Brian ChaseLead electrician & co-owner
“If I wouldn't put it in my own house, it doesn't go in yours.”
Electrical work, done right the first time.
Sentinel Electric is a family-run contractor in Bessemer City, NC. Repairs, upgrades, EV chargers and new circuits for homes and small businesses, each with a written price before we start.
Currently booking diagnostic visits within 2 business days
Trusted by homeowners and local businesses across Gaston County
- Crowders Ridge Dental
- Gaston Mill Lofts
- Kings Mountain Feed & Seed
- Catawba Heights HOA
- Belmont Brewworks
- Dallas Avenue Bakery
What we do, and what it costs.
Nine jobs we do every week, each with a flat price, a realistic turnaround and exactly what's included. If your project isn't on the list, call us and we'll price it the same way.
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Diagnostic service call
Breakers that keep tripping, outlets that went dead, lights that flicker when the dryer runs. We trace the fault to its source, fix what can be fixed on the spot, and tell you plainly what can wait and what can't.
$350flat laborBook this: Diagnostic service call -
Whole-home safety inspection
A methodical walk-through of your panel, grounding, bonding, smoke detector circuits and every accessible device. Ideal before buying, selling, or insuring an older home.
$395flat laborBook this: Whole-home safety inspection -
GFCI & AFCI protection upgrade
We bring kitchens, baths, laundry, garages and exterior outlets up to current protection requirements, so a wet hand or a frayed cord trips a device instead of hurting someone.
$450flat laborBook this: GFCI & AFCI protection upgrade -
LED lighting retrofit
Swap tired fixtures and recessed cans for efficient LED, with dimmers that don't buzz. We check every box and connection we open, not just the bulb end.
$525flat laborBook this: LED lighting retrofit -
Dedicated circuit install
A new home run from the panel for a window unit, shop compressor, freezer, or home office rack, sized correctly and labeled in your panel directory.
$595flat laborBook this: Dedicated circuit install -
Whole-house surge protection
A panel-mounted surge protective device to take the hit from storms and grid switching, plus point-of-use protection where your most sensitive equipment lives.
$650flat laborBook this: Whole-house surge protection -
Level 2 EV charger installation
Load calculation, a dedicated 240V circuit, and a clean wall-mounted install for the charger you've bought. We'll tell you up front if your panel can carry it.
$795flat laborBook this: Level 2 EV charger installation -
Generator inlet & interlock
Run a portable generator safely through your panel instead of extension cords through a window. Inlet box, interlock kit, and the permit to make it legitimate.
$875flat laborBook this: Generator inlet & interlock -
Subpanel installation
Add capacity for a detached garage, workshop, or finished basement without replacing your main panel. Feeder, panel, grounding, and labeling included.
$975flat laborBook this: Subpanel installation
Prices are flat labor rates for homes and small shops within 25 miles of Bessemer City, including standard devices and wire. Larger equipment (panels, chargers, fixtures you haven't bought yet) is priced in writing before any work starts, and county permit fees are passed through at cost.
From your call to a signed-off inspection.
Four steps, the same on a $350 service call as on a subpanel. You always know who's coming, when, and what it costs.
- 1
Call or send a note
Tell us what's going on, with a photo of your panel label if you can. Kathryn replies the same business day with a time window.
Same day - 2
On-site look, fixed price
Brian checks the panel, the run and the load, then gives you a written price before any work begins. No meter running while we think.
Within 2 business days - 3
Permit, work, clean-up
We pull the Gaston County permit where one is needed, do the work, and leave the floor cleaner than we found it.
Most jobs 1–2 days - 4
Inspection & walk-through
We meet the county inspector, update your panel directory by hand, and walk you through what changed.
Inspection within a week
Seven days to tell us it isn't right.
If the finished work isn't what we agreed, let us know in writing within 7 days and we'll come back to put it right, or discuss a partial refund depending on the work done.
Sentinel Electric vs. a typical handyman.
Plenty of people can swap an outlet. Here's what changes when the person doing it is an electrical contractor who has to answer for it.
