Whether you’re dealing with an electrical issue, planning an upgrade, or just trying to understand your home’s electrical system, we’ve compiled answers to the questions our customers ask most. If you don’t see your question here, call us at (732) 851-8487 — we’re happy to help.
We serve Red Bank and all of Monmouth County, including Middletown, Tinton Falls, Shrewsbury, Little Silver, Fair Haven, Rumson, Holmdel, Matawan, Eatontown, Long Branch, Hazlet, Aberdeen, Colts Neck, and surrounding communities throughout Central New Jersey. See our full service area map →
Yes. Superpower Electric holds NJ Electrical License #12849 and is fully insured. Every electrician on our team is background-checked and drug-screened. We've been serving Central New Jersey since 1996.
Yes. We provide 24/7 emergency electrical service every day of the year. When you call (732) 851-8487, you reach a real person — not an answering service. We dispatch a licensed electrician as quickly as possible for urgent issues like burning smells, sparking panels, power loss, and active electrical hazards.
Yes. Most of our work is backed by a 100% money-back satisfaction guarantee. We also provide a five-year guarantee on specific installations including whole-house surge protectors and panel work. Individual product warranties vary by manufacturer.
Yes — for every job that requires one. NJ requires permits for new circuits, panel work, service upgrades, and most wiring projects. We pull the permits through your local municipality, schedule the inspections, and make sure everything passes. The permit cost is included in our quotes.
Age alone doesn't determine whether a panel needs replacing — condition and capacity matter more. That said, panels over 25 years old should be inspected by a licensed electrician. Signs a panel needs replacement include breakers that trip frequently, a panel that's warm to the touch, buzzing or burning smells, or a panel that simply can't support your home's current electrical demand (common when adding EV chargers, HVAC systems, or home offices). Panel upgrade services →
100-amp was standard for homes built before the 1970s and is inadequate for most modern households. 200-amp is the current residential standard and supports central AC, EV charging, and typical modern loads. 400-amp is for larger homes, properties with multiple HVAC systems, or those adding substantial equipment like generators, hot tubs, and EV chargers simultaneously. Learn more about service upgrades →
Federal Pacific panels are labeled "Federal Pacific Electric" or "FPE Stab-Lok" on the panel door or inside the cover. The breakers often have red-tipped toggle handles. Zinsco panels say "Zinsco" or "GTE-Sylvania" on the label, and the breakers typically have color-coded pastel handles (pink, blue, green). Both brands have documented safety defects and should be replaced — not repaired. Federal Pacific & Zinsco replacement →
Yes. Every full panel upgrade from Superpower Electric includes a FREE whole-house surge protector ($1,200 value). This protects every circuit in your home from power surges caused by lightning, grid fluctuations, and utility switching. Current specials →
Most panel upgrades are completed in one day. Homes requiring a service entrance upgrade, meter base replacement, or significant rewiring may take longer. We coordinate with JCP&L for the service disconnect and reconnect.
Aluminum branch circuit wiring was installed in an estimated 2 million U.S. homes between 1965 and 1973 during a copper shortage. The wire itself conducts electricity adequately — the danger is at the connection points (outlets, switches, fixtures) where aluminum expands and contracts more than copper, loosening connections over time. Loose connections overheat, and the CPSC has documented that homes with aluminum wiring are significantly more likely to have fire-risk conditions at these connection points. Wiring and rewiring services →
No. For many homes, the most effective and cost-efficient fix is COPALUM crimp connectors or AlumiConn set-screw connectors — specialized connectors that create a permanent, code-compliant copper-to-aluminum junction at every outlet, switch, and fixture. These address the connection-point problem without the cost and disruption of pulling all new wire. A full copper rewire is recommended only when the aluminum wire itself shows signs of damage — discoloration, overheating, or melted insulation. We assess every home individually and recommend the right solution, not the most expensive one. More on wiring remediation →
Knob-and-tube (K&T) is the oldest residential wiring type, found in homes built before the 1930s. It uses individual copper conductors run through porcelain knobs and tubes with air space around the wires. K&T has no ground wire, its rubber insulation becomes brittle with age, and it was never designed for modern electrical loads. It's not an automatic code violation in NJ (existing wiring is grandfathered), but it can't be extended or connected to new work, and most insurance companies either refuse to cover homes with active K&T or charge significantly higher premiums. Common in older homes in Red Bank, Fair Haven, Little Silver, Long Branch, and Asbury Park. Wiring assessment →
Arc fault circuit interrupters detect dangerous electrical arcing — when current jumps across a gap in damaged or improperly connected wires — and shut down the circuit before the arc generates enough heat to start a fire. The NEC has required AFCI protection in bedrooms since 2002 and has expanded the requirement to living rooms, dining rooms, hallways, closets, and sunrooms in subsequent code cycles. If your home was built before 2002, it likely has no AFCI protection at all. We install AFCI breakers in your panel that protect entire circuits.
