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Edmonton Electrician | Should You Install A New Electrical Panel
It’s so important to hire contractors you can trust, especially an expert Edmonton electrician. You need to have confidence that they are steering you in the right direction, and that their recommendations are important. While it may be tempting to do home renovations yourself, or that you can put off recommendations. However, when it comes to the functionality of your home, and the safety of your family, trusting an expert electrician is so important.
One common recommendation that Edmonton electrician, Hauer Power makes all the time is to install a new electrical panel. There are several reasons why they would make this recommendation, the most common reason is that it’s old. While many things can function flawlessly with age, an electrical panel just isn’t one of those things. Not only are older electrical panels outdated – if they have been built before 1960, the panel will likely be a 30 amp or 60 amp fuse box.
So do you need to install a new electrical panel? Has your breaker been turning off more often than usual? This is a warning sign that your electrical panel is wearing out. You will want to call Ryan at Hauer Power sooner rather than later.
The Difference Between 100 Amp and 200 Amp Service
According to the most recent Canadian Electrical Code, 100-amp service is the minimum recommended. However, Edmonton electrician Ryan at Hauer Power suggests even upgrading to 200-amp service. Simply because we are becoming more dependent on electrical devices, and a 200-amp service will ensure the home meets not only the current electrical demands, but the future demands as well, as the home owner buys more electrical devices for the home.
However, Edmonton electrician says another compelling reason to upgrade your old electrical panel is due to safety reasons. According to insurance providers in Canada, 30 and 60 amp services risk overheating, which increases the risk of an electrical fire. Ryan Hauer says if a homeowner truly does not want to install a new electrical panel, they will recommend installing a switch that will prevent the home owner from being able to operate one major appliance at a time. This will significantly decrease the risk of overheating, though it will be an inconvenience.
Edmonton Electrician | Does Your Electrical Panel Need to Be Replaced
The third reason why Edmonton electrician will recommend to install a new electrical panel if they will be adding ground fault circuit interrupters. In fact, according to the Canadian Electrical code, GFCIs are required to be installed in all homes and businesses in Canada when outlets will be installed within 1.5 meters of a water source. Whether that’s a kitchen, bathroom, laundry room, wet bar, by a hot tub as some examples. The GFCI will turn off the electrical current should water come in contact with the outlet.
Since it is required by the Canadian Electrical Code, your Edmonton electrician will have to install GFCIs, if they are installing new outlets 1.5 meters away from water sources. So, upgrading the electrical panel will have to occur at this point. The same is true for arc fault circuit interrupters (AFCIs), which will give one more layer of protection against electrical fires. The good news is that when the electrician is going to upgrade the panel, homeowners can decide to upgrade it all the way to 200-amp service, and ensure that they will have enough circuits well into the future.
Electrical Upgrades May Be Necessary
Even when a home owner isn’t planning on adding any circuits, or outlets that require the installation of a ground fault circuit interrupter, their Edmonton electrician may recommend to install a new electrical panel. This is if they discover that their panel is a Federal Pacific Electric (FPE) circuit breaker panel. These circuit breakers have an extremely high failure rate, putting your home and family at risk if you have one in your home. If your home has been built between 1950 and 1990, have the experts at Hauer Power check your panel.
Studies reveal that a quarter of all Federal Pacific panels with Stab-Lok breakers are defective. This increases the risk of an electrical fire. These panels and breakers are in thousands of homes across the country, and Hauer Power has made it their mission to help improve the safety of Canadians by helping them get a new panel and circuit breakers. You can contact them anytime to take a look at your panel to see if your home is at risk.