Where we start every day
Gerald Benton started CDS in Jones County in 1994. The work has since spread across eastern North Carolina, to plants in Kinston, shops in Jacksonville and homes in New Bern, but every morning still starts in Trenton. If you're calling from Pollocksville, Maysville, Comfort or a farm road off NC 41, you aren't calling a company two counties away. You're calling a neighbor.
That matters most in the jobs a county this rural actually has, which look different from what a city electrician sees in a week.
Wiring for farm country
Agriculture is still the backbone of Jones County, and farm electrical is its own kind of work:
- Barns, shops and equipment sheds fed from the house or a separate service, with a feeder and subpanel sized for welders, compressors and lights, not an extension cord.
- Irrigation and well pumps, including the pressure switches, controls and long underground runs out to the field.
- Three-phase motors and larger loads on grain handling and livestock equipment. Our industrial background means big motors and motor controls are routine for us, not a stretch.
- Wire sized for distance. A building 400 feet from the meter needs heavier wire than one 40 feet away, or the equipment at the far end runs on low voltage and burns out early.
Old farmhouses, new loads
A lot of Jones County homes were wired when a house had a few lights, a range and a refrigerator. Today the same house might have a heat pump, an electric water heater, a chest freezer, a shop out back and a well pump. Many still run on 100-amp service or less. When breakers trip regularly or a new appliance won't fit on the panel, the answer is usually a service upgrade to 200 amps, which we handle from permit to inspection, including the coordination with the power company.
Who supplies your power: Inside Trenton it's Duke Energy Progress. Most of the rest of the county is on Jones-Onslow EMC. Your bill tells you which, and we work with both.
Permits: Jones County Inspections. We pull the permit and meet the inspector.
When the Trent comes up
During Florence in 2018 the Trent River set a record crest and parts of the county were cut off for days. If water reached your panel, outlets, HVAC disconnect or well pump controls, don't switch them back on until they've been checked. Equipment that was submerged often looks fine and fails later, sometimes dangerously. We inspect flood-exposed systems, replace what has to be replaced, and get the inspection done so the power company will reconnect.
Bigger jobs, same crew
When a Jones County business needs more than house wiring, the same company does industrial and commercial electrical work and moves machinery up to 50,000 pounds. Generac generators are handled by Rebecca at (910) 330-1860.
Communities we serve near Trenton
Trenton, Pollocksville, Maysville, Comfort and the rest of Jones County, along NC 41, NC 58 and US 17, plus nearby Kinston, New Bern and Jacksonville.
Common questions
Are you really based in Trenton?
Yes. CDS Electric & Industrial Services has been based in Trenton, Jones County, since 1994.
Can you run power to a barn or shop far from the house?
Yes. We size the feeder for the distance and the equipment, install a subpanel in the building, and pull the permit.
My well pump keeps tripping the breaker. Can you find out why?
Yes. We test the circuit, pressure switch and controls to find whether the problem is electrical or the pump itself.
Can you check my electrical after a flood?
Yes. Equipment that was underwater should be inspected before it's turned back on, and we repair or replace what was damaged.