Two-prong outlets were standard in homes built before the early 1960s. They lack a grounding conductor, which means no path for fault current to safely reach ground — and no protection from surge protectors or GFCI devices. Upgrading options include running a ground wire (best protection), replacing with a GFCI outlet even without a ground wire (code-compliant alternative, labeled "No Equipment Ground"), or installing a GFCI breaker in the panel. Simply replacing a two-prong outlet with a three-prong outlet without grounding or GFCI protection is a code violation. Outlet and switch services →
Replace immediately if an outlet or switch is warm to the touch, sparking, producing a burning smell, or showing scorch marks. Replace soon if you have two-prong outlets, outlets in kitchens or bathrooms without GFCI protection, switches that crackle or buzz, or painted-over outlets. Also consider upgrading if you want USB outlets, dimmer switches, smart switches, or tamper-resistant receptacles (NEC-required in new construction since 2008). More on outlet and switch replacement →
A ground fault circuit interrupter detects when current is flowing through an unintended path (through water, through a person) and cuts power in milliseconds to prevent electrocution. NJ code requires GFCI protection in kitchens (all countertop outlets), bathrooms, garages, unfinished basements, laundry areas, exterior outlets, and within six feet of any sink. GFCI requirements have expanded steadily since 1971 — most homes built before the mid-1990s are missing GFCI protection in several required locations. Outlet services →
A typical Level 2 EV charger installation ranges from $1000 to $2,500 for the electrical work (dedicated 240V circuit, wiring, and connection), depending on the distance from your panel and whether your panel has capacity for the new circuit. The charger unit itself is separate ($300–$700 for most models). If your panel needs upgrading to support the charger, that adds to the scope — but we can bundle the panel upgrade and charger installation to save time and money. EV charger installation →
Not always, but frequently yes — especially in homes with 100-amp panels or panels that are already near capacity. An EV charger draws 40–50 amps on a dedicated 240V circuit, which is a significant addition to your home's electrical load. We assess your panel's capacity as part of every EV charger consultation. If an upgrade is needed, we handle both in one project. Panel services →
Yes. Super Power Electric is one of the few Tesla Certified Installers in Monmouth County. Our electricians are trained directly by Tesla to install the Wall Connector according to exact specifications. We also install ChargePoint Home Flex and other Level 2 chargers for all EV brands.
