The Electric Handyman

Antonio T.

I hired Julian to help me address my girlfriend's tenants failed wifi router. While we knew they shared our comcast connection, we couldn't figure out which wire was the bad one.
Julian rapidly and methodically mapped out the wire runs which were a disorderly patchwork of work resultant from my own efforts and my predecessors. I knew of a hidden dumbwaiter space which turned out to be the perfect way to run a new line to the tenants unit. We worked as a team to run a new line and Julian speedily reset the tenant's router and optimized it's wifi to minimize interference from the numerous other wifi networks in the neighborhood. If you need network services, I highly recommend him. Not cheap but well worth it.

Rafael O.

The Electric Handyman earned all 5 stars. I highly recommend their services for your residential and small office networking.

I called looking for a quote to extend our networking capabilities into a remodeled basement office. The scope was fairly modest:
1. Add a WiFi access point via Ethernet and extend the landline phone into the basement. Situate the Ethernet and phone ports in a professional looking outlet box.
2. On the main floor, relocate the current phone and WiFi router from a bedroom to an office room.

I'm glad I called Julian. He's a one-man shop. He's got the know-how and the can-do attitude to tackle residential scale jobs. Although he was rather booked up, he found a way to review my scope notes, send me a quote, and then implement the work. Was it immediate? No, I had to get in line. Was it worth the wait? Oh yes! Julian and his ""crew"" of one helper were able to come on site, review the particulars, make some tweaks to the plan, and then execute it. By the time they left 3.5 hours later the new basement access point was broadcasting a new network name, and Ethernet and phone outlets were exactly where I wanted them.

But then trouble! My PC became unable to resolve some web sites. Error messages became common. I tried rebooting, but the problem persisted. I called Julian. He quickly returned my call and then came back! He performed some quick diagnostics and determined that the network and phone were ok, and suggested some local PC updates and switching to the 5G option. I installed a BIOS update and switched to the 5G network, and the connection issues disappeared. Julian actually followed up two days later to find out the result. Now that's what I call customer attention!

My advice for customers:
- Identify your goals in advance. Get specific about what you'll need: a TV? Business-quality WiFi? Only casual internet? A printer?
- Make a sketch. Draw out the layout of your home or office showing where you'd like outlets. The sketch doesn't have to be exactly to scale. The point is to communicate to the vendor (and yourself) what the end result should be.
- Be patient. A good vendor may be busy. So get in line and be prepared to provide a concise description of goals and scope. That will make the process go as fast as is practical.

When you understand the goals and scope, then you can intelligently communicate with the vendor. In Julian's case, the sketch helped him figure out that he could fit my project between some of his larger projects. And it helps for cost estimating, too.

Julian, The Electric Handyman, is honest, results-oriented, and creative at figuring out how to reach good solutions economically. He willingly shared his process, providing useful information along the way. 5 stars for delivering results at a fair price point and going above and beyond to make sure my project worked as intended!

C P.

I wanted to convert a clothes dryer from gas to electric.

I contacted a number of electricians but none were interested in a job this small. The Electric Handyman (aka Julian) came over the very next day to assess the project.

He was clear up front about his (quite reasonable) charges for the assessment. We walked through the project and saw that, although I had an existing 220-V line, it was ungrounded. I needed to replace this 220-V circuit with new, grounded wiring.

I told him my priorities (safety and cost) and he planned the work accordingly. I enjoy learning about projects like this, and he also allowed me to help (and saved me some cash by giving me a shopping list for materials, rather than insisting that I pay him to pick up them all up.)

He knocked the project out quickly and effectively a few days later, again, allowing me to help. He also took the time to explain important fundamentals about electrical work.

Final costs were totally reasonable and well within his original estimates.

The Electric Handyman's work was first-rate, his prices were totally reasonable, and his communication was clear throughout the process.

Best of all: my clothes are dry!

Thanks, Julian!

Farlen M.

Julian was very helpful in troubleshooting our complex networking issue. We needed to reconfigure a VPN and he helped diagnose the issue to which we where able to find a solution. He was very technical and explained every complex protocol so that i could understand it. He was very helpful and also offered to make our wifi lightning fast!

Jamie V.

I've hired Julian several more times over the past year or so to help out with clients' houses that need more/better wifi coverage and to run ethernet wiring. He is great to work with and his project cost estimating is spot on.

Heather C.

I had ongoing issues with a compressor and the manufacturer said the issues could be caused by electrical problems. So, I called a few electricians and Julian got back to me super fast. We scheduled a visit for a couple of days later.

Julian came by and was super good at showing me what was going on that could be causing the problems with the compressor. Luckily, it turns out nothing was wrong with my electrical. Julian really did a great job troubleshooting the potential issues. I also learned a ton about my home's electrical. It's really cool that he takes the time to communicate what he's doing.

Julian was also great at getting back to me by email. He even emailed me after the job was done to go over a few other things, showing that even when he's off the clock he is still thinking about his clients. He even saved me a bunch of money by telling me a certain thing wasn't really necessary for my situation. His prices are also very fair.

I would definitely recommend Julian and will call him again for future electrical projects.

Patrick K.

We recently moved up from Southern California and into an older home in Orinda. We needed our telephone LAN line repaired. Julian investigated the entire house (4,000 sq ft) and was able to locate the problem. The previous owner severed the connection between the house and phone company. Julian was very professional as he educated me through the process.

Also, in the process of fixing our phone line Julian detected a suspicious odor coming from the meter and advised me to call PG&E ASAP. I called PG&E immediately; PG&E arrived and confirmed that there were 2 gas leaks and worked on correcting the leak.

Thank you Julian. He fixed my phone line and saved our family from a potential danger!

Chas A.

Julian Steinberg was terrific. He came when he said he would. He charged what he said he would. He explained what he was doing and why. Easy to work with and pleasant to have around. I happily refer him to anyone looking for an electrician. (Really! You won't be sorry.)

Daryl M.

Julian was prompt and true to his word. No surprises when it came to cost. He is up front about any potential problems and works with you towards a solution. He got the job done and even taught us a little something along the way.

Rhonda B.

We live in a large three-story house it has always been a challenge to have Internet access in every room in the house. I contacted Julian because of his good reviews on Yelp and he delivered BIG time and way under the estimate. It worked out perfectly and Julian was able to do the work pretty quickly it makes such a difference having the access to the Internet on every level of our house thanks Julian for the great work