Electrician in Milwaukie, OR — Built for 1950s and 1970s Homes

More than a third of the houses here were built before 1960. Many still have the 60- or 100-amp service they started with, and some are old enough for knob-and-tube.

Of the 15 cities we serve outside Portland, Milwaukie is the oldest suburb. Before 1960 it already had about 3,610 of today's 9,859 homes, with the 1950s alone contributing 18.4%. A 1940s or 50s house here often still runs the 60- or 100-amp service it was built with, along with outlets that have no ground. Go back further and about 1,130 homes, 11.5%, predate 1940; knob-and-tube may still be in those walls. McLoughlin Blvd and Hwy 224 are the roads we come in on.

Then came the 1960s and 70s. Between 1960 and 1989 the city built 47.3% of its housing, with the 1970s the busiest decade at 19.3%, about 1,900 houses. Anything wired between 1965 and 1973 could have aluminum on some of its circuits. Just 16.1% went up in 1990 or later, so nearly every job here begins with a question about what the existing service can carry.