Panel Upgrades
Do I need to upgrade or change my electrical panel?
There are several reasons you should consider an electrical panel change or service upgrade. It is possible, and often likely, that your existing panel does not have the capacity to support improvements for your home like air conditioning, a sauna or hot tub, or perhaps welder or air compressor in the garage.
Other updates or planned expansions can increase the electrical consumption of your home, like a basement finish or a home addition, at which point your existing electrical panel may need to be replaced.
Or you may need to hire an electrician for a panel change due to old or out-of-date equipment. For example, Federal Pacific (FPE) panels are known to malfunction, causing risk of electrical fire. FPE panels can continue to send electricity through the circuit when breakers are in the off position. Federal Pacific is no longer in business and their UL Listing was revoked. It can be very difficult to obtain property insurance if your home is powered by an FPE panel. If you are looking for an experienced, reliable Electrical Contractor to replace your existing Federal Pacific electrical panel with a safer alternative, consider KCD Electric before you hire anyone else.
How does my electrical panel work?
Circuit breakers trip when the circuit is overloaded, interrupting the power to the area of your home or business that it feeds.
Power comes from the utility service lines, it flows through the electrical meter outside of your house, and continues into the electrical panel. Newer systems include a separate disconnect switch between the meter and the panel, this is now a code requirement in the Pikes Peak area. The main breaker can be switched to shut off power to all the branch circuits simultaneously.
The main breaker also identifies the total capacity of the service panel, typically 100a, 150a, or 200amp.
Circuit breakers are designed to trip. When a circuit draws more current than it is rated for based on wire size, it can cause the wiring to heat up, becoming a fire hazard. The tripped circuit breaker provides a safety feature, you may see fuses instead of circuit breakers in some older homes that have not been upgraded.
Ground-fault circuit-interrupter (GFCI) breakers protect an entire circuit from ground faults, intended to prevent shock hazards to people in damp areas such as kitchens, bathrooms, basements and outdoor areas. The use of GFCI outlets is also a common practice in situations when changing the circuit to GFCI is not practical; the GFCI outlet provides the same level of safety when properly installed.
Unlike a ground fault, where the danger is mostly shock, an arc fault’s primary danger is its ability to cause an electrical fire. AFCI circuit breakers and outlets protect against electrical fires that may occur from arcing, and are required by current electrical code in many areas. Arc-fault circuit-interrupter (AFCI) breakers protect an entire circuit from arc faults to help prevent house fires. There are dual-function breakers that can provide both AFCI and GFCI protection on the same circuit, this type of protection is now part of the current code requirement in many areas.
Preparing for the future…
Generally, electrical panels should be replaced every 40-50 years, so depending on the age of your home it could be the right time to plan for an electrical panel upgrade as you look into future home renovation and improvement projects.
And if you’re thinking of selling your home, making the choice to upgrade your electrical panel and bring your house up to the latest electrical code can give potential buyers peace of mind, and increase your home’s resale value.
KCD Electric offers competitive pricing, flexible scheduling, and our work is always guaranteed.
Call us at 1 (719) 290-0800 for a consultation and free estimate, we will review your existing electrical panel service capacity and discuss current and future needs. We can recommend options for panel change, service upgrade, or possible expansion through the use of a sub-panel.
