Sometimes known as a breaker box, your home’s electrical panel is the heart of your home’s systems. Without electricity, you’d be without all the conveniences you’ve come to count on. From heating to refrigeration, cell phone charging and televisions, you need adequate and safe electrical systems in your home. 

Each generation tends to need more electricity than the last. As technology evolves and grows, so does the load on your electrical panel. This often results in older homes requiring an electrical panel upgrade. 

Think of amperage like the water flow in your home’s plumbing system. By increasing the amps, you’ll have more power available for your appliances and devices. 

How Home Electrical Panels Have Changed

Every few decades, our homes get an electrical upgrade. While many of these upgrades are related to safety, they also help to accommodate our changing lives. In today’s power-hungry world, we use more electricity than ever before, even when using energy-efficient appliances. 

• Pre-1950 – 30-amp fuse panels
• 1950-1965 – 60-amp fuse panels
• 1960s-today – 100 amp circuit breaker panels
• Today – 200 amp circuit breaker panels

Even with a 100-amp service, many homes will run close to maximum capacity. An upgrade to a 200-amp system will ensure your current and future power needs are met safely, so you can install new appliances and hi-tech devices without worrying about running out of juice or overloading the system.

Do I Need a 200-Amp Service?

Many homes with a 100-amp service are running close to maximum capacity. By upgrading to a 200-amp electrical system, you can be confident that your family’s present and future electrical needs are met. 

You may need a 200-amp service:

• If you have a home larger than 2500 sq ft with air conditioning 
• If you are considering switching to a cold-climate heat pump 
• If you want to install an EV charger
• If you are considering installing a pool or hot tub
• If you’re planning a workshop in your garage
• If you rent out your basement or an accessory suite
• If your breakers are tripping due to overload, or you’re dealing with flickering lights or electrical buzzing

A 200-amp service will provide more electrical current than a 100-amp service. This will allow your home to safely power large electrical devices like heating and air conditioning equipment, EV chargers, a pool or a workshop.

Upgrading your electrical panel has other benefits too. You’ll expand its capacity to add additional circuits. This way, you’ll have fewer items running on each circuit, and you can run more things simultaneously. 

An upgraded panel also gives you room to grow if you’re planning to renovate your home, buy a new energy-efficient furnace, purchase an electric vehicle, or have additional people living under your roof.

Atel Electric can schedule a visit to your home and let you know if your current electrical service size is adequate for your current and future needs or if you need to upgrade your electrical panel to 200-amps.