Meet Pauric Electric, The 'Best Electrician' In San Francisco

Meet Pauric Electric, The 'Best Electrician' In San FranciscoPhotos: Stephen Jackson / Hoodline
Stephen Jackson
Published on October 28, 2014
Divisadero has had a lot of press about its recent uptick in new bars and restaurants. In fact, many accolades from the SF Bay Guardian's recent Best of the Bay list were awarded to eateries and drinking holes in our tiny hamlet
But excellence in our neighborhood apparently goes beyond the realm of food and drink and into our homes, because Pauric Electric, a small business that operates out of a residential office on Scott and Hayes, was named "Best Electrician" in the city for the third year running. 

We caught up with owner Pauric “Blake” O’Flaherty to find out what all the buzz was about.
 


Blake moved to Burlingame from Buncrana, a small town in the north of Ireland, in 2000, and he’s been in San Francisco since 2002. An electrician since 1997, Blake studied electrical engineering back in Ireland and worked as an electrician for several large companies before moving to the States.
 
Once here, he continued to work for large operations, but ultimately sought his own slice of the pie. “I was pretty high up in other companies, but got burnt off doing the dog work for others when I knew I could do it better myself,” he told us.
 
Pauric Electric started doing business in 2008, just when the recession was hitting the hardest. Blake told us that he was only getting work with his other companies once or twice a week, but he was noticing a demand for smaller jobs that no one else wanted to do, so he started focusing on those.
 


Now, his company consists of himself, four employees and two utility vans. He likes the size of his business because it allows him to connect with the customer and maintain a high level of quality and reliability. “I think what gets us the most work is because I’m the guy that answers the phone and I’m the guy that shows up,” said Blake.
 
Pauric Electric offers the complete spectrum of electrician services, including data wiring, installing new electrical lines, rewiring old ones, repairing wear and tear on all household appliances, and general troubleshooting. Blake estimates that 70 percent of his residential and commercial work is done in San Francisco and the remainder happens in Marin. In fact, Blake did the electrical wiring for local restaurant Nopa many years ago.
 
A true man of his craft, Blake loves his job because of the sense of satisfaction it brings him. “Commercial jobs are more rewarding because you can see a lot of the finished products,” he told us. “For houses, it’s kitchens and bathrooms because of the homeowners' reaction and overall satisfaction with the job. It’s a pretty good buzz.”
 
Blake has worked on an enormous variety of places, from gutting the wiring of old Victorians (the oldest house he’s worked on was from 1906) to jobs related to the recent tech explosion in the city. "Business is definitely booming in the remodel aspect. A lot of things are leaning toward the dotcoms, installing new data lines and things like that. Also with the new influx of money people want to modernize things. Electric car chargers are a big thing right now,” said Blake.

However, his recent success doesn’t make him want to expand his business much more. “I’d kind of like to keep it small and personal,” he said. “If I go bigger, I’d likely lose that connection with my clients.”
 
It's this genuine care for his customers that's kept Blake listed as the "Best Electrician" in the city. When we asked him what he loves so much about his work, he replied:
 
“It’s a rewarding job, you meet lots of great people and it’s great to help them, and a lot of people are very grateful. It’s been rewarding. I’ve been able to fix a lot of people’s problems ... A good electrician is someone who loves their job. When I go to work, my motto is to always do their house the same way I’d do my own. It’s not always about the money.”
 
If you're interested in enlisting Blake’s services, give him a call at (415) 756-7874, or check out his website.