgrades in Altadena

New services for rebuilds and upgrades for older houses, including the customer-side riser, conduit and panel when SCE moves a street underground, with the county permit and SCE's steps coordinated in order.

More on panel upgradesCall (844) 430-7681

EV charger installation in Altadena

Chargers planned into a rebuild's load calculation from the start, or added to an older house after we confirm the existing panel has room for them.

More on EV charger installationCall (844) 430-7681

Electrical repair & troubleshooting in Altadena

Tracing tripping breakers, dead outlets and flickering lights in houses that stood empty or took smoke during and after the fire.

More on electrical repair & troubleshootingCall (844) 430-7681

Rewiring in Altadena

Replacing original wiring in pre-war and period homes, planned around plaster walls and the features owners want to keep.

More on rewiringCall (844) 430-7681

Lighting & ceiling fans in Altadena

Interior lighting for rebuilds and remodels, and exterior lighting that suits a period house or a foothill lot.

More on lighting & ceiling fansCall (844) 430-7681

Outlets, GFCI & new circuits in Altadena

Grounded and GFCI-protected outlets in place of two-prong originals, and dedicated circuits for heat pumps, induction ranges and dryers.

More on outlets, GFCI & new circuitsCall (844) 430-7681

Generator hookups & battery backup in Altadena

Transfer switches and listed interlocks for portable generators, and the panel side of battery backup, for foothill homes where shutoffs are a real possibility. We connect the generator you have or plan to buy; we don't sell them.

More on generator hookups & battery backupCall (844) 430-7681

Commercial electrical in Altadena

Lighting, new circuits and panel work for shops, restaurants and offices along Lake Avenue and Lincoln Avenue, with the county permit coordinated.

More on commercial electricalCall (844) 430-7681

Also: subpanels, dedicated circuits, 240-volt outlets for dryers and ranges, exterior and security lighting, hard-wired smoke alarms, and small repairs of every kind.

Working in Altadena

Altadena sits in the San Gabriel Mountain foothills directly north of the City of Pasadena, but it has never been part of that city. It is an unincorporated community governed by Los Angeles County, with a town council that acts as a local voice for residents. For electrical work that settles two questions at once: the county, not Pasadena, issues and inspects the permit, and Southern California Edison, not Pasadena Water and Power, owns the meter. Infinity Electrical Inc. (CSLB #1100231) works on both sides of that line and confirms which side a property is on before we quote.

The community grew out of the Woodbury brothers' ranch in the 1880s; the Woodbury Subdivision took the Altadena name in 1887, and the family planted the deodar cedars of Christmas Tree Lane in 1885. The county's area plan describes Altadena as largely single-family, with many homes built before the post-World War II boom in the traditional styles of their day and a significant share of all housing built before 1979. The 2020 census counted 42,846 residents, and about 71.7% of households own their home.

The Eaton Fire, which began on January 7, 2025, changed the electrical picture block by block. Some lots are being rebuilt from the slab up and need complete new services; neighboring houses survived, sometimes with smoke or soot inside, and still run on wiring and panels from decades ago. The two call for different work, and we treat them that way.

What's common in Altadena homes

Altadena has new construction going up beside 1920s houses that came through the fire, and each kind of property brings its own electrical questions.

