John Kivel Electric

Fantastic experience! I called Jon after discovering the condition of the existing wiring in three ceiling boxes after the lights/ fans were ready to be reinstalled after having the old ceilings re-plastered in my 1926 bungalow. He was the only electrician that would look at the job after a description of what needed to be done. He came out promptly and gave me a cost on the spot. Work was completed as described and we couldn't be happier or more relieved that it could be done at all. Jon was great to work with and will be the one that I will call next time I need anything electrical done to my home. Highly recommended!! Thanks Jon. Randy Erickson

I called John on Sunday morning to add an exterior and interior outlet to an outside wall. He came over that afternoon, gave me an estimate and scheduled the work for Wednesday 11/23. I have a 100 year old house with thick foundation walls and framing. In other words no easy access!!! He arrived right on schedule and performed the work. Very professional. Very good. Very much a master electrician. If I ever have any electrical work done in the future I will ONLY call him. Great job! Thanks John! -Bill

We had a gas fireplace installed five years ago but at that time didn't have the electrical outlet installed behind the insert. So for five years we have lived with an unsightly cord running over top of a bookshelf. We also had a lot of wiring issues in the older part of the basement that we wanted evaluated and brought up to code. We called John Kivel based on the Angie's List recommendations. He answers his own phone and is very easy to talk to. He came to the house a few days later, looked at everything, then emailed us a quote. It was easy to schedule a date for service the following week. The service was the utmost in professionalism, and we are extremely satisfied with the price, performance, and outcome. John is a true problem-solver; he helped us think through a number of options about the fireplace outlet before we settled on one. In the basement, he addressed problem areas with old wiring but did not go overboard with things that were not needed. We are really glad to have found a professional, personable, highly qualified licensed electrician who we can count on and will continue to work with for years to come.

John immediately responded to my call and called me back the next day to discuss apopintment times. He came that same day we talked to review what-all I wanted/needed to be done. We agreed he would come back in two days (! prompt) to actually install the lights/replace the outlets. I cannot say enough good things about him and his work. I felt very comfortable leaving him alone in the house working away while I did some yard work. John is a master electrician who runs his own small business. He was proficient, professional and very pleasant. I would highly recommend him to anyone who needs work done.

The project ran great. It took two visits, but John was prompt for both service calls. Running the new circuit from the garage to the kitchen required going through the attic above the garage, a crawl space above two portions of the house and some very tricky maneuvering. The new circuit allowed our new over the stove microwave to work and resolved some other issues. Both new lights also took some clever brainstorming to install. The results were great! John also checked a number of electrical outlets and repaired the low voltage wire. Cleanup was quick and thorough, and costs reasonable.

John came out to give an estimate after looking at the work to be done. I was open to suggestions regarding the type of light fixture, and John asked some good questions about my intended use of the area to be lit. I purchased a light fixture from Menards, but mistakenly got an industrial model that wouldn't be suitable for a residence. The day of the installation, John and one of his electricians showed up to do the work, and they gave me some guidance about what kind of light I should get, and I went to pick that up while they worked on the outlets. I am very happy with the quality of the finished work. The outlets are fine, and the new light fixture is set up exactly the way I wanted it.

They were really great. They went above and beyond.

Was flexible on scheduling. Needed to make two trips. Reasonable price.

WOW. I felt like my whole experience was wow. Maybe that's just because I haven't had that many great experiences with home professionals -- some meh ones, some ripoff ones, nobody horrible yet, but except for one contractor, no one else I was excited about. After John came, I was excited and felt great to have found somebody who does great work. John came to do an estimate the next day after I called him. He may have even been available that same day, but I wasn't available. When he came, he was friendly, professional, and seemed very competent, honest, happy, and like he enjoyed his work. As a woman, I felt comfortable having him in the house. His estimate prices were reasonable, especially compared to a previous estimate I had gotten. We set up an appointment for the following week, mostly due to my limited schedule. The day before the appointment, John called to say that he had an electrical emergency and asked if it was possible to reschedule our appointment. My work was not urgent, so it wasn't a problem. We rescheduled it for the next time that I had open. John came with a co-worker, Frank, and I would describe him the same way as I had described John above. They were great, easy to work with and communicate with. I felt safe and with my three year-old daughter around. They seemed like really honest, good people. I had a handyman working at the same time, and they chatted together. The handyman asked them questions, and the handyman liked them so much that he asked them for their business card to refer work over to them. I really like our handyman and trust him, so I thought that was a good sign too that he liked and trusted John and Frank too. All of the tasks were completed, and I was kept informed about the process along the way. When there were some decisions such as turning off the power, plate color, lightbulbs, options for the closet lighting, they asked me and kept me informed. I was pleased with the outcome of everything.

