Upgrade electrical, worth it?

An oil burning boiler does use a fair bit more power than a gas boiler, but modern appliances are ever more efficient.  

FilmCarp said:

An oil burning boiler does use a fair bit more power than a gas boiler, but modern appliances are ever more efficient.  

 True, but regardless oil or gas will both use less than electric heat.  No way a portable generator would be able to power that.  Our family used to have a weekend house in on the Delaware River with electric heat.   But it was a vacation house.  If we lost power we just went home.

We have an electric dryer, which by design used a ton of electricity.  The electrician said if we have an extended outage and want to do laundry we can try shutting off EVERYTHING in the house and just running the dryer.  The generator *might* be able to run that on its own.  I said I have a clothes line.  And if weather isn’t good for hanging clothes then I’ll just go to a laundromat.  

Someone may have already mentioned this but regarding future-proofing, how about thinking of future-proofing the sale of your home in the future? Prospective buyers might have greater power needs. There might also be a kind of unspoken standard for high-priced accommodations in our assumed well-to-do suburbs.

bikefixed said:

Someone may have already mentioned this but regarding future-proofing, how about thinking of future-proofing the sale of your home in the future? Prospective buyers might have greater power needs. There might also be a kind of unspoken standard for high-priced accommodations in our assumed well-to-do suburbs.

 I’m actually in a rural area now, no longer in Maplewood.  But that was actually one of the reasons why I decided to upgrade the panel instead of replacing it with the same one it already had.  We already had the upgraded service line coming in, so I felt there was no reason not to.  I was just curious why the guy from JCP&L recommended against it, it isn’t as though we would have saved a ton of money by not doing so.

Though honestly, I’m upgrading for my own future use, not for a future sale.  Moving was such a pain that I’m hopeful that I spend the next four to five decades here and then drop dead on the kitchen floor.  

spontaneous said:

I was just curious why the guy from JCP&L recommended against it, it isn’t as though we would have saved a ton of money by not doing so.

 

Going from 150 to 200?

Needing more than 150 is very rare. Appliances are more energy efficient. LED lighting uses very little power. I know there are numerous 20 amp circuits on a panel but most circuits rarely use more than two amps, mostly less than one. The outliers being circuits that have the refrigerator and microwave attached or when you vacuum. My 55" TV setup with the roku or DVD player active and soundbar uses less than 2 amps.

I have a 3100 sq foot house with central air. With the A/C on we rarely go over 60 amps. If we have A/C, the washer, drier, freezer chest and refrigerator all on we go to about 90 - 100.

But if you were to add a level 2 car charging station then I'd recommend 200.

Floyd said:

spontaneous said:

I was just curious why the guy from JCP&L recommended against it, it isn’t as though we would have saved a ton of money by not doing so.

 

Going from 150 to 200?

Needing more than 150 is very rare. Appliances are more energy efficient. LED lighting uses very little power. I know there are numerous 20 amp circuits on a panel but most circuits rarely use more than two amps, mostly less than one. The outliers being circuits that have the refrigerator and microwave attached or when you vacuum. My 55" TV setup with the roku or DVD player active and soundbar uses less than 2 amps.

I have a 3100 sq foot house with central air. With the A/C on we rarely go over 60 amps. If we have A/C, the washer, drier, freezer chest and refrigerator all on we go to about 90 - 100.

But if you were to add a level 2 car charging station then I'd recommend 200.

 But the panel was being replaced anyway, which was the point.  You’re saying that even if someone is replacing the panel, and even if they already have 200 coming into their meter, it still isn’t worth the upgrade?  What is the cost difference between replacing a panel with a new 150 and replacing it with a 200?  

spontaneous said:

 What is the cost difference between replacing a panel with a new 150 and replacing it with a 200?  

 I looked at the parts. It's about 50-60 bucks. I don't think there is any difference in labor cost. You'll have more spaces for future circuits, and if you're planning on living there for 40 more years you can probably bet on needing a car charger port.

Also if you plan to drop dead in the house you'll probably need a dedicated circuit for a large chest freezer in case your family needs to store you temporarily if the coroner is busy. 

We have an upright freezer, but I’m sure that if they took the shelves out they could fit me in there 

I think this discussion has gone in a complete circle now.

FilmCarp said:

I think this discussion has gone in a complete circle now.

 Yeah, just trying to figure out why they said don’t do it though.  Just weird.  

Anyway, the whole job is done, and I’m very happy with it.  It was a ton of work, and wasn’t cheap, but it needed to be done and I’m happy with it.

Our well tank also wasn’t hooked up right, I think he said it wasn’t grounded properly or something stupid like that, so he said he quickly fixed that since he was there anyway.

The main guy (the one who has his name on the truck since it’s his business) looks like Ryan Renyolds, except maybe not as cut.  So I’m texting a friend about this when my husband comes over to me and whispered “is it just me or does he look like Ryan Renyolds?”