Electric Panel Replacement & Upgrades in Philadelphia, PA

It depends on whether we replace the panel in kind or raise the amperage, the condition of the meter socket, service cable and grounding, and whether the code calls for an outdoor disconnect. You get a written price after we see the panel and meter.

Sometimes. A smaller home with gas heat and gas cooking may do fine on 100 amps. Central air, electric heat, an electric range or an EV charger usually push you toward 200. A load calculation settles it.

Many home inspectors flag both brands because of reports that their breakers may not trip during an overload or may overheat at the bus. We recommend replacing the panel rather than swapping breakers.

Yes, for the shutoff part of the job. When PECO needs to disconnect and reconnect the service, we schedule it with them and tell you the date ahead of time.

A replacement swaps the panel at the same amperage. A service upgrade raises the amperage, which usually means new service cable, a new meter socket and work with PECO.

Yes. In Philadelphia every service needs a surge protective device under the code the City enforces. It is part of the job, not an add-on.

Buyers' home inspectors flag fuse boxes, Federal Pacific and Zinsco panels, and double taps. A permitted, inspected replacement answers those items before they come up.

Too much load on the circuit, a short circuit, a ground fault, or a worn breaker. Frequent trips on one circuit point to that circuit. Trips all over the house point to the service.

Usually a loose connection or a failing breaker that is arcing. It gets worse, not better, so have it checked soon.

There is no fixed age. Brand, condition, capacity and room for circuits matter more. An original panel in an older home is worth a check, especially before you add big loads.

Only if the panel has room, the service has capacity and the brand is sound. Tandem breakers in an overloaded panel often cause the trips you are trying to stop.

A method in NEC Article 220 that adds up your square footage, appliances, heating and cooling to find the service size your home needs.

Maybe. A heat pump adds a large load, especially with electric backup heat. The load calculation tells us whether your current service can carry it.

A subpanel adds breaker spaces, not capacity. If your service is too small, a subpanel only spreads the same amps around.

Federal Pacific Stab-Lok, Zinsco, split-bus panels, Pushmatic panels, fuse boxes, and any panel with burned bus bars or water damage.

Often, for a replacement in kind. If the amperage goes up or the meter socket is worn, the socket is replaced too.

Most single-family replacements fit in one shutoff day. Service upgrades with PECO work, meter changes or grounding repairs can take longer, and your quote gives the schedule.

Yes. We check the ground rods, the water and gas pipe bonding and the grounding conductor, and bring them up to code with the new panel.

Yes. Breakers wear and can fail to trip when they should, which is more dangerous than tripping too often. A bad breaker is replaced.

Two wires under a screw made for one. The connection can loosen and overheat. We fix it with a pigtail or a new circuit.

It is sensing a leak or an arc. The cause is often an appliance, a damaged cord or a wiring fault on the circuit. We trace it before replacing anything.

A licensed electrical inspection agency, hired for the permit, inspects the work. The City issues a Certificate of Approval once the inspections pass. We schedule it and meet the inspector.

A property owner or an authorized agent can apply, but the City requires a licensed electrical contractor to do all electrical work. We file it as your contractor.

Yes. Exterior changes such as a new meter or disconnect on a property listed on the Philadelphia Register of Historic Places need Historical Commission approval first.

The City's EZ standard for residential service equipment cites the 2021 International Residential Code and the 2020 National Electrical Code.

A load study, the right permit path, PECO paperwork with connected loads and a single-line diagram for three-phase service, and a planned shutoff.

For renovations, yes. In Philadelphia the electrical permit is not issued until the building permit is.

Yes, including meter banks with a meter and service disconnect for each unit.

Healthcare facilities, hazardous locations, changes of occupancy in non-residential buildings, and fire pumps.

Someone needs to let us in and give access to the panel and meter. We walk you through the new labels at the end.

Yes. Send us the report. We fix each panel item and give you a written list for your buyer or agent.

