Quick Comparison #
| Firm | Credentials | Focus |
|---|---|---|
| A&F Electric Company | Operating since 1978, founded by Master Electrician Terry Atwood, multi-generation Atwood family ownership with Tommy and Casey Atwood active, licensed insured and bonded | Residential, commercial, and industrial new construction, remodels, additions, service calls, in-house lamp repair, 24 hour emergency service |
| Craddock Electrical Service | Founded 2003 by Gary Craddock, family-owned and operated, Tennessee trade license DC504 54481, staff with 80 combined years of trade experience | Electrical repair, panel upgrades, ceiling fans and lighting, EV charger install, home generators, surge protection, landscape lighting, new home wiring |
| West Side Electric Service | Veteran-owned by Jerry Bone, Tennessee Master Electrician and Metro Nashville Master Electrician, CABO code certificate, Nashville Scene Best Electricians reader vote five years running | Residential panel and sub-panel changes, home wiring, ceiling fans, outside lighting, dryer and range circuits, heavy industrial and commercial projects, multi-family work |
1. A&F Electric Company #
- Address: 2711A Landers Avenue, Nashville, TN 37211
- Phone: (615) 244-4443
- Founder / Owner: Terry L. Atwood (founder and Master Electrician, president); Tommy R. Atwood (vice president, residential estimator); Casey Atwood (active in operations)
- Operating Since: 1978 (48 years)
- Credentials: Tennessee Master Electrician (Terry Atwood, owner); locally owned and operated for over 40 years; licensed, insured, and bonded; Drug Free Workforce; in-house design-build capability across all three sectors
- Service area: Davidson County and surrounding Middle Tennessee
- Specialties: Residential, commercial, and industrial new construction; remodels and additions; in-home and in-business service calls; design-build electrical projects; healthcare facility wiring; data center work; custom home wiring; table and floor lamp repair; 24 hour emergency electrical response 365 days a year
- Website: A&F Electric Company
Atwood Family Across Three Generations #
Terry Atwood incorporated this shop on December 28, 1978, and has held the Tennessee Master Electrician credential continuously since founding. Tommy R. Atwood joined the practice in 1988 and runs residential estimating from the vice president seat, while Casey Atwood has been on staff since 2010. That three-name lineup keeps daily decisions inside one family and lets the shop quote, schedule, and close work without passing files between unrelated owners.
Design-Build Reach into Healthcare and Data Centers #
The company runs a design-build line that pulls drawings, materials, and crews under one roof for commercial scopes that would otherwise need an outside engineer plus a separate contractor. Past work has included healthcare facilities, data centers, and custom residential builds. The same crew base that wires a single-family Brentwood remodel can shift to a multi-circuit data center pull, which is the kind of bench depth that supports both small-home and large-facility scopes inside one firm.
South Nashville Address and 24 Hour Coverage #
Operating from 2711A Landers Avenue in 37211, the practice sits in the same South Nashville quadrant as several of the city’s longest-running trade shops. Crews dispatch across Davidson, Williamson, and surrounding counties, with after-hours emergency response running 24 hours a day, 365 days a year for active accounts.
Four Decades of Continuous Local Ownership #
A&F passed its 40-year mark in 2018 and continues under Atwood family ownership today. That four-decade run signals a continuous Tennessee Master Electrician license history, a stable veteran crew, and a customer base that returns for repeat work on systems the company originally installed.
https://www.afelectriccompany.net/
2. Craddock Electrical Service #
- Address: 104 Garner Avenue, Madison, TN 37115
- Phone: (615) 822-9983
- Founder / Owner: Gary Craddock (founder and owner)
- Operating Since: 2003 (23 years)
- Credentials: Tennessee trade license DC504 54481; family-owned and operated; staff with 80 combined years of trade experience; licensed and insured technicians; “Love Thy Neighbor” service mission
- Service area: Nashville, Hendersonville, Franklin, and surrounding Middle Tennessee; recently expanded to Sevierville, Gatlinburg, and Pigeon Forge
- Specialties: Electrical repairs; lighting and ceiling fan installation; electrical safety inspection; panel and circuit breaker repairs; surge protector services; outlet and switch repair; electric vehicle charger installation; home generator installation; smoke and carbon monoxide detector installation; new home electrical wiring; landscape and outdoor lighting; electrical panel upgrades
- Website: Craddock Electrical Service
Founder Story and Family Ownership #
Gary Craddock launched this practice in 2003 after years on the tools and built the firm around a single principle that still appears on the company’s literature: treat the customer and the crew the way you would want a neighbor to treat your family. Coverage of the firm’s growth from $1.4 million to $3 million in a single revenue year traces the result back to that ownership philosophy and the family-operated decision structure that keeps the founder close to daily dispatch.
