Burning smell from an outlet, a breaker that won’t stay on, half the house dark, or salt-corroded equipment that finally gave out? Call (727) 476-7079. We take electrical emergency calls 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, from Countryside to Clearwater Beach and Sand Key. Our shop is at 6248 Seminole Blvd, about 10 miles south of downtown Clearwater.
Call now: (727) 476-7079. Emergency calls answered 24/7.
Before
AfterA Clearwater Beach hotel repair: damaged outlet box with exposed wiring, then the new outlet, installed and tested.
Safety first: If you see smoke or flames, or someone has been shocked, call 911 first. If it’s safe, turn off the main breaker. Stay away from downed lines and from anything electrical that’s wet. Then call us.
When to call an emergency electrician in Clearwater
Call right away, day or night, if you have:
- A burning or hot-plastic smell from an outlet, switch, fixture or the panel
- Sparks, buzzing or crackling from an outlet, switch or breaker
- An outlet, switch plate or breaker that’s warm or hot to the touch
- Partial power loss, like half the house out, or lights that dim hard when the AC starts (often a failing connection at the meter or main)
- A breaker that trips the instant you reset it
- Water in or near the panel, meter or outlets after a storm, roof leak or pipe burst
- Storm damage to the service mast, weatherhead, meter can or outside wiring
- A business without power that can’t wait: a restaurant cooler, a hotel floor, a medical office
Your house or the grid? If the neighbors are dark too, it’s most likely a utility outage. Report it to Duke Energy through the Duke Energy app or duke-energy.com and check the outage map. If it’s just your home, or only part of it, call us.
Clearwater’s electrical emergencies depend on where you live
Clearwater has about 117,200 residents (Census ACS 2020–2024) and a median home built in 1978, but the city isn’t one housing type. The emergency calls look different in each part of town.
Clearwater Beach, Island Estates and Sand Key. Salt air is the main enemy here. It corrodes outdoor GFCI outlets, cover plates, meter cans, panel lugs and dock wiring much faster than inland. A corroded connection can run hot for months, then fail suddenly. Common calls: an outdoor or pool-area GFCI that won’t reset, a dock or boat-lift circuit that died, an exterior panel with rust at the breakers, and power loss in a condo unit. We replace corroded devices with weather-resistant, in-use-rated equipment and check the connections behind them.
Central neighborhoods like Skycrest, Morningside and Del Oro. Many homes here date from the 1950s through the ’70s. Original panels, Federal Pacific and Zinsco breakers, aluminum branch wiring in some homes, and ungrounded circuits are the usual causes of warm outlets, nuisance tripping and burning smells. When we fix the emergency, we’ll tell you if a panel replacement or rewiring should be on your list. There’s no pressure to decide at 2 AM.
Countryside and north Clearwater. Newer 1980s homes and HOA communities. Emergencies here are more often lightning and surge damage, failed AC or pool equipment circuits, and overloaded circuits after a remodel.
Downtown and Cleveland Street. Older commercial buildings, restaurants and offices. A tripped main or a failed panel during service hours costs real money, so we handle after-hours commercial troubleshooting and come back during business hours for the permanent fix. See commercial electrical service.
Hotels, condos and short-term rentals on the beach
Hotel and condo managers need a room back in service quickly and safely. We’ve done this kind of work on Clearwater Beach: in one hotel guest room, an outlet box above the counter was broken open with exposed wiring and a ceiling box had wires hanging with no fixture. We repaired the boxes, installed new outlets and a new ceiling light, and tested every outlet before handing the room back. See the Clearwater Beach hotel repair →
For condo owners: the wiring and panel inside your unit are usually your responsibility, while meter rooms and common-area equipment belong to the association. We’ll tell you which side the problem is on and coordinate with your manager when it’s theirs.
After a storm in Clearwater
Hurricane Helene’s surge in September 2024 pushed saltwater into homes and businesses on Clearwater Beach and along the bayfront, and Hurricane Milton followed with high winds and long outages. What we tell Clearwater property owners:
- Don’t turn flooded equipment back on. Panels, breakers, outlets and meter equipment that sat in saltwater usually have to be replaced. Corrosion keeps working after the water’s gone.
- Duke Energy may not restore power until damage is repaired and, in some cases, inspected. We assess the system, make it safe, and pull the permits for repairs.
- Who owns what. Duke Energy is generally responsible for the service drop and meter. The owner is responsible for the weatherhead, mast, meter can and everything inside.
