Universal Home Experts

They were excellent. I am extremely happy with the service that they did.

Called Universal Wiring to install three chandeliers in the dining room. One was just a replacement and two were supposed to be installed on each side of the existing one. Turns out that wasn't possible due to beams and rafters in the ceiling. So instead he was only able to connect the existing one. In that process he noticed that the previous owners had split the connection incorrectly so he had to disconnect a ceiling light as it wasn't done properly and therefore the chandelier wasn't grounded. So instead of getting two new lights we ended up losing one but at least now everything has been installed properly and safely.

It was extremely high and decided to go with another provider.

They had to have the city come out and get all of the approvals and they took care of Centerpoint, the city, and someone come out and spray the gas line. They took care of all of that. They took their shoes off before they came in the house and didn't mud up the house. It had just rained and I like that. It seemed a little pricey but it sounds like that is what it costs to do that. The electricity was kind of flickering and the big stuff like the dryer went off so the electric company came out within an hour and looked at the meter. It showed we had coddling wattage. They were on time.

I had originally scheduled Universal Wiring to send an electrician on a Saturday because I am a working mom. The company called a few days before and said the Saturday appointment needed to be rescheduled. I'm not certain why no one could come on Saturday as scheduled but I happened to be home sick when they called and they were willing to send someone over that afternoon. The electrician was very professional and obviously knew his job. He was very good and quickly installed both lights.

Came on time as promised Assessed problem. Replaced some parts which he had with him. Went to purchase parts he did not have. Fininshed the job in a timely fashion.

Their representative was on time, very professional, thorough, and knowledgeable. He described what did and didn't need to be repaired or upgraded and answered all questions we had. He gave us an estimate that included factors such as the subsequent drywall repairs needed after whatever rewiring would be completed. With the information provided we decided to not go through with purchasing the home as the repairs needed would be too extensive. We would definitely use Universal's services again and hire them for any future projects.

We were very pleased with the services. We have used them on two occasions. They were prompt and called when on there way. Cleaned up after working always came in house with booties on and clean shoes. We will use them again for any electrical services.

Service is very good. They are prompt, honest, and clean.

It was a reasonable price, and they did a really good job. The pricing was fair. They came very quickly. I thought they were very professional. They were also clean. They wore things on their feet so they wouldn't bring in mud or dirt.

They did a great job, very polite, very efficient, and very knowledgeable. I was very happy with the service. They were a little expensive.

Their pricing was comprehensive and their service was incredible. They communicated every step of the project and happily answered my seemingly unending stream of questions as the project progressed. The work was completed on time and on budget and it was a true pleasure to work with them. I will be using them for future electrical projects and have already recommended them to several friends.

They did fantastic! They were very professional and showed up on time. They are a very busy company but they were still able to fit me in to fix some minor repairs. They were just great overall.

Straight forward pricing and service from the beginning. Arrived when scheduled. Called before coming so arrival was anticipated. Very professional. A bit on the pricey side but, would much rather pay a slightly higher rate and get job done right than wonder if something was done wrong or overlooked.

I called universal wiring at 8:30 monday morning, they had a electrician at the house within 2 hrs, they gave me three different options on how they could complete the work, all were hard priced, I took the highest price because it had a 3 yr warranty, and they added separate circuits in which i wanted! then they went to work! 3 hrs later Larry Webb and assistnat had all three plugs installed and working properly, they cleaned up after themselves, their work was very professional. I know same day service is hard to get, but I really appreciate Universal for coming and getting me out of a bind!!! I would recommend them to anyone, and will use them again, also I found out that if I need any other electrical service performed, they will go their best to send out Larry again, that is what being in the service business is all about!! Thanks Larry and Universal!!

The work to be done was explained up front. Technician was very patient and responsive. All work was performed very professionally, on time, and for the agreed contract price.

It went well. They were within the time frame quoted and were professional. They fixed an issue that I had been living with for years. I would use them again.

We previously used this company to replace our electric panel and install a security light. We were so pleased with overall experience, we didn't hesitate to contact them again for further service. A closet light fixture needed to be replaced and two outside lights were not working properly. Our previous electrician was no longer with the company, and the individual who came to our home this time was a huge disappointment! He did install the closet fixture (which we had already purchased) and look at the outside lights. He noted that one of the outside lights had a motion sensor pointing in the wrong direction, which he corrected. He didn't even address the issue with the other one. His communication skills seemed to be lacking and I was quite confused until I realised he was not trying to explain the service he provided. His main focus was in selling us further services, including a complete rewire of the house! So, in the end, we paid $155 (and that includes a $51 discount coupon) to have a closet light fixture, that we purchased independently, installed. The outside lights still do not work properly. Adios Universal Wiring...