Service Menu Built for Modern Home Loads #
The shop’s call book leans heavily on the kind of work that defines a 2026 Nashville home electrical system. Panel upgrades feed the higher amperage that heat pumps, induction ranges, and Level 2 EV chargers now pull. Generator installs handle the storm-related outages that hit the Cumberland Plateau. Smoke and carbon monoxide detector packages bring older homes up to current Metro Nashville Codes adoption. Landscape lighting and outdoor circuit installs round out the menu for the deck-and-patio renovations that South Nashville and Hendersonville homeowners pull permits for each season.
Madison Base and Cross-State Reach #
The Garner Avenue address in Madison gives the practice quick reach into Goodlettsville, Hendersonville, East Nashville, and Inglewood, with the company also covering Franklin to the south. A recent extension into Sevierville, Gatlinburg, and Pigeon Forge moves crews into the Smokies tourist-cabin market, where short-term-rental owners need licensed EV-charger and generator installs to keep their listings competitive.
License Verification and 80 Combined Years on Staff #
The Tennessee trade license number DC504 54481 appears directly on the company’s site, which lets prospective customers cross-check the credential against the state public lookup before booking work. The 80 combined years of staff experience referenced on the firm’s listings indicates a multi-tech bench rather than a single-electrician operation, which matters for response time on next-day service calls.
3. West Side Electric Service #
- Address: 3804 Charlotte Avenue, Nashville, TN 37209
- Phone: (615) 292-8497
- Founder / Owner: Jerry Bone (owner, Master Electrician)
- Operating Since: Over a decade in current operation (Jerry Bone in trade since 1975)
- Credentials: Tennessee State Master Electrician; Metro Nashville Master Electrician; degree in Electrical Engineering Technology; Council of American Building Officials (CABO) Build Code certificate via Nashville Metro Codes Department; certified industrial and construction electrical instructor; veteran-owned; Nashville Scene readers voted Best Electricians in Nashville for 2012, 2013, 2014, and 2015
- Service area: Greater Nashville including Franklin, Brentwood, Cool Springs, Nolensville, Bellevue, Green Hills, Gallatin, Belle Meade, Hendersonville, Clarksville, Goodlettsville, Donelson, Lebanon, Hermitage, and Mount Juliet
- Specialties: Residential panel and sub-panel changes and upgrades; home wiring repairs; floor plug and outlet installation; ceiling fan installation; outside lighting; smoke alarm replacement; dryer, washer, and range circuit installs; heavy industrial and commercial electrical work; multi-family apartment electrical; small to medium commercial projects; National Electrical Code compliance
- Website: West Side Electric Service
Owner Background and Trade Path #
Jerry Bone has worked in the electrical and HVAC trades since 1975, including time at Sullivan Electric and a stint as an electrical instructor at Nashville State Community College. He left full-time teaching to put 100 percent of his time into West Side Electric Service across Metro Nashville and the adjoining communities. That teaching background shows up in how the shop approaches code questions, with the owner himself holding the CABO Build Code certificate through the Metro Codes Department.
Reader-Vote Recognition Across Four Consecutive Years #
Nashville Scene readers voted West Side Electric Service the Best Electricians in Nashville in 2012, 2013, 2014, and 2015. The Tennessean awarded the company Best HVAC Company in 2013. Four consecutive Scene reader-vote wins is a rare signal in a trade where most independent shops cycle in and out of the finals; the back-to-back pattern points to a stable customer base that returned each ballot cycle.
Residential Plus Industrial and Multi-Family Reach #
The service menu separates into two clear lanes. Residential work covers the everyday inventory of panel upgrades, home rewiring, ceiling fan installs, floor plugs, outside lighting, smoke alarm replacement, and dedicated 240 volt circuits for dryers, washers, and electric ranges. The commercial and industrial lane handles heavy industrial projects, multi-family apartment electrical, and small to medium commercial builds, giving the shop a dual-track bench that handles both residential service calls and larger build scopes inside the same license.
Charlotte Avenue Base and Wide Metro Coverage #
Operating from 3804 Charlotte Avenue in 37209, the shop sits on the West Side corridor that runs from downtown out toward Sylvan Park and The Nations. The listed coverage map reaches into 16 named Middle Tennessee submarkets, giving the practice a broad service map anchored to a single Charlotte Avenue base.
Reference Notes #
Nashville electrical work falls under a two-tier regulatory framework. At the state tier, the Tennessee Department of Commerce and Insurance issues the Tennessee Limited Licensed Electrician (LLE) credential through the Board for Licensing Contractors for electrical projects under specific dollar thresholds, plus the broader Electrical Contractor (CE) license for larger commercial and industrial scopes. The state also recognizes the Master Electrician designation for individual electricians who have passed the state examination. At the local tier, the Metro Nashville Department of Codes and Building Safety, working with the Mechanical, Plumbing, and Electrical Examiners and Appeals Board, issues electrical permits and inspects rough-in, service, and finish work against the adopted National Electrical Code (NEC) cycle. Independent electricians who pull permits in Davidson County also register with Metro Codes and carry the Metro Nashville Master Electrician credential where applicable.
