Whole-home rewiring in Dearborn, MI.

A full rewire of a typical Dearborn bungalow runs about $8,000 to $18,000. Square footage, plaster walls, attic and basement access, and how many circuits the house needs set the price. Partial rewires of the worst circuits cost less and are common when the budget is tight.

Most of the cost is labor, and most of the labor is getting new cable through finished walls without tearing them open. A story-and-a-half bungalow with an open basement and an accessible attic is easier than a two-story colonial with finished ceilings on both floors. The quote should say how many openings are expected and whether patching is included; many electricians cut neat access holes and leave plaster repair to a plasterer or drywall finisher. A full rewire also usually includes a new panel if the old one is a fuse box, so the two are often quoted together.

Knob-and-tube is not dangerous just because it is old, but it has no ground, its insulation gets brittle, and decades of splices by past owners add risk. It also must not be buried in insulation. Many insurers ask about it, and some will not write a policy until it is gone.

Knob-and-tube wiring, covered by NEC Article 394, was designed to shed heat into open air, which is why it should not be covered with blown-in insulation. Many Dearborn attics have had insulation added over the years, sometimes right over live knob-and-tube. The other problem is age: the rubber and cloth insulation crumbles where it has been handled or heated, especially near light fixtures. And there is no equipment ground, so three-prong outlets on knob-and-tube circuits are a common false comfort. An electrician can tell you which circuits are still knob-and-tube and which have been replaced, which is the first step to deciding what to do.

Mostly, yes. Electricians fish new cable through walls from the attic and the basement, using the old paths where they can, and cut small access holes where they cannot. Expect some patching, most of it at ceilings, outlet boxes and the tops of walls.

Plaster-and-lath walls in older Dearborn homes are thick and hard to cut cleanly, so the work is slower than in drywall. The usual approach: run new circuits from the basement up through interior walls, drop down from the attic into the second-floor walls, and open small sections where a fire block or a header is in the way. First-floor ceilings in two-story houses are the hardest part and usually need the most openings. Moving furniture away from walls, covering floors and keeping dust down should all be in the plan. Ask how many openings to expect and who does the patching.

Two-prong outlets mean the circuit has no ground. The best fix is new grounded wiring. Where that is not practical yet, code allows replacing them with GFCI-protected outlets labeled "No Equipment Ground," which protects people from shock but does not give surge protectors and electronics a true ground.

Swapping a two-prong outlet for a three-prong one without a ground wire, and without GFCI protection, is a code violation and gives a false sense of safety. Home inspectors commonly flag it when a house sells. GFCI protection is a legitimate stopgap for rooms that will be rewired later. For computers, a TV or anything with a surge protector, a real ground matters, so those rooms are good places to start a partial rewire. Basements, kitchens, bathrooms and garages also need GFCI protection under NEC 210.8 regardless of what the wiring is.

Yes. Most rewires are done room by room, with power restored to finished circuits at the end of each day. A typical bungalow takes one to two weeks of work. Expect some dust, moved furniture and short periods without power in the rooms being worked on.

The electrician usually starts with a new panel, then moves circuit by circuit, so the old and new wiring overlap for a while. Bedrooms are often done early in the day so they have power at night. The City of Dearborn inspects the rough-in before walls are patched, which is a fixed step in the schedule, so plan patching after that inspection. New bedroom and living-area circuits need AFCI protection under NEC 210.12, and kitchen countertop circuits need GFCI, so the new panel will have more combination breakers than the old one had.

If knob-and-tube is still live in the walls or attic, replace all of it in one job. If the house was partly updated, stage it, starting with the kitchen, bathrooms and bedrooms. A walk-through with the panel open shows what is old and what is new.

Staging works when the remaining old wiring is in fair shape and not buried in insulation. It costs a little more overall because each stage repeats setup and inspection, but it spreads the cost. A full rewire at once is better before a remodel, before blowing in attic insulation, or when the insurance company has given a deadline. If you are buying a house in Dearborn, ask the seller's disclosure about wiring and have an electrician look at the panel and the attic before closing; it is a lot cheaper to negotiate a rewire than to discover one.

Yes. Many insurers ask about knob-and-tube, fuse boxes and certain panel brands, and buyers' inspectors flag them. A permitted rewire with a finished inspection is something you can show an insurer or a buyer. Keep the permit record and the electrician's invoice with the house papers.

Old wiring comes up most often at two moments: when an insurance company renews or writes a policy, and when a buyer's home inspector writes up the house. In both cases, a closed permit from the City of Dearborn is the proof that the work was done and inspected. If you are selling, a rewire is not always required, but a known problem tends to come off the price at closing, often by more than the repair would have cost. If you are buying, ask the seller for any permit records on electrical work and check the panel age yourself.