Port Coquitlam guide
Hiring a Trade in Port Coquitlam: What to Know First
The trades run out of bays and workshops north of the rail line and serve the whole Tri-Cities. Here is how hiring one works in PoCo, and what to ask before work starts.
Written by Fern Kellaway
Most of PoCo's trades work out of bays and workshops you would drive past without a second look, north of the rail line where the city keeps its industrial streets. That is the first thing to understand about hiring here: the trades are local and hands-on, run by the people who answer the phone, and most of them serve the whole Tri-Cities rather than one city. It is normal for a PoCo trade to quote work in Coquitlam and Port Moody the same week, so the pool you are hiring from is bigger than the city limits, and the good ones are booked accordingly.
The electrical side of the map includes Comar Electrical Services on the Broadway Street belt and Zapp Electrical Contractors over on Kingsway Avenue, both working the residential and light-commercial jobs that keep a city wired. Roofing has its own row: Quantum Roofing and Riverside Shingles both run out of the Kingsway side, and the city's wet climate means the roofing trade never really slows down. Add the general side, where Deepwater Contracting and Nithsdale Construction take on the larger builds and renovations, and you have the shape of the trade map: concentrated in the bays, spread across the region for work.
Interior trades fill in the rest. Absolutely Floored works the Westwood Street flooring trade, Kaz Hardwood Floors runs out of a Shaughnessy Street storefront for the hardwood end, and A D F Lock Specialists covers the lock and key calls from its Prairie Avenue address. Poco Building Supplies on Mary Hill Road is the materials side of the same economy, where trades and homeowners both pull up for what the job needs. The pattern is consistent: small operations, direct contact, and a reputation that travels by word of mouth faster than any ad could carry it.
So how do you hire well here? Start with two or three written quotes, not one, and make sure each quote breaks out labor, materials and disposal the same way so you can actually compare them. Ask who pulls the permit when the job needs one: a licensed trade will answer that question without blinking, and the city's requirements are part of every serious quote. Ask for proof of liability insurance and WorkSafeBC coverage before the truck parks in your driveway, not after. And get the scope in writing: the start date, the finish, the cleanup, and what happens when the weather interferes, because on the coast it will.
Two more notes from the PoCo side of it. Schedule exterior work with the rainy season in mind, and book interior work early in the year when the schedule is looser; the trades here run on the same seasonal logic as the weather. And remember that this directory excludes the national franchises by design, so every name on the list is an independent operation you can reach directly. Check each listing for phone and address, ask the questions above, and trust the quote that answers them plainly. The best trade in PoCo is the one you can call back in five years, and hiring like that starts with the first phone call.
From the directory
Mentioned in this article
Every place named above has its own page here, with the address, the hours and the nearest station.
A D F Lock Specialists
Locksmith shop on Prairie Ave in Port Coquitlam, doing lockouts, rekeying, lock repairs and key cutting.
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Absolutely Floored
Flooring business on Westwood St in Port Coquitlam, supplying and installing floors for homes and commercial spaces.
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Comar Electrical Services Ltd
Licensed electrical contractor on Broadway Street handling wiring, panel upgrades and repairs across Port Coquitlam.
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Deepwater Contracting
General contracting firm serving Port Coquitlam, taking on home renovations, additions and residential builds.
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Kaz Hardwood Floors
Flooring contractor on Shaughnessy Street installing, sanding and refinishing hardwood in Port Coquitlam homes.
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Nithsdale Construction
Renovation and repair contractor on Greenmount Avenue in Port Coquitlam, taking on residential projects around the home.
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POCO Building Supplies
Hardware and building supply store on Mary Hill Road in Port Coquitlam stocking lumber, tools and fasteners.
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Quantum Roofing
Kingsway Avenue roofing contractor handling installs, repairs and maintenance for wet-coast weather.
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Riverside Shingles
Kingsway Avenue roofing outfit specializing in shingle systems built for wet-coast winters.
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Zapp Electrical Contractors Ltd
Kingsway Avenue electrical contractor serving Port Coquitlam homes and businesses with wiring and upgrades.
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Who wrote this
Fern Kellaway
Fern Kellaway grew up in Mary Hill, three streets from the rail corridor, and her grandfather worked the CPR yards for most of his life. She lives near Lions Park now and has walked the Traboulay loop weekly for twenty years, which is how she knows which businesses are still there.