• Rebuilds after the Eaton Fire. A house rebuilt from the foundation needs temporary power during construction, often a new service sized for an all-electric kitchen, heat pumps and an EV charger, and a meter location that works with SCE's plans for the street. Whether that street is going underground is worth asking SCE before the panel spot is drawn.
• Houses that came through the fire. The county's recovery guidance suggests professional cleaning where soot, smoke residue or odors remain. A home that sat closed up, or took smoke and ash through vents and attics, deserves an electrician's look at the panel, outlets and fixtures once cleaning is done, before new loads are added. If the meter, panel or wiring shows heat damage, melting or water exposure, leave that circuit off, don't reset breakers, and have SCE or a licensed electrician look before power is restored.
• Pre-war and period homes. Altadena's first county historic district, Historic Highlands, took effect on July 9, 2026 and covers 77 parcels of mostly 1920s homes in Craftsman, Spanish Colonial Revival and Tudor styles. The Janes Village houses date from 1924 to 1926. Homes from that era often keep ungrounded circuits, small services and panels that were added to over the decades.
• Historic review. The county's preservation ordinance sets criteria and procedures for reviewing proposed work on designated landmarks and properties in historic districts. On a designated property we check what applies before moving a meter, mounting a new panel or placing a charger on a visible wall.
• Foothill lots. Altadena is bounded on three sides by open space, from the Arroyo Seco to the Angeles National Forest and Eaton Canyon. Long driveways and sloped lots shape where a service, a trench or an outdoor circuit can go.
• Commercial streets. The county's area plan supports Lake and Lincoln Avenues as walkable mixed-use commercial districts, and names Fair Oaks Avenue, Altadena Drive and Washington Boulevard as corridors with mixed-use potential. Shops reopening or changing tenants there often need lighting changes, new circuits or panel work.

Permits and power in Altadena

Who issues the permit. Los Angeles County Public Works Building and Safety reviews plans and issues permits for unincorporated communities through ten district offices, and one of those offices is in Altadena. Applications, uploads and inspection requests go through the county's EPIC-LA system. An EV charger needs a county permit like any other new circuit, and the county asks applicants to confirm the panel can carry the added load before applying, which is where our load calculation comes in.

Fire rebuilds. The county's rebuild guide says an Application Identification Number from SCE is required for all rebuilds, new ADUs, new panels and temporary power, so we start the SCE request early rather than after the plans are approved. SCE also offers virtual appointments with its planners through the county's Altadena rebuild permit center.

Solar-ready, not solar-required. Under the Governor's July 7, 2025 executive order, as county guidance described it in November 2026, homes lost in the January 2025 fires that are being rebuilt no longer have to install rooftop solar or battery storage, and they may follow the 2022 California Building Standards Code instead of the 2025 edition. The county's implementation sheet says rebuilds must still be solar-ready, and it lists a main service rated at least 200 amps with space reserved for a future two-pole breaker among those requirements. We wire the panel and pathways for that; we do not install solar systems.

Power and the move underground. Los Angeles County says Clean Power Alliance is the default electricity supplier for unincorporated areas, but SCE still delivers the power and owns the lines and meter, so every service change goes through SCE. In April 2025 SCE published a preliminary plan to underground about 63 circuit miles in Altadena and nearby neighborhoods, 40 of them inside its High Fire Risk Areas, and said some sections would take months and others several years. In April 2026 SCE explained the split of work: it typically builds the underground system in the street up to each property line, and homeowners complete the trenching and conduit on their own property so SCE's equipment can connect to the customer's panel. SCE also says it does not set prices for that customer-side work and that panel location, or a needed panel upgrade, affects the cost.

Shutoffs. SCE says customers in high fire risk areas are more likely to see Public Safety Power Shutoffs, and its outage map shows the circuits that may be affected when one is being considered. The county's area plan places the neighborhoods north of Loma Alta Drive in Fire Hazard Severity Zones. Our checklist for a power shutoff covers alerts, medical devices and getting power back safely.

The permits and utilities guide explains the whole picture for the three counties we serve.

Around Altadena

Pasadena, directly south, is its own city: electrical permits come from the City of Pasadena's Permit Center, and Pasadena Water and Power, a community-owned utility, schedules the meter spot and energizes new or upgraded services. La Cañada Flintridge, the neighboring city to the west, has its own Building and Safety Division with online permitting, while SCE delivers the power and Clean Power Alliance has supplied it since October 2025. Kinneloa Mesa, across the Eaton Canyon wash, is another unincorporated county community that the Eaton Fire also reached, so county permits apply there too.

• Pasadena
• La Cañada Flintridge
• Kinneloa Mesa

See the full list of areas we cover across Los Angeles, Orange and Ventura counties.