New Electric Service/Upgrade
Power troubles tripping you up? It might be time to upgrade your panel.
New Electric Service/Upgrade
Few people dream about a new service panel, so why upgrade? Perhaps your panel is damaged or obsolete, or maybe your energy needs have expanded and your existing panel is insufficient. If your electric service was installed a long time ago, this may be needed or required as a condition for pulling a permit for a new project, especially if you are adding solar or an EV charger.
Some newer panels have dedicated breakers for solar energy systems, and space for additional breakers should your energy needs increase. Others have special design features that make it easier to comply with current building and electrical codes; panels designed with snap-in arc-fault and GFCI breakers can cut installation time dramatically.
A Deeper Dive
What size should your service be? Services generally come in 100A, 125A, 150A and 200A sizes. Even though the main driver of service sizes are the connected devices, we generally recommend a 200A service because there is essentially no cost difference between this and the smaller size. In some cases, it may even be less expensive because of the availability of parts, and the 200A size will leave room for expansion in the future.
Whether your service is overhead or underground, surface or flush-mount can also impact installation time and cost. Special cases may require more than a 200A service. Planning an Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADU) presents an opportunity for some creative thinking!