This is also helpful to know when computing your home's power needs. The size of your electrical load box will determine your home electrical capacity. Here are three types of systems you might encounter:. A small, amp fuse box might be found in an older home that has not had its wiring upgraded. It can supply power to only one volt appliance, such as an oven or a clothes dryer. Since most homes have more than one such appliance, this type of service panel is probably inadequate for a home of 1, square feet or more.
Consider upgrading to a larger size if you plan to add more circuits to your electrical system. Most homes require an electrical service of at least amps. A amp service panel will typically provide enough power for a medium-sized home that includes several volt appliances and central air-conditioning.
If you plan to complete a major renovation or home addition, you might need to upgrade your electrical service for more power. Many newer homes and some older large homes have a or amp service panel. This type of service might be required in a home that uses a lot of large electrical appliances and includes heating and air conditioning equipment.
Upgrading to a larger service panel can give you more flexibility to use more circuits without worrying about overloading the system. A amp service might be needed for larger homes with equipment that demands a lot of energy, such as a backyard hot tub or a home theater system. A service panel should be located where adults can get to it easily but children can't.
Any exposed cables leading to it should be firmly attached to the wall and clamped tightly to knockout holes in the panel. If a gauge wire is connected to a amp circuit breaker or fuse, replace the breaker or fuse with one that is 15 amps to prevent the wire from overheating. In most cases, a amp fuse or breaker should connect to a gauge wire; a amp fuse or breaker should connect to a gauge wire. Wires should run in a fairly orderly way around the perimeter of the panel.
If you find a hopeless tangle, call in an electrician for an evaluation. You should also call in a pro if you find melted or nicked wire insulation, any signs of fire, or extensive rust.
In an older home, there's a good chance that new wiring has been added to a service panel. It might have been done by a pro, but it could be amateur work too, so check all the connections to ensure safety. Older homes also have circuit breaker panels if their electrical service was updated after Where an electrical service was installed before the early s and has not been updated, it may use a different style of power distribution—a fuse panel , which protects individual circuits with screw-in or cartridge fuses.
The use of fuse panels and circuit breaker panels for residential wiring follows a historical pattern:. In many instances, you can determine the size of the home's electrical service simply by looking at the electrical meter outside the house. Look for the point at which the main service wires from the utility company enter the home. If electrical service is delivered by overhead wires, they will enter a metal service pipe that runs down an exterior wall of your home to the meter.
If the meter is a glass dome mounted on a square metal base, the home probably has amps of power, while a newer amp or larger service will have a rectangular base that extends below the glass dome. If you see a glass dome mounted on a round base that is the same dimension as the dome, or a meter located behind a flat glass window that is flush with the front of an enclosed metal box, you probably have 60 amps of electrical service.
Locate the main service panel inside or outside your home. The panel will usually be on the opposite side of the wall where the exterior electrical meter is located. In most homes, this will be a vertical gray metal or sometimes black box mounted on a wall in a utility area.
If the main service panel is in a finished living space, it may be enclosed in a finished cabinet of some type, but by law , it must be easily accessible at all times. Make sure the floor near the main service panel is dry, then open the metal door on the service panel. Inside the panel, you will see two rows of individual circuit breakers with small toggle levers.
These individual, or branch, circuit breakers are numbered, and they control individual branch circuits running through your home. The amperage of these individual breakers will be between 15 and 50 amps, usually.
At the top end of the two rows of branch circuit breakers, there will be a central circuit breaker that controls the power to the entire panel. This is the main circuit breaker, and its amperage rating will be something like 60, , , or amps.
In rare instances, the main circuit breaker may be mounted at the bottom of the service panel. The main circuit breaker may be bolted in place, or it may be a snap-in breaker similar to those serving branch circuits. The main circuit breaker dictates how much power is available to your entire house. It is a double-pole breaker, connected to both volt service wires to power both hot bus bars running down through the panel.
Turning this main breaker to the off position shuts off power to the entire house and all the branch circuits. The amp rating on this main circuit breaker identifies your electrical service size. If your home has fuses instead of breakers, the panel will contain a main fuse block with an amp rating that identifies the total service size of your home.
Be warned that the electrician or the building inspector may spot other problems with the electrical system once the job is under way. If the system does not meet the electrical code, the inspector will not allow the utility to reconnect the power lines until the problem is fixed.
Sometimes the utility has to replace the cables that run from the utility pole to your house. You may be charged for this, so be sure to ask about this when you contact the utility about the upgrade. It is important that you work with a qualified electrician.
There are a number of different people involved, and you will be without power while the work is being completed, so make sure that you or your electrician has everyone on the same page. Upgrading your electrical service can seem like an overwhelming task, but it is best to be sure your home can safely support the everyday electrical devices you need. Fran J. Donegan writes on a variety of home improvement topics including about when you should upgrade your electrical panel box with a new one.
To see a large selection of new load center options , visit homedepot. She is also a licensed real estate professional. Lindsay lives in Livingston, NJ with her college sweetheart and now husband Joe and rwelcomed another Joe into her life as she became a mom in June Very good article. There are many certified consultants that one can approach and make use of their exeprience and knowledge.
I never realized how much power modern day electronics take compared to what it was like 30 years ago. My house is at least 40 years old, so I wonder if it can still safely handle the amperage our appliance need.
I will have to check the circuit breaker to see how many amps it can handle. The power has shut off a few times when we use too many electronics at once, like the vacuum and the hair dryer. This might be the cause! It will definitely be worth the time to have our home upgraded, because we plan on living here for many more years. Very informative article as most homeowners are not aware of the demands our modern electronics put on the electrical panels of their homes.
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