In short
- Hydro Ottawa typically supplies homes at 120/240 V over three wires: two 120 V lines and a shared neutral.
- Lose one line and every circuit on it goes dark at once; the stove and dryer lose half their feed.
- Hydro Ottawa's first check of the supply at your service entrance carries no fee.
- One Ottawa firm lists a service entrance repair at $300–$800, or $500–$1,200 after hours.
Typical prices in Ottawa
| Job | Typical range | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| First hour of a service call | $100–$200 | Canada-wide HomeStars guide; travel and assessment |
| Hourly rate, mid-size cities incl. Ottawa | $80–$130 | Canada-wide HomeStars guide |
| Service call or diagnosis | $80–$150; $150–$300 after hours | One Ottawa firm’s published list, March 2026 |
| Panel emergency repair | $200–$500; $350–$750 after hours | One Ottawa firm’s published list |
| Service entrance repair | $300–$800; $500–$1,200 after hours | One Ottawa firm’s published list |
| Meter base or mast upgrade | $500–$1,500 | Canada-wide HomeStars guide |
| Hydro Ottawa first supply check | No fee | Later visits are charged when the fault is on your side |
Sources. HomeStars, Electrician Hourly Rate in Canada: 2026 Guide, Canada-wide, seen 29.10.2026. HomeStars, How Much Does It Cost to Upgrade an Electrical Panel?, Canada-wide, seen 29.10.2026. One Ottawa firm’s published list: Emergency Electrician Ottawa: What to Do in a Crisis, dated 17.03.2026, seen 29.10.2026. Supply, power quality checks, seals, isolation fees: Hydro Ottawa Conditions of Service, version 9, seen 29.10.2026. Outages: Hydro Ottawa, Outage centre, Outage information, Power quality, Outage preparedness, seen 29.10.2026. Ownership and repairs: Hydro Ottawa, Electrical service requests, Hydro Ottawa, Electrical safety at home, seen 29.10.2026. Two lines and a neutral: Wikipedia, Split-phase electric power, seen 29.10.2026. Rules: ESA, Finding the Right Contractor, ESA, Indoor safety, seen 29.10.2026. Contracts: Ontario, guide for home renovation businesses, seen 29.10.2026.
Two lines into one panel
Hydro Ottawa’s Conditions of Service describe residential service as typically 120/240 V, single phase, three wires: two 120 V lines and a shared neutral. Each single-pole breaker feeds a 120 V circuit from one line. A two-pole breaker takes both to make 240 V for the stove, dryer, water heater, baseboards or heat pump.
So “half the house” fits a lost line. Lose one line and roughly half the 120 V circuits die together, while the 240 V appliances lose half their supply. The breakers can all look normal, which sends the electrician upstream of the branch circuits.
Read the house before you write
The pattern helps more than a guess at the cause. Note:
- Rooms and outlets that work and that stopped. One dead room with a tripped breaker is a different job: breaker keeps tripping.
- Big appliances: running, dead or partly working.
- Brightness. Some lights brighter, others dim, or bulbs changing when the furnace starts. Hydro Ottawa lists dimming lights and devices behaving unpredictably as supply signs to report. Steady flicker alone: flickering lights.
- What came first: wind, ice, a branch on the wires, snow off the roof, a crew on the street, or nothing.
Hydro Ottawa’s side and yours
Report it to Hydro Ottawa before booking anyone: online, at 613-738-0188, or by texting OUT to 797688. Its outage map updates every 15 minutes. Under its Conditions of Service, it checks the supply at your service entrance with no fee for that first check and fixes a grid cause at no cost. A cause on your side is yours to repair, and later visits for it are charged.
On an overhead service, Hydro Ottawa owns the wires from the pole. You own the mast, the wires in it, the meter base and the wires to the panel; the meter and its seal stay Hydro Ottawa’s. Unsure? Call (613) 738-6418.
Three places the fault can sit
- Utility side. Transformer or wires from the pole. Hydro Ottawa’s job.
- Service entrance. Mast, meter base, wires down to the panel. See service mast and meter base, and storm damage for ice and wind.
- Panel. The main breaker, the connections where the service wires land, the bars the breakers clip onto.
For the middle case, the contractor files with ESA and Hydro Ottawa disconnects and reconnects. Someone must be home for reconnection, main breaker off. A temporary repair authorized by ESA must be made permanent within 30 days.
While half the house is dark
Hydro Ottawa’s outage advice fits the dead half: lights off, appliances unplugged, thermostats down. If heat stopped in winter, say so and pick Today. ESA asks that a space heater go straight into a wall outlet, without an extension cord. Leave the panel cover on and keep away from the meter base. Hydro Ottawa says to stay out of flooded areas until the power is confirmed off.
What it costs and what moves the price
The first cost is finding the break. A Canada-wide HomeStars guide puts the first hour at $100–$200 and Ottawa among mid-size cities at $80–$130 an hour. One Ottawa firm lists a service call at $80–$150, or $150–$300 after hours.
- Panel. That firm lists panel emergency repair at $200–$500, or $350–$750 after hours.
- Service entrance. Same firm: $300–$800, or $500–$1,200 after hours. HomeStars puts a meter base or mast upgrade at $500–$1,500.
- Timing. After-hours work runs 1.5 to 2 times the standard rate on HomeStars, and some pros set a two-to-four-hour minimum.
Hydro Ottawa charges its own isolation and reconnection fee, apart from the contractor’s price.
What the written price should list
Diagnosis and repair as separate lines, with where the fault was found; then parts, labour, any after-hours charge, the ESA fee and HST. ESA says the seven-digit licence number belongs on the estimate. Ontario requires a written agreement for home repair work over $50, and the bill can exceed the estimate by 10% at most without a signed change. Ask for the ESA certificate at the end.
Who you are dealing with
Ottawa Electric Desk passes your request to one independent local electrical company. That company calls you back, traces where the power is lost on your side and does the repair.
Questions to ask the company
- If Hydro Ottawa finds its supply in order, how will you trace the lost line?
- Does the price cover diagnosis only or the repair too?
- Will you file the ESA notification and arrange the disconnection with Hydro Ottawa if needed?
- Does an after-hours rate or a minimum charge apply?
- Can I have parts, labour, the ESA fee and HST as separate lines?
Have this ready for the call
- A room-by-room list of what works and what stopped, big appliances included
- Lights that look brighter or dimmer than usual
- What Hydro Ottawa told you, and what the neighbours have
- A photo of the open panel door, cover left on, showing the main breaker
- Photos from the ground of the mast and meter base
Questions people ask
Why is half the house dark with every breaker still on?
Each ordinary breaker draws from one of the two 120 V lines. When one line loses supply before the panel, all its circuits stop together and the breakers stay put.
Some lights glow brighter and others dim. Same fault?
It points at the shared neutral, which carries the difference between the two halves. Without it, voltage swings as loads switch. Unplug electronics and pick Today on the form.
Will Hydro Ottawa have to cut the power for the repair?
For work at the meter base or service wires, yes. Contractors may not break meter seals or disconnect its wires; the contractor files with ESA and Hydro Ottawa isolates and reconnects.
Does insurance pay for a damaged mast?
Hydro Ottawa says many home policies cover mast repairs. Keep the receipts and the ESA certificate.
My house sits back from the road with its own pole. Does that change anything?
Hydro Ottawa owns the line up to the first pole on your property. Poles and wires past it are yours, so mention them in the request.