The technician who came out was prompt, congenial and seemed to know what he was doing. After checking almost all of the outlets involved in the problem we were informed that the problem was a bad jumper and he would need to come back out on Monday. The cost: an additional $907. I asked if we could move a couple of pieces of furniture so that he could check the last couple of outlets. He said no that it wouldn't do any good because he was certain it was a bad jumper and he had to use a very expensive, technical piece of equipment to locate our problem. And that he would have to go into the wall and possibly ceiling to repair the jumper. He also mentioned that it could be a fire hazard (very frightening for us) and that he would shut down from the breaker the offending circuit. For this we were grateful. I asked him if it turned out to be just a wall socket he did not test would we still be charged the $907. His response was that if it turned out to be something simpler than the wall socket we would , of course, receive a discount. This guy was a salesman selling and he was good at it. So, we gave him a $200 deposit and he left. Before leaving and while justifying the additional $907 he made us feel like we were trying to take advantage of the Angie's List Big Deal by telling me that he went above and beyond the original call requirements and because we got an Angie's list discount of $204 we shouldn't expect more than he did. I'm wondering if we had paid the full $383 if the service might have been different. Possibly not. Over the weekend we moved the furniture that was covering any additional wall plugs and they returned Monday. Turned out to be the wall socket behind the wardrobe that he didn't want moved the previous Thursday. They were there a short time, did not have to repair/replace any jumpers (he had insisted that it was - and very expensive to boot). I was at work so when he charged my husband the entire amount my husband called me and put MIke on the phone. When I mentioned what he had said on Thursday he became defensive and totally uncooperative again saying that he did an excellent job, went above and beyond what we actually paid for, etc., etc., etc. We paid the bill but under duress because we felt like the original discount offers gave him the license to charge a much higher amount in the long run. We have used Angie's List in the past and been very pleased with the professionalism and honesty of the service each and every time. This was not a good experience. Plus much of what he replaced was newly done just a year and a half ago because of hurricane Ike damage. I would be happy to submit any or all invoices for that work. After all is said and done I am really sorry that I chose Universal Wiring - I was in a hurry because we are all nervous when our homes have an electrical issue. Their big deal sounded like a good way to have a diagnostic with minor repairs as they offer. "If you do not want to know about the condition of your electrical system, we also have a Big Deal for a diagnostic. Normally the amount is $383, but with the Big Deal it is $179. It includes finding the specific issue and making a basic repair, such as replacing the burned outlet." Ours WAS a burned outlet and we ended up paying $,1,086 instead of the promised $179.

Everything went as scheduled. They called, arrived on time, and put on shoe covers before entering. There was a plan each day(8am-4pm) that was followed. If something unexpected happened, they showed me the change that was needed. Each day they vacuumed the carpet before they left, because there was a lot of dust at the end of the day. They sent a professional cleaning crew to get rid of the dust (NO CHARGE). :) They were prompt, professional, and kept me informed every step of the way. Each day they told me what they would do. I can't thing of anything that I would object to in their work. The price quoted on the estimate what I paid. No extra charges. They did good work. You can trust them in your home. They continue to provide excellent service. The satisfied clients will "spread the word" !

Their definition of the Big Deal service is not clarifying to members that this is for inspection work and not diagnostic work. As a result of them coming out and them inspecting everything, you are just going to get a written report to advise you what should be done. If they spot checked a single outlet to determine if it was the outlet or the circuit, they would charge an additional $237 after using the Big Deal coupon. I also discovered that without the Big Deal coupon, they would come out to the house for $59 for an inspection, but they do not provide you with a written report. If I had paid $74 for them to come to my house for the inspection, I would have been very surprised to learn there after the inspection had been completed.