Level 1 uses a standard 120V household outlet and adds roughly 3–5 miles of range per hour — fine for plug-in hybrids but impractical for fully electric vehicles. Level 2 uses a dedicated 240V circuit and delivers 25–50 miles of range per hour, meaning a fully depleted battery recharges overnight. Level 2 is what we install. EV charger details →
If your home has equipment you can't afford to replace in a single surge event — HVAC system ($5,000–$15,000), refrigerator, EV charger, washer/dryer, electronics — then yes. Power strips only protect what's plugged into them. A whole-house surge protector installs at your panel and protects every circuit, including hardwired and 240V equipment that can't be plugged into a strip. At $300–$1200 installed, it's a fraction of replacing even one major appliance. Surge protection services →
A properly installed whole-house surge protector handles the vast majority of lightning-related surges — which are indirect hits to utility lines, nearby transformers, or the ground near your service entrance. These indirect surges are common and fully protectable. A direct lightning strike to your home's service entrance can overwhelm any protective device, but direct strikes are rare. The old claim that "no surge protector protects against lightning" is misleading — it only applies to direct strikes. More on surge protection →
Turn off the breaker serving that area. If you're not sure which breaker it is, turn off the main breaker. Do not open the outlet or panel cover to investigate. If you see smoke, call 911 first. Then call us at (732) 851-8487. A burning smell near any electrical component means something is overheating — and overheating wiring inside walls is the leading cause of residential electrical fires. Emergency services →
First, try resetting it: push the handle firmly to the OFF position (you should feel or hear a click), then move it to ON. If it holds, the circuit may have been momentarily overloaded — try reducing the load on that circuit. If it trips again immediately, do not keep resetting it. A breaker that trips repeatedly has an underlying cause — an overloaded circuit, a short circuit in the wiring, or a failing breaker. Repeatedly resetting a tripping breaker is dangerous because the breaker may eventually fail to trip when it should, allowing the wiring to overheat. Call us for diagnosis. Electrical repair → | Circuit breaker services →
This typically means you've lost one leg of your 240V service. Your home receives two 120V lines (legs) from the utility — each serving roughly half your circuits. If one leg fails (due to a tripped main breaker, a loose connection at the panel or meter, or a utility-side issue), the circuits on that leg go dark while the other half stays on. This requires same-day attention. Check with your neighbors — if they're fine, the issue is likely at your panel or service entrance. Call us at (732) 851-8487. Emergency services →
They're technically UL-listed, but they bypass the grounding protection your device needs. If the device experiences a fault, there's no path for the current to reach ground safely — increasing the risk of shock. The better solution is upgrading the outlet to a grounded three-prong or installing a GFCI outlet (code-compliant even without a ground wire). Outlet upgrades →
NJ requires a smoke detector and carbon monoxide detector certificate of compliance at closing, which involves an inspection of those systems. A full electrical inspection is not legally required for a home sale, but it's increasingly common — buyers' home inspectors routinely flag electrical issues (Federal Pacific panels, aluminum wiring, ungrounded outlets, missing GFCI/AFCI protection), and lenders or insurance companies may require remediation before closing. Getting ahead of these issues before listing gives you control over the timeline and cost. Inspection services →
Yes. New Jersey requires a certificate of compliance for smoke detectors and carbon monoxide detectors when a home is sold. Detectors must be hardwired and interconnected (when one activates, all must sound), placed in every bedroom, outside every sleeping area, and on every level of the home. If your system doesn't meet current requirements, we can bring it up to code — typically in a single visit — and provide the documentation needed for closing. Smoke and CO detector services →
We recommend a professional electrical inspection every 5–10 years for homes with modern wiring and updated panels. For homes with older wiring (knob-and-tube, cloth-insulated, aluminum), Federal Pacific or Zinsco panels, or homes over 40 years old, more frequent inspections are warranted. An inspection is also smart before any major renovation, after purchasing an older home, or when your insurance company requests one. Schedule an inspection →
It depends on what you want to keep running during an outage. 10–14 kW covers the essentials (lights, refrigerator, sump pump, Wi-Fi, a few outlets). 16–22 kW adds central air conditioning, electric water heater, and most kitchen appliances — this is the most popular choice for Monmouth County homes. 24+ kW powers your entire home including electric range, dryer, EV charger, and hot tub. We size every installation to your actual electrical loads, not a rule of thumb. Generator installation →
Yes. A standby generator is connected to your electrical panel through an automatic transfer switch. When it detects a power loss, the transfer switch disconnects your home from the grid and starts the generator — automatically, within seconds. When utility power returns, it transfers back and shuts down the generator. No manual startup, no extension cords.
Subject To Availability & Eligibility
