Altadena, for builders and owner-builders
New construction electrical in Altadena.
Most new construction in Altadena right now is on a lot that burned, and it is new construction all the same: a county permit, new SCE service, a house built to the current code. County Line Electric is the electrical sub on those builds for builders and for owners running their own rebuild.
The job
A ground-up house on a street that is all ground-up houses.
Altadena's rebuild is unusual in scale: whole blocks of unincorporated Los Angeles County going back up at once, under the county's rebuild permitting program, with Southern California Edison re-establishing service street by street. For the electrical contractor that means the same work as any custom home, plan review, temporary power, service, rough-in, systems, finish, final, plus the coordination of a neighborhood where the utility, the county and a dozen other contractors are working the same curb.
Many Altadena owners are building themselves, as owner-builders, with an architect and a few trades they hire directly. County Line works that way as readily as it works for a general contractor: it prices from the plans, states inclusions and exclusions in writing, pulls its own permit and shows up for its inspections. The houses going back up are larger and more electrified than the ones they replace, with EV charging, induction cooking, heat pumps and backup power, and the service and panels are sized for that from the start.
Scope on an Altadena build
What County Line carries.
County Line Electric carries this scope on an Altadena build.
- SCE application, temporary power, new service entrance and panels sized for generator or battery, EV, induction and heat pumps
- Complete rough-in to the current California Electrical Code under Los Angeles County inspection
- Low-voltage backbone: network, cameras, audio, security
- Lutron lighting control where specified, EV circuits, surge protection at the service
- Generac standby generator or the critical loads panel for a battery system
- Finish, programming, the county final and the owner walkthrough
County Line Electric at a glance
- 20+ yrsIn businessJeff Tucker has run County Line Electric in the Conejo Valley for over 20 years.
- #949580California contractor licenseLicensed, bonded and insured. Check it on the CSLB site any time.
- GeneracStandby generator estimatesA written estimate after a site visit and a load calculation.
- A+BBB Accredited since 2017Rated A+ by the Better Business Bureau. See the profile.
- 5.0HomeAdvisor ratingFive stars from every reviewed job. Read the reviews.
Questions from Altadena builders and owner-builders
Does County Line Electric work for owner-builders in Altadena?
Yes. County Line Electric works directly for Altadena homeowners acting as their own general contractor on rebuilds and new homes, as well as for builders as the electrical subcontractor. It prices from the plans, states inclusions and exclusions in writing, pulls the Los Angeles County electrical permit and attends its inspections.
Is a rebuild on a burned lot treated as new construction?
Yes, electrically. The old system is gone, SCE establishes new service, and the house is wired to the code in force when the county issues the permit. The county's rebuild program speeds the permit for like-for-like rebuilds, but the electrical scope is a ground-up one.
How does County Line price an Altadena house?
From the full plan set. A bid conversation starts with the lot, the project type, the phase and a short scope on this page. If it fits, County Line asks for the drawings and returns a written proposal.
Related
Inspections
Passing the first time is the schedule.
On a custom home the electrical inspections are the rough, sometimes a service inspection, and the final, and each one that fails costs the builder a week. County Line schedules its own inspections, walks the house before the inspector arrives, and has worked with the inspectors in the City of Los Angeles, Malibu, Thousand Oaks, Westlake Village, Calabasas, Hidden Hills, Beverly Hills and the three counties long enough to know what each one looks for. The company keeps the correction list short by doing the work to the code as written, not to the code as remembered.
As-builts and a labeled panel go to the builder at the end, because the next electrician to open that panel, in ten years, should not have to guess.
Change orders
Where they come from, and how County Line keeps them rare.
Electrical change orders on a custom home come from three places. One is a lighting plan that does not match the framing, another is an owner who decides at trim that there should be a keypad by the bed after all, and the third is a service sized for the house in the drawings rather than the house being built, with its generator, its two EV chargers and its induction range. County Line prices from the full set to catch the first, captures the owner's decisions in writing before finish to catch the second, and sizes the service from a real load calculation to catch the third.
When a change is genuinely the owner's, it is priced in writing before the work is done. A change order that arrives after the fact is a bill, not a change order.
Temporary power
The first thing on the lot, and the first thing to file for.
Nothing happens on a cleared lot without power for the foundation and framing crews, and in the Palisades and Altadena the utility application for temporary service is the long lead item. County Line files it as soon as the lot address and the plans exist, sets the temporary pole or pedestal to the utility's standard, gets it inspected, and keeps the build moving on temporary power while the permanent service works its way through LADWP or SCE. When the permanent service is energized, the temporary comes out and the credit for it is on the final invoice.
Official references
Where the facts on this page come from.
County Line links to the authorities rather than restating them. Rules change; these pages are current.
- Los Angeles County recovery: the Eaton Fire rebuild program
- LA County Building and Safety: permits
- SCE Public Safety Power Shutoffs: the foothills
- CSLB license check: license #949580
Next step
Send the project. We will tell you straight if it fits.
Site city, project type, phase and a few lines of scope. Jeff reads every one and calls back on the ones where County Line is the right electrical sub. No plans on the public form, please.
Or call (805) 499-0823. Monday to Friday, 9 to 5.