I wasn't too happy with them. It was a Big Deal that I purchased. The guy came out and he was the slickest salesman in the world. When he got done he told me that I needed to have my entire house rewired for $14,000 because it was that bad. Then he told me I had a rodent infestation in the attic. He said that it was rats and mice. I told him that I had lived in a house before that had rats and that rats just don?t stay in one location. If they know there is food they are eating through the walls to get to the food and I hadn't seen any signs of rats. He said he saw rat droppings all over the place up there. I told him maybe at one time but not now. Later that afternoon I was having my pest person come out unbeknownst to him. Then we sat down to look at the inspection report. He said that my pool was unsafe to swim in and there was nothing grounding it and I needed this and that type of thing. I thought that if all of this were illegal it wouldn't have passed inspection a year ago when I bought it. I told him that there was no way I was doing $14,000 and then the price dropped to $2,300 and then it went down to $1,400. Automatically it was a scam to scare people to get them to use the products. I didn't appreciate that and I didn't find the service too good. He did come out quickly. I would not use them again. PROVIDER RESPONSE From 09/12/2011-My responses in CAPS below When I see a report like this one, i always review everything we have about the job. This member called us because he thought $74 for a whole house electrical inspection was a good deal. YES I DID THINK IT WAS A GOOD DEAL UP UNTIL THE THE "BS' RECOMMENDATIONS Apparently he is in the construction industry and wanted a follow up for his other electrician. SORRY I AM NOT IN THE CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY JUST A SMART CONSUMER THAT RECOGNIZES "BS". I am sorry that he was not happy with the technician I sent over. There is a couple of things I would like to add. His home was built in 1965, so it is pretty old. Had it been built even a year later and the workmanship was adequate, we would not have been discussing a rewire option. However, sometimes poor initial workmanship cannot be "fixed". It is more cost effective to replace the wiring. This member is suggesting that we were deceptive and that after he balked at the rewire price we downsold him. YES YOU WERE DECEPTIVE THE HOUSE WAS REMOLDED IN 2008 WITH A NEW BREAKER PANEL INSTALLED. MOST OF THE WIRING IN THE HOUSE WAS REPLACED. Well that is contrary to our ethics and to the facts. I looked: as we always do, which is our commitment to our customers, we gave him three options upfront.. The first option was to rebuild the main service and panel and rewire the home for $25000. The second option was to: Replace a couple of circuits and paritally rewire one part of the home for $4320 and the third option was to update and improve the main grounding system, replace the gfci breaker for the pool light (thats the part that saves you from electrocution when you dive into your pool that has a malfunctioning pool light) and install surge protection for $1730. SO YOU GET THE TECHNICIAN TO COME INTO A HOUSE WITH A DEAL AND SCARE THE CONSUMER INTO WORK? There are many qualified real estate inspectors out there. But to qualify, they only need a minimal amount of classroom training about your electrical system: say about 6 hours. the technician that went to this members home had, at the time of this inpection, over 8000 hours of apprenticeship, plus another 6000 hours as a jounrneyman electrician, as well as the 4 hours of CEU that all electricians take annually to renew their license.We have rewired many homes for Angies List Members, as well as make repairs based on the smaller options. In fact, if you look a few reviews down, you will find a member that gave us straight A's, who just went though a final phase of a rewire that we have staged, at her convenience over the last year.You will also notice that of 139 review, over 8 out of 10 are straight A's. That is because they used our service to make their repairs.So please consider an electrical safety inspection with Angies List Big Deal. Yes it is our business, and yes, we do earn a living doing electrical repairs. Our commitment is to educate our customer on their whole electrical system. And yes, if you have many repairs , safety issues or need the old ungrounded wiring or obsolete breaker panel replaced, it is our ethical duty to inform you and give you several options to take control of your electrical system. ONE LAST COMMENT THE TECHNICIAN SAID THAT I HAD RATS AND MICE IN MY ATTIC EATING THE WIRES! BY CHANCE MY EXTERMINATOR WAS COMING RIGHT AFTER HIM. HE ASKED ME IF I HAD ANY PROBLEMS, I TOLD HIM WHAT THE TECH SAID, HE LOOKED UP IN THE ATTIC AND SAW NO EVIDENCE OF RATS OR MICE EATING THE WIRES! I GUESS UNIVERSAL TECHS ARE ALSO TRAINED IN RODENT CONTROL. THIS YEAR I HAD JOHN MOORE COME INTO DO SOME WIRING AND A CHECK ON THE SYSTEM AND THEY DID NOT NOTICE THE ISSUES THAT A REFERENCED ABOVE.

I liked them. They went beyond the call of duty.

In my previous report for this company I had them install a whole house surge protection for my electrical, phone, internet, and cable lines. I had Comcast install a second internet connection so I needed another surge protector since I used up all the connections in the original surge protector. Yes $500 is a lot of money, but it's cheap compared to getting your computer fried, losing your data, or heck just rebuilding the hard drive if it gets corrupted. Just like last time they called about 30 minutes before they came and the tech Mike fixed me right up.

Will and Michael, came on time. They were polite, and understanding of my concerns. They worked from 8 am to 4 pm, and cleaned up everything. They will return to do additional inside work next month. Super work ! Super guys !