Should You Up-Grade You Electric Circuit Breaker Panel

/ Electrical Tips, grass valley plumber, Uncategorized / By

Should you Up-Grade Your Circuit

 

 Breaker Panel?

 

Do You Have an Old Fuse Box?

  Your Auburn home has either a fuse box or a circuit breaker panel. It can be located inside or outside the building. This panel serves as a switch to turn off power to a circuit or to the entire home as well as a safety feature to guard against circuit overloads. Many older Penn Valley homes using fuses or low amp breaker panels are good candidates for an upgrade to a safer and higher capacity, circuit breaker panel. As a result of the increasing electrical demand our lifestyles place on our electrical systems, even not-so-old Colfax homes may be a candidate for an upgrade.

Do You Have Enough Amperage?

Circuit breaker panels are rated by amperage, or amps, as a measure of their electrical capacity. That capacity rating indicates how much power can be safely delivered to a home. Many old electrical service panels in Grass Valley are rated for about 60 amps, while newer homes often have 200 amp panels or even higher. This can place a strain on an old panel resulting in overloaded circuits, inadequate power for modern devices, lights dimming as other devices come on and excessive fuse “pops” or breaker trips.

If you are planning to upgrade your electrical panel In Nevada or Placer County, here are some things to consider:

 
  1. Work with ABT Electric and we can help to determine your load requirements.
  2. Replacing the panel does not necessarily add capacity to your Grass Valley home, you may have to add new wiring, or circuits, inside your home.
  3. Most wet locations such as the kitchen, garages, bath and outdoor outlets require the use of GFCI outlets.
  4. The wires coming to your home from PG&E may have to be upgraded.
  5. Some old wiring, such as knob and tube or aluminum wiring may need to be replaced at the time of the panel upgrade.
  6. A panel upgrade will typically require the replacement of the entire breaker box and the all of the breakers. Reuse of the old breakers may be possible, but it might not be your best choice, depending on the circumstances.

ABT Plumbing, Electric, Heating & Air Conditioning serves:

Nevada County, Placer County, Grass Valley, Ca. Alta Sierra, Ca. Nevada City, Ca. Penn Valley, Ca. Rough and Ready, Ca. Lake Wildwood, Ca. Smartsville, Ca. Colfax, Auburn, Ca. Lake of the Pines, Ca. Meadow Vista, Ca. Newcastle, Ca. and all places in-between.

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