Master electrician inMontreal’s Southwest
In the Southwest, the original wiring was sized for a range and a few outlets. Adding a charger, a hot tub or radiant floor heating almost always means checking the service first. We do that on site, in LaSalle, Lachine, Ville-Émard and Côte-Saint-Paul, from our base in Verdun.
- RBQ 5855-0849-01
- CMEQ 17468
The brands and suppliers we work with
A housing stock built
before the electric car
The Southwest is one of the oldest built up parts of the island. Workers’ houses, duplexes and triplexes dominate, with electrical installations sized for a stove, a water heater and a few outlets.
The result shows up every time an owner wants to add something. A service that was perfectly enough in 1975 no longer has room for an EV charger, a hot tub and radiant floor heating, and it is the load calculation that decides, never the look of the panel.
A service that was enough in 1975 no longer has room for what gets plugged in today.
100 amp services in Verdun
In Verdun's pre-war plexes, we still see a lot of 100 amp services, which limits anything you add without an upgrade.
Plexes everywhere
As in Verdun, the 1 to 5 unit building is the dominant format. It changes the way the load is calculated and it opens access to the RénoPlex program.
What we get asked
for most in the Southwest
The projects look alike from one neighbourhood to the next, because the housing stock looks alike.
Service upgrade to 200 amps
The most frequent request by call volume, and almost always the prerequisite for another project.
See the service
EV charger at home
Parking in the yard or off the lane changes the cable route, and therefore the job. That gets looked at on site.
See the service
Basements and bathrooms redone
Circuits, lighting and radiant floor heating are planned while the walls are open, not after.
See the service
RénoPlex,
the grant only the City of Montreal offers
An owner in the Southwest has access to a program his neighbour on the South Shore does not. RénoPlex covers buildings of 1 to 5 units on City of Montreal territory, and electrical work is eligible.
The rule to remember before any other: nothing must start before the application is accepted. The review takes several months, then you have 18 months to have the work done. Starting too early means losing the grant.
A few conditions to check
- Building with 1 to 5 units, located within the City of Montréal
- Approval obtained BEFORE the work starts
- Work completed within 18 months of acceptance
- Eligible electrical work: panel upgrade, charger connection, heating conversion
- Itemized invoice from a licensed contractor
Permits,
declaration and connection in Montreal
On the City’s side
In most boroughs, an owner has no permit to request for electrical work in their own building. What is required is that the contractor be licensed: Régie du bâtiment and Corporation des maîtres électriciens. We hold both, and the declaration of work to the Régie is included in the job.
It is the boroughs that issue the permits, not the central City, and their rules differ. As soon as a project touches the façade, the structure or the use of a space, the permit becomes necessary again. We validate the case for your address before starting.
The RBQ declaration: we take care of it
At VGI, we declare our own work to the Régie du bâtiment whenever a declaration is required. It is included in the work and filed under our licence numbers.
For the work we do, two situations exempt it. Work already covered by a connection request made to the electricity distributor does not have to be declared on top of that, and neither does work of 10 kW or less that requires no cable replacement and no cable addition.
What changes the price
in Montreal’s Southwest
The price depends on your installation and on the factors below. Our online estimator gives “starting at” prices for each type of work, and the final figure is confirmed after the visit.
See starting prices in the estimatorThe condition of the outside connection
In older stock, the mast and the meter base often follow the upgrade. The job then goes up to the roof instead of staying in the basement.
Access from the lane or from the front
The cable route from the service to the connection point depends on how the lot is laid out, and older neighbourhoods have every kind.
The number of circuits to move over
A twelve circuit panel and a full panel do not transfer in the same time.
The distance from our base
It is short: we are in Verdun, in the middle of these neighbourhoods. It is the part of our territory where we get around most easily.
One master electrician,
from the quote to the final tests
VGI Électrique is Marc-André Vinet. The person who assesses your project is the one who does the work and answers afterwards. RBQ and CMEQ licences, one-year warranty on labour and parts.
More about us« Service impeccable ! L'électricien a été ponctuel, professionnel et a fait un travail de grande qualité. Tout fonctionne parfaitement. Je recommande sans hésitation ! »
Charles Tremblay-Roy« Véritable allié stratégique pour nos projets d'électricité, Marc-André est efficace, courtois et rapide. Nous le recommandons! »
Etienne Gauvreau-Hurtubise« J'ai fait affaire avec cette entreprise quelques fois et je recommande fortement. Service super professionnel, et le travail est impeccable. »
Isabelle Gervais
A sense of the
price, before you even call
A few questions about your project, and the tool shows a range. It is an estimate to situate your project, not a quote: the real price is confirmed on site.
Questions in Montreal’s Southwest
Frequently asked questions
Nothing here promises a timeline or an amount: for that, we need to see the job.
The Southwest first: Verdun, LaSalle, Lachine, Ville-Émard and Côte-Saint-Paul. It is the area where we are based and where we travel every day.
In most boroughs, an owner does not need a municipal permit for electrical work in their own building. What is required is that the contractor doing the work holds their licences: RBQ and CMEQ. We hold both, and the declaration of work to the Régie du bâtiment is on us, included in the job. Since each borough keeps its own rules, we validate the case for your address before starting.
Sometimes yes, depending on what the house already draws. Only a load calculation can say, and it is done at your place before anything is ordered.
If your building has 1 to 5 units and is on City of Montreal territory, the RénoPlex program may apply and electrical work is eligible. Careful: the work must not start before your application is accepted.
Yes, from Châteauguay to Longueuil, by way of Brossard, Sainte-Martine, Beauharnois and Boucherville, all the way to Salaberry-de-Valleyfield.
Our articles to
see things clearly
How many amps for an EV charger
A level 2 charger runs on a dedicated circuit, most often a 40 amp one. But the number that decides your project is not that one: it is what is left available in your electrical service.
Read the article
100 amp vs 200 amp service
The rating of your service is stamped on the main breaker, at the top of the panel. What decides an upgrade is neither its age nor its looks: it is what you want to add to it, and the load calculation that measures it.
Read the article
Radiant floor heating
Electric radiant floor heating goes down before the floor covering, never after. The install itself takes about a day, but the decision is made much earlier: while the floor is still open and the circuit can still be run.
Read the article
Tell us about your project
Describe it in a few words, even if it is still just an idea. We assess on site what your installation can take, and you decide from there.
(514) 929-9963