- Rebuilding in a flood zone. If a home is being substantially improved after storm damage, the City may require electrical equipment above a set elevation. We check before we rebuild.
- Never back-feed a house through a dryer outlet with a generator. It can electrocute utility crews and neighbors. For a safe setup next time, see generator installation and hookups.
Lightning is the other Clearwater regular. A nearby strike can take out AC boards, pool controls and electronics at once. We troubleshoot surge damage and can add whole-house surge protection.
What happens when you call
- We answer and ask a few questions: what you see, smell or hear, and whether anyone is in danger. We’ll tell you how to stay safe until we arrive and give you an honest arrival estimate.
- We tell you the after-hours rate before we dispatch. No surprises.
- We find the cause, make it safe, and fix what can be fixed on the spot. When a permit is required, we file it with the City of Clearwater Planning & Development office at 100 S. Myrtle Ave, or with Pinellas County for unincorporated addresses. Belleair, Belleair Bluffs and Belleair Beach have their own arrangements, and we handle those too.
- Bigger repairs get an itemized quote. If the fix is a panel, service or rewiring job, we make it safe now and give you an itemized quote after the site visit.
Hours: emergency calls 24/7. Office 7 AM–5 PM, with weekend service for non-emergency work.
Not an emergency? We fix those too
A dead outlet, a light that flickers now and then, or a GFCI that trips once in a while can usually wait for a scheduled visit at our regular rate. Call and describe it, and we’ll tell you honestly whether it’s urgent. See outlet repair & installation and residential electrical service.
Warranty, membership and financing
- 3-year workmanship warranty, extended to 5 years for Member Care Plan members. Members also get 7% off labor, including after-hours labor.
- Financing available through Acorn Finance, subject to credit approval for larger repairs like a panel or service replacement. Check your options without affecting your credit score. Ask us and we’ll include the financing link with your itemized quote.
Why Clearwater calls Keywest Lights & Electric
- Licensed electrical contractor, EC#13014717, in business since 2010
- 24/7 emergency calls, from our shop at 6248 Seminole Blvd, Seminole, FL 33772
- Residential, condo, hospitality and commercial experience, bondable to $1M, with projects up to $2M
- Woman-owned, family-run business and Home Depot preferred contractor
Hurricane season notes for this area
October is still hurricane season on the Gulf coast. For planned electrical work we keep the advice practical:
- Standby generators need a listed transfer switch ahead of the panel. Portable-generator interlocks are a different product and are not installed in a SPAN Panel. See generator installation and hookups.
- Whole-house surge protection is required by Florida’s adopted electrical code whenever a home’s service equipment is replaced, and it’s a smart add-on before storm season even when you’re not upgrading. See whole-house surge protection.
- After a storm: do a visual check before restoring power if the house took on water, if you smell burning, or if the meter can or panel was submerged or damaged. Call us for a post-storm inspection rather than flipping the main back on and hoping. Emergency calls are answered 24/7; we do not promise a response time.
- Permits: generator hookups, panel and service work still need the correct city or county permit. We pull those when we do the work.
Clearwater emergency electrician FAQ
Is there a 24-hour electrician in Clearwater? Yes. Call (727) 476-7079 any time, day or night, including weekends and holidays, for electrical emergencies anywhere in Clearwater, including the beach, Island Estates and Sand Key.
How fast can you get to Clearwater Beach? It depends on the time of day, bridge and beach traffic, and how many storm calls are coming in. We’ll give you an honest arrival estimate when you call.
Do you charge more at night and on weekends? Yes. After-hours calls are billed at our after-hours rate, and we tell you the price before we dispatch. Member Care Plan members get 7% off after-hours labor.
My outdoor GFCI by the pool keeps tripping and won’t reset. Is that an emergency? If there’s any burning smell, scorching, heat or water in the box, yes: leave it off and call us. If not, it can usually wait for a scheduled visit, but don’t bypass it. On the beach, these are often corroded devices that need to be replaced with weather-resistant ones.
My panel got wet in the storm surge. Can I turn the power back on? No. Leave it off and have it evaluated. Equipment that’s been in saltwater usually has to be replaced, and Duke Energy may require repairs and an inspection before reconnecting.
Do you take emergency calls in Largo, Dunedin and Safety Harbor too? Yes. We take emergency calls across Pinellas County, including Largo, Dunedin and Safety Harbor.
Electrical emergency in Clearwater? Call (727) 476-7079 now, 24/7.
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