John was great. He returned my call promptly, scheduled the job quickly and conveniently. He allowed me to buy the smoke detector, to save a bit of money. He made some cheaper suggestions about the overhead light to see if it was just a problem with the bulbs. When he found that it wasn't, he crawled in the attic to find the overhead lighting short and repaired that. He knew I was about to put my house on the market and even examined the fuse box for any possible inspection problems. He was prompt, thorough, friendly and did a nice job. I would definitely use him again if I were going to be in Minnesota!

The guys came over after I spent all day trying to put up a light fixture into the ceiling. The wiring was old style from when the house was built (1920) and was falling apart as i took down the old light and tried to wire the new one. I called around 3:30 and let them know what I was doing and they were at the house around 5:00. It took them less than an hour to get everything done right. Definitely a great job with immediate attention.

I'd blown a wiring connection when attempting to hook up a ceiling fan (Doh!) They got the call at about noon on a Friday, gave me an arrival time of 5 that day. I received a call that they would be able to arrive earlier, and wanted to make sure I'd be home. They arrived as they said they would and got right to it. They identified the problem spot immediately and had me lit back up in no time. Couldn't have asked for any better...expertise, promptness, courtesy, professionalism, and for a very friendly price. Highly recommended.

He said that the light was not to code. He then looked at all of the lights in the crawlspaces in the bedrooms and said they were all not up to code so went and got he materials and changed all three of the lights to get them up to code. For me, it was nice that he knew what the code and had the expertise so I didn’t have to call anyone else.

John was great - I he came over the very next morning after I called. We hadn't changed the smoke alarms since we have been in the house (11 years) and they were going off by themselves (even with us trying to put in a new battery). They were already hard wired, so John just had to replace each of the alarms, but he also made sure that there wasn't anything wrong with the hard wiring system - which there was not, which is a relief! I liked that the new alarms have both a smoke alarm and a carbon monoxide alarm, great bonus! John was very nice, courteous, and speedy - yet thoughtful! His price was very reasonable. If we ever have any other electrical issues in the house (which would be very likely, because we have an old four square!) I would call John again - I feel like we've found our electrician! Thanks John!

They were already in the neighborhood, so the two guys arrived shortly after I called. They were friendly, professional, and took care of the switch in the matter of minutes. To date, we haven't had a lot of luck finding a good electrician, so they were a great find! We'll be calling them again for other work around the house and would recommend them to anyone.

I called them for an estimate they were actually a couple hours early. They went through everything that I needed to be done and gave me an estimate. They let me know how far out that they were booked. I called them the next day and scheduled an appointment. They came out and did a great job at the projects I needed done. I still need some other things done and they said just to give them a call and schedule another appointment with them.

Kivel Electric did an excellent job for me. Called them in the morning to address the electrical issues with my house. They showed up in the afternoon later the same day, thoroughly explained what they were doing, and performed the work flawlessly. Their manner is professional and personable. Will definitely call them for future electrical needs in my house.

John is very knowledgeable and good at explaining things and answering questions, on the phone and in person. Everything went really well. He was working by the hour and worked at a steady pace, so I was pleased with the progress. However, he gave me the initial service call/minimum rate of $85/hr., (which seems standard) but could have been more forthcoming with the subsequent hourly rate, which was also $85/hr, which is fine too--it's just that I couldn't get it out of him on the phone. But his overall demeanor was very professional. And he's worth his rate. And I don't always go with the lowest bidder....because the $85/hr, 1 hr total service call, is still better than the $70/hr, 2 hr total service call...especially when you don't know how a person actually works. And I guess on the 'electricians behalf', the electrician doesn't know what kind of work they're getting into, so they start with a minimum fee that's high enough to cover drive time and some initial 'unknowns' with new customers like me.)) Overall, I'm really happy with this company--it's an owner/operator and he cares about his work and reputation. Added Bonus: this fellow seems to have a really good knowledge of 'lighting design', he gets into it as an 'art'. He made several suggestions for putting in different options of recessed lighting/&/a fan, into a ceiling I thought was unworkable--because of all the woodwork or potential problems. He's got experience--and good, new ideas.