Breakers that trip often, a hot cover, buzzing, scorch marks, a fuse box, a Federal Pacific or Zinsco panel, or no room for new circuits. Planning a big new load like an EV charger is another reason.

Yes. Panel and service work needs an electrical permit through L&I. Service equipment up to 200 amps at a one- or two-family home can qualify for an EZ permit without plans. A licensed electrical contractor must do the work.

The breaker itself is replaced, not repaired. Circuit breaker repair means finding why it trips or fails, fixing loose connections or double taps, and installing a new breaker listed for your panel.

Yes. We upgrade panels and services for storefronts, offices, restaurants and multi-unit buildings, starting with a load study and the permit path your project needs.

If they are corroded, cracked or too small for the new service, replacing them on the same shutoff day avoids a second outage and a second permit.

For a new service or an upgrade on a detached home, twin, duplex or rowhome over three stories, yes. Attached rowhomes and townhomes of three stories or less are exempt, and so is a replacement in kind.

Yes. You get the full scope and price in writing before any work starts.

No. A hot cover, a burning smell or scorch marks mean a connection is overheating. Turn off big loads and call an electrician right away.

Some dimming at startup is normal. Heavy or growing dimming can mean loose connections at the panel, meter or service. We test the connections, and if the problem is on the utility side we tell you to call PECO.

We recommend it. Fuse boxes have no room for modern circuits, and an oversized fuse put in by a past owner removes the protection the fuse is supposed to give.

If a load calculation shows you need more than 100 or 150 amps, 200 is the common choice. It fits central air plus an electric range, dryer, heat pump or EV charger in most homes.

It is possible, but in Philadelphia residential service equipment over 200 amps falls outside the EZ permit and needs plans. PECO also needs your load details.

Anywhere that keeps 30 inches of width, 36 inches of depth and 6.5 feet of headroom clear in front of it, and not in a bathroom or clothes closet. Basements usually work.

Yes. Philadelphia requires a surge protective device on every service, so it goes in with the new panel.

An older design with no single main breaker. Shutting off the house takes several handles, and the panel usually has little room for new circuits.

Yes, within the code rules for location and working space. Moving the meter also needs PECO, so check with them before equipment is bought.

Yes. Every breaker gets a label for the room or appliance it feeds, so you can find the right one fast.

That points to a short circuit or ground fault on the circuit. Do not keep resetting it. Unplug what is on the circuit and call us.

No. Use breakers listed for your panel. The panel label names the breaker types it accepts.

An AFCI breaker trips on arcing in the wiring, a fire risk. A GFCI breaker trips when current leaks to ground, a shock risk. Some breakers do both.

A breaker running hot points to a loose connection or an overloaded circuit. Reduce the load and have it checked soon.

An L&I standard that lets service work at one- and two-family homes, with equipment rated 200 amps or less, be permitted without plans when it meets the standard.

Yes. Upgrades, relocations and load changes go to PECO on its service application, and PECO does not start its part until it has the required information.

No. Service conductors cannot pass through the inside of another building, which shapes the route on rowhome blocks.

Lower Merion, Upper Merion, Radnor, Tredyffrin and Easttown each issue their own electrical permits. Wayne and Berwyn cross township lines, so we file with the one your address sits in.

Service upgrades do. The EZ permit covers replacing electrical equipment without new wiring, and interior wiring changes in spaces under 2,000 square feet.

We plan it with PECO. Their application asks for a site plan and a single-line diagram for three-phase service, and service availability is checked before equipment is bought.

We plan the shutoff with you and PECO ahead of time and prepare everything we can before the power goes off.

The panel label, the open panel door with the cover on, the main breaker or fuses, and the meter outside where the wires enter.

Philadelphia, Lower Merion, Upper Merion, Wayne and Berwyn, plus nearby Main Line towns.

Call (267) 977-2106 or send the form below. We call you back to set up a visit.