You’re trying to plan around a rewire: when to clear rooms, whether to stay home, how long the holes will be open. The honest answer is that your house sets the length more than anything else. The number of circuits, the number of floors, how open your attic and basement are, and whether your walls are plaster decide the working days. The inspections add their own scheduling on top.
At Northloom Minneapolis Knob and Tube, we rewire houses across Minneapolis and St. Paul. Instead of guessing at a number only your house can decide, this guide shows you what sets the schedule, so the one in your written scope makes sense when you read it.
What makes one rewire take longer than another?
Look at your house against each row. The more of the right-hand column it matches, the longer the job.
| What we look at | Shorter when | Longer when |
|---|---|---|
| Circuits | Few original circuits still live | Original circuits feed most of the house |
| Floors | One or one-and-a-half stories | Two or three stories, a finished third floor |
| Attic access | Walkable, open, little insulation | Low, deep insulation, floored or finished |
| Basement | Open joists under the first floor | Finished ceiling, ducts in the way |
| Walls | Drywall, or already open for a remodel | Plaster and lath, many openings |
| Units | A single-family house | A duplex or triplex, scheduled around residents |
| Panel | Room for the new circuits | A panel or service change, with a utility appointment |
Circuits and access usually matter most. A house with an open basement ceiling and a walkable attic lets us reach most rooms from above and below, with few openings. A house with a finished basement and a floored attic means more of the work comes through the walls, and that takes longer.
Where do the inspections fall?
- Request
- Filed at or before the start of work.
- Rough-in
- The inspector sees the new wiring before plaster, drywall or insulation covers it. Openings stay open until then.
- Final
- After devices, fixtures, the panel and the switch-over are done.
- Phased jobs
- Floor-by-floor or unit-by-unit work may have more than one rough-in.
We group the openings so each area is ready for inspection together, which keeps your walls open for the shortest time.
Is a partial job much quicker?
Yes. Here’s how the main kinds of job compare.
| Scope | How long, relatively |
|---|---|
| Removing dead runs | Shortest: confirm, disconnect, pull exposed runs |
| Partial replacement | Short: a few circuits, often within your existing panel |
| Whole-house, single-family | Longer: every circuit, often a panel change |
| Duplex or triplex, occupied | Longest overall: unit by unit, around residents |
The partial versus full guide helps you decide the scope, which in turn decides the schedule.
What happens before the first cable goes in?
Some time passes before work starts in your walls.
- Tracing
- Usually one visit for a single-family house.
- Scope and approval
- We write the scope; you approve it.
- Permit
- The request for inspection is filed at or before the start of work.
- Utility
- If your service changes, the Xcel Energy appointment for the disconnect and reconnect.
- Other trades
- If a remodel or insulation project is part of the plan, its schedule.
What can slow things down?
- Vermiculite
- Attic work stops until suspected vermiculite is tested.
- Hidden conditions
- A run more damaged than expected, or a splice that leads somewhere new.
- Finishes
- Historic trim removed and put back, or decorative plaster worked around.
- Access
- Rooms not ready on their scheduled days.
- Weather
- Exterior service work in severe cold or storms.
Why does house style matter so much in Minneapolis?
Because the city’s housing sits at both ends of the floors row. In Longfellow and Nokomis, about 16% of one- to three-unit buildings have two or more stories; in Uptown and Calhoun Isles, 74.3% do. Here’s how the work usually unfolds in each kind of house. These are illustrative, not schedules for any particular house.
In a story-and-a-half with an open attic and basement
The panel and basement come first: we fish first-floor circuits up from the open basement ceiling, room by room, with few openings. The upstairs dormer rooms follow from the knee-wall attics. The attic floor is cleared last, once every original run crossing it is replaced. With most cable reaching rooms from above or below, openings are few, the rough-in can cover most of the house at once, and the switch-over moves quickly.
In a two-story house with radiators and plaster
There are no duct chases, so the route survey looks for closets and walls that stack. We usually do the top-floor rooms first while the attic is open, then the second floor through closets, then the first floor from the basement. More openings are needed between floors, and each floor may be ready for inspection at a different time. Patching plaster takes longer than drywall. The same number of circuits takes noticeably longer than in the story-and-a-half.
How can I help keep it on schedule?
- Access
- Keep paths to the panel, attic hatch and basement clear for the whole job.
- Decide early
- Settle outlet locations, fixtures and the patching finish before work starts.
- Room availability
- Have rooms ready on their scheduled days.
- Other trades
- Line up your plasterer, painter or insulation contractor so they follow without a gap.
- Records
- Share any past permits or electrician’s notes; they shorten tracing.
Why do my quotes show such different timelines?
Usually because they cover different work. One counts every circuit and includes patching and the panel; another replaces only the circuits it saw and leaves the walls open. A short timeline isn’t better if it leaves work undone, so compare schedules only once you’ve confirmed the scopes match.
What should a schedule in a quote tell me?
It should answer these questions.
- How many working days, and which rooms on which days?
- When is the rough-in inspection expected, and how long will openings stay open?
- When does the panel change, and how long is the house without power that day?
- When is the final inspection?
- When will the written record be delivered?
If a quote gives only a total, ask for the breakdown. The quote comparison guide has a checklist.
What if my insurer or buyer has a deadline?
Phasing helps. The circuits your insurer or buyer cares about, usually any live original circuits, go first, under permit with inspections, and the rest follows. The guide to insurer deadlines covers the insurance side.
Is the job over at the final inspection?
Almost. The written record and panel directory follow, and any patching left for your own plasterer or painter runs on your schedule. If insulation is next, the insulation contractor can start once the record confirms the attic wiring is settled.
If an insurer or a buyer is waiting on the record, ask when it will arrive.
Can we stay home while it’s going on?
Most families do. We work room by room, outages are short and planned, and your heat stays on. The guide to living at home during a rewire describes each stage, and the guide to how replacement works explains the sequence. Questions about your house: (612) 509-6597.