electrical panel upgrade

I'll bet you have a furnace, refrigerator and freezer too. Well also takes a lot of amperage. I'd get the higher service as it is not much more and price seems good.

Why stop there, 200 amp and be done with it.

Definitely 150amp. That incremental cost is peanuts vs ever facing the need to bring someone out again to do a panel.

Check your circuits, will 30 allow for current useage plus additions. Note that many take double, sometimes 4 positions for one circuit. Also check out what brand and model circuit breakers the new panel uses to be sure they are a good brand and readily available. If you need more than 30 positions, either a larger panel box or a subpanel box can be added, be sure it takes the same breakers as your main panel so they can be moved around without having to buy two different brands. You may need arc-fault breakers for the bed rooms and GFI breakers for the kitchen, bathroom, garage and outdoors, as you may have to upgrade to current standards when you change the panel box.

I am not sure they will even OK a 100 amps around here. I would consider 150 a starting point.

You will never say to yourself, "gee, that service panel is too big. I wish we'd gone for the smaller one when we had the chance". If the price difference isn't painful, go for the biggest panel available. (is this including replacing the service drop, or is that big enough already?)

Get the bigger panel. Over time you or the next owner of the house will tend to add things or split things off (like dedicated circuits for appliances, the misrowave, and toaster oven). Plus if you have GFCI or AFCI breakers in the panel they take up a lot of room so it's always best to have the room.

At Lowe's a 32 circuit 200AMP service entrance is about $125.00

See

Currently, it would appear that you don't need more than the 100 amp, however if you plan to install central a-c and other who knows what equipment, I would opt for a larger service. IMHO, 150 amp services are as useless as... The equipment necessary to increase to 200 amp costs only a few dollars more, in fact you can get a 30 circuit or 20 circuit panel with

Request a service Calc, per the NEC.

Then start from there.

later,

tom @

Why not class-320?

tom

Years ago I weent with 100 amp major dumb move.

pricing 200 amps.

consider a panel that accepts a special generator lockout protective breaker.....

in case you ever want a emergency generator.

costs nothing now nice feature for future use

I agree.

Go with a 200 amp service and a 40 circuit panel and now would be the best time to consider some sort of generator hook-up.

I was wondering that one myself. If you're going to do it, go for 200A...

huh?