It was quick. It was efficient. Kivel did a great job and they performed everything right to my specs.

John and Frank are amazing!! I will recommend John Kivel and Frank Ruetz to everyone. They have made a lifelong customer with this experience. It is always a nerve racking experience having someone come into your home. They make the entire process smooth and comfortable from the beginning. I called John and told him what kind of work I was needing and he offered to come to my house that afternoon. He arrived at the agreed time. We showed him what we wanted done and he thoroughly looked at everything and answered all of my questions. The price could not be beat and there was no hidden fees when the work was completed. I actually called other Electricians from Angie's List before John's arrival and they were wanting double or higher without offering to come out to the house. John and I figured out a time and date that would work for both of us, even though it was going to be John's day off he said would work that day as it fit my schedule. John arrived a little before the scheduled time which worked out great. He started the prep work right away and Frank arrived a little after John. When Frank arrived he introduced himself and made sure to make us comfortable with his arrival as we had not met him on the initial meeting with John. They got right to work and did an fantastic job. They asked where we would like the light switch, and the box for the ceiling fan and they even made sure that the new switches and plates matched our existing ones. They made sure to put drop cloths down in the area they were working and even cleaned up after themselves. While they were finishing up, I was removing a ceiling fan from another room to move to the new box in the living room. John saw me struggling and asked if he could help. He ended up taking it down for me and I was the assistant. John and Frank go way above and beyond my expectations. I was so happy with this experience from the beginning to the end.

John Kivel and Frank Ruetz from John Kivel Electric came out to our home on June 7th, as we were having problems with our sprinkler system. This system is an elaborate one and John was able to figure out what the problem was. He talked with the electrical company that originally put the system in and John also got some advice from his dad (aka "the silver fox"). John was wonderful to work with and did the job very quickly. We would definitlely recommend John Kivel Electric to anyone needing electrical work.

I called John and he was able to get to the house and give us an estimate the same day. The reason I dinged him a bit on professionalism was that he brought his wife/girlfriend when he did the estimate. I didn't have a problem with it and appreciated the quick estimate, it just wasn't as professional as I've seen. Anyway, John and his brother showed up on time, called with questions during the day to make sure they got the job done right. They even brought a package in out of the rain that was delivered while they were here. They made sure I was happy with all the work before they took payment. I accidentally wrote the check out for too much. John realized it after he left and came back and returned the check so I could write the correct (and smaller) amount.There was a slight delay in arranging an inspection but no problems.The only other minor issue was that his webpage and angies list ad said that he would take Visa, but he couldn't get his Visa machine to work. He said it had just been hooked up so maybe this issue is fixed now. Overall excellent experience.

The service and quality of work was good, however, the pricing was very misleading. On the phone he quoted $80 an hour and showed up with another electrician. At the end of the work, approximately 1.5 hours, he said the bill was $350. I asked how that was possible at $80 an hour and he said, oh that was for EACH electrician. So, in reality, the price was $160 an hour. We agreed upon $300 total but I would not use this electrician again given the misleading way he presented his fees.

These guys are fantastic - John came out earlier this month to take a look at some issues we were having with the breakers and realized there was more to it than we originally thought. He showed me what the issue was and then gave us an estimate. When he completed the work it was right on target. John and Frank are great and I would not hesitate to hire them again. In fact, they will be installing two new outlets for me this month.

John replied very promptly to my enquiry for an estimate, and was always on time or early from there on out. The estimate was very fair compared to other estimates, plus he had a lot of suggestions and ideas, particularly as we were updating the panel in preparation for a basement renovation. He answered all of our questions fairly and honestly (i.e. didn't try to upsell us, just gave an honest opinion of what we needed). The work was scheduled the next week, and completed quickly and efficiently (despite all the "help" our cat may have tried to provide). We were very pleased with the results. He also arranged for the permit and electrical inspector, all very timely and efficiently. John clearly knows his business, and, as another reviewer mentioned, clearly enjoys his work. He's very friendly and professional. We'd happily recommend him, and will call him again when we decide to upgrade the electrical system in the garage. Great experience overall!