With Sentinel Electric
- Permits and inspectionPulled and scheduled by us on every job that needs one.
- PriceA fixed written price before work starts.
- Who shows upBrian or a crew member he trained. Same people, start to finish.
- Panel directoryHand-labeled and updated after every job.
- After the jobSeven days to tell us anything isn't right, and we come back.
With a typical handyman
- Permits and inspectionOften skipped, which can come back to bite you at sale or claim time.
- PriceHourly, with the total arriving after the fact.
- Who shows upWhoever's free that day, and maybe a sub you never met.
- Panel directoryLeft as "misc" or blank.
- After the jobA missed call and a voicemail box that's full.
Before you call.
The questions we hear most on the phone, answered the way we'd answer them in your kitchen.
Most common jobs have a flat labor price listed on our services page. Equipment we supply and anything outside the listed scope is quoted in writing before we start, so the number you approve is the number you pay.
Your address, a short description of the problem or project, and a photo of your panel and its label if possible. On the day, we just need clear access to the panel and the work area.
Let us know in writing within 7 days of completion and we will come back to address it, or discuss a partial refund depending on the work done. The full terms are in our Refund Policy.
We're not a 24-hour service, but we keep room in the schedule for urgent calls during business hours. If you see sparking or smell burning, switch off the main breaker and call 911 first.
Diagnostic visits are usually booked within two business days. After you approve a price, most installs are finished within one to five days, depending on parts and permits.
Small adjustments, like moving a box a few inches or swapping a fixture you've picked, are included, up to five per job, in line with our Terms. Anything that adds circuits or materials gets a written change price before we keep going.
Yes, wherever the county requires one. The permit fee is passed through at cost and shown on your quote, and we're there for the inspection.
Yes, for small commercial spaces: shops, offices, restaurants and tenant spaces. Larger new-construction projects are outside what we take on.
A family shop on Jackson Court.
Sentinel Electric is Brian and Kathryn Chase and a small crew they trained themselves. We've grown slowly, kept our prices in writing, and kept our name on every panel we touch.
- 2011
Brian Chase started taking service calls out of one truck in Bessemer City, mostly older mill houses with fuse boxes and two-prong outlets. Word spread the way it does here: neighbor to neighbor, church to church.
- 2015
Kathryn came on full time to run scheduling and estimates. That's when written prices before work became the rule, not the exception, and the phone started getting answered by a person every time.
- 2019
We moved into the shop on Jackson Court and began taking on small commercial work: restaurants on Main Street, a dental office in Gastonia, tenant fit-outs in Kings Mountain.
- Today
We're still a small, family-run outfit on purpose. Every job is permitted where it should be, every panel gets a readable directory, and we'd rather turn down work than rush it. Most of our calls still come from people whose parents used us first.
1,180+jobs completed
6counties served
68%repeat customers
4.9average rating, 214 reviews
Who you'll actually deal with
No call center, no dispatcher you'll never meet. These are the two people who'll answer your call and stand in your hallway.
Kathryn Florence ChaseCo-owner, scheduling & estimates
“You'll hear from me before the truck pulls up, with a time window that actually holds.”
What neighbors say.
A 4.9 average across 214 reviews. A few recent ones, in the customers' own words.
★★★★★
Our 1950s house still had half the outlets ungrounded. Brian walked me through every option, gave me one price, and the inspector signed off the first time. The panel is labeled better than my spice rack now.
Darlene WhitakerHomeowner, Gastonia
★★★★★
They rewired the common-area lighting around tenants' schedules and never left a hallway dark. Kathryn sent updates before I had to ask.
Marcus PruittFacilities manager, Gaston Mill Lofts
★★★★★
A dedicated circuit for our second oven, done on a Monday when we're closed. Price matched the quote to the dollar.
Tammy RhyneOwner, Dallas Avenue Bakery
★★★★★
EV charger in the garage in two days, including the permit. They told us our panel could handle it before charging us anything.
Jeff & Carol HuffstetlerHomeowners, Belmont