Music City market context shapes the work flow for independent electrical contractors. The metro’s growth, with new builds in The Nations, Sylvan Park, East Nashville, and Wedgewood-Houston layered over century-old housing stock in Germantown, Edgefield, 12 South, and Belmont-Hillsboro, gives shops a steady mix of new construction rough-ins, panel upgrade jobs on aging 100 amp services, and emergency repair calls on knob-and-tube and early-generation aluminum-branch wiring. EV charger installs have shifted from a specialty to a daily call type, with Tesla, Ford F-150 Lightning, and Rivian deliveries pushing Level 2 charger demand into Davidson, Williamson, Sumner, and Wilson counties. Whole-home generator installs picked up sharply after the 2021 February ice storm and 2024 severe weather seasons, with permits running well above pre-2020 baselines through Metro Codes.
Rollup exclusions: this directory deliberately leaves out electricians operating under national franchise umbrellas or private-equity rollup ownership. Locations of Mr. Electric (Neighborly), Mister Sparky (Authority Brands), Wire Wiz, and similar franchise networks do operate in the Nashville market, but the directory criteria require independent family or founder-led ownership, which those entities do not meet.
Selection Methodology #
Three firms were selected against four criteria applied uniformly: (1) family-owned or founder-led independent ownership with no national franchise or private-equity rollup parent, (2) a verifiable Tennessee Limited Licensed Electrician, Master Electrician, or Electrical Contractor credential held by the owner or a key principal, (3) third-party recognition through the Better Business Bureau, Nashville Scene Best Electricians reader vote, Tennessean Toast of Music City, Angie’s List Super Service, or equivalent independent recognition, and (4) a minimum five-year continuous Nashville-area tenure under stable ownership. National franchise networks and rollup-owned brands were excluded by name: Mr. Electric (Neighborly), Mister Sparky (Authority Brands), Wire Wiz, and similar multi-market franchise concepts. Each of the three selected firms is verifiable through state licensing records, BBB business profiles, or firm-published founder biographies.
Frequently Asked Questions #
How do I verify a Nashville electrician’s license? #
Pull the licensee record through the Tennessee Department of Commerce and Insurance public license lookup, which lets you search by license number, business name, or individual name. The record shows the license type (Limited Licensed Electrician, Master Electrician, or Electrical Contractor), status (active, expired, revoked), and any disciplinary actions. For permitted electrical work in Davidson County, also confirm Metro Nashville Codes permitting history if a permit was pulled. Ask any electrician to provide the license number directly so you can verify it against the state database before signing a contract or releasing a deposit.
What credentials should a Nashville electrician hold for panel and EV charger work? #
At minimum, look for an active Tennessee Limited Licensed Electrician or Master Electrician credential held by the owner or a designated master on staff, plus current general liability insurance and workers compensation coverage. Panel upgrades and 240 volt EV charger circuits require a Metro Nashville Codes permit; the electrician should pull that permit under their license and schedule the rough-in and final inspection with Metro Codes. For service-entrance work that touches the meter base, the electrician will also coordinate a temporary disconnect with Nashville Electric Service (NES). BBB accreditation, manufacturer certifications (Generac, Kohler, Tesla, ChargePoint), and local reader-vote recognition provide secondary validation but do not substitute for a verifiable state license.
How can I tell if a Nashville electrician is independent versus a national franchise? #
Check the parent company in the website footer, the BBB business profile, and the Tennessee Secretary of State business filing. Independent shops typically list a single Nashville-area address, a family name on the door, founder biographies on an About page, and a consistent local phone number. National franchise and rollup-owned brands often share a national call center number, list multiple metro markets in their network, and disclose a parent company name (Neighborly, Authority Brands, and similar private-equity or franchise parents) somewhere on the site or in regulatory filings. The selection criteria for this directory require a clean independent line on all four checks.
When should a Nashville homeowner call an emergency electrician? #
Call for an emergency response when you have a burning smell from an outlet or panel, scorch marks around a breaker or receptacle, repeated breaker trips on a single circuit that does not reset, sparking from an outlet or fixture, loss of power to half the home (a sign of a lost neutral on the service drop), or any active arcing. After a Middle Tennessee storm, also call promptly if the service mast is pulled away from the home or the meter base is damaged, because the repair has to coordinate with NES before power can be safely restored. Flickering lights, warm faceplates, and outlets that no longer hold a plug also warrant a prompt call (next business day rather than after hours) because small electrical faults left alone tend to escalate into branch-circuit failures or fire risk that costs far more to repair than the original fault.
Editorial Note #
This guide was published on 2026-05-11 and reflects research current as of that date. Verify licenses, phone numbers, and current business status before engaging any firm.