Hiring guide · September 21, 2026
How to choose a knob and tube rewiring company in Louisville
Pick a Louisville knob and tube rewiring company by checking four things: a Kentucky master electrician license you verified yourself, a Louisville Metro electrical permit on every job, a written quote itemized per circuit with patching and the panel included, and old house references from neighborhoods like yours.
Knob and tube work is its own trade inside the electrical trade. Most licensed electricians in Jefferson County spend their days on new construction and service calls, and a rewire through plaster walls and balloon framing rewards a very specific kind of experience. The checklist below is how to find it, and how to spot the bids that turn into change orders by week two.
How do I know if an electrician has actually done knob and tube work?
Ask them to describe, on the phone, how they would rewire a two story house without opening whole walls. An electrician who does this work will immediately start talking about fishing from the basement and attic, drilling top plates, working through existing box openings, and where they expect trouble in a house with blown-in insulation. One who does not will talk about opening drywall, which is the wrong answer twice over in a plaster house. Then ask for two references from pre-1950 houses in neighborhoods like Old Louisville, the Highlands or Crescent Hill, and actually call them. What you want to hear from a reference is that the number on the quote was the number on the final invoice.
The six step vetting checklist
- Verify the license yourself. Kentucky licenses electricians at the state level through the Department of Housing, Buildings and Construction. Look up the master electrician who will sign your permit, not just the company name on the truck.
- Confirm the permit before anyone bids. Rewiring in Jefferson County requires an electrical permit and inspection through Louisville Metro Construction Review. A contractor who suggests skipping it is offering you an unsellable house, since unpermitted electrical surfaces in every home inspection at resale.
- Demand a circuit trace before a price. A real number comes from walking your actual house and counting live knob and tube circuits. A price quoted from a Zillow listing is a guess you will renegotiate later.
- Compare quotes line by line, never total to total. The table below lists the five lines that must appear. A bid thousands below the others is nearly always missing one of them.
- Match the scope to your insurance letter. If an underwriter letter started this project, the quote should name the flagged circuits and state that the work will satisfy the letter. Our insurance help page covers how scoped partial rewires work.
- Check the payment structure. Deposit to hold dates, progress payments behind completed work, final payment after the inspection passes. Anything front-loaded shifts the risk to you.
What should a real quote include?
Five line items, every time. If any one is missing, the low price is an illusion and the difference shows up as a change order.
| Line item | Why it matters | Red flag |
|---|---|---|
| Per circuit itemization | Circuit count, not square footage, drives rewiring cost in old houses. | One lump sum with "replace knob and tube" as the whole scope. |
| Louisville Metro electrical permit | Legally required, and the inspection is your proof the work is right. | Permit "optional" or billed as a surprise extra later. |
| Panel and service entrance | A 60 amp fuse service cannot feed a modern rewire; LG&E coordination takes lead time. | A cheap quote that quietly assumes your existing panel stays. |
| Plaster patching | Fishing wire through finished walls means holes; someone has to close them. | Patching excluded, or "drywall repair by others" in fine print. |
| Payment schedule tied to inspection | Final payment after the Metro inspection passes keeps everyone honest. | Half or more of the money demanded before any wire is pulled. |
On price itself, published numbers are rare in this trade, which is exactly why we publish ours. Most full rewires in Louisville land between $8,500 for a small shotgun with good access and $38,000 for a large three story Victorian, with insurance-scoped partials from $4,000. The full breakdown, including what moves a house inside its range, is on the cost guide. Any company can decline to publish prices, but every company should be able to explain, in writing, how it got to yours.
Who should you not hire for this?
A handyman, unlicensed helper or general remodeler, no matter how good the price sounds, because in Kentucky electrical work legally belongs to licensed electricians and your insurer can walk away from a claim traced to unpermitted wiring. The reverse filter also applies: if your house has already been fully rewired and you just need an outlet moved or a fixture hung, a knob and tube specialist is the wrong call, and a regular service electrician will be cheaper and faster. Specialists earn their rate when live 1920s conductors run through your walls, which in Jefferson County usually means a house built before 1950. Our how it works page shows the whole sequence from circuit trace to closed permit.
Get a quote you can hold us to
Send the form or call (502) 305-0444. We trace your circuits, itemize the quote against the published table, pull the Metro permit, and the final payment waits for the inspection to pass.