Electrical Panel and Service Upgrades

Most houses in this part of Texas built before the mid-1980s came with 100 amp service, and for the loads of that era it was correct. Then the house gained central air conditioning, an electric water heater, a well pump, a shop out back, and now a vehicle that wants 40 or 48 amps for six hours a night.

Two hundred amp service is the common upgrade, and for a typical modern home with one or two HVAC systems it usually resolves the constraint for good. But the honest version is that the number comes from a calculation, not from a habit. We look at square footage, HVAC, water heating, cooking, the well, the outbuildings and any planned EV charging, and we run it properly.

Two things frequently change the answer. Load management can keep a service within its existing capacity by preventing the biggest loads from running simultaneously, which sometimes removes the need for an upgrade entirely. And a battery or hybrid inverter system can change the calculation in the other direction. Both are worth checking before committing to a service change.

Two details that sound small and are not. A legible, accurate panel directory is worth more than most upgrades on the day something goes wrong, so we write one properly rather than leaving the manufacturer’s blank card in place. And this is the natural moment to add whole-home surge protection, because the service is already open and current code requires it on new and replaced dwelling services anyway.

These three panel lines come up constantly, and the internet handles the subject badly in both directions. Here is the factual position. Federal Pacific Stab-Lok, Zinsco (also sold as Sylvania-Zinsco) and Challenger equipment have all been the subject of long-running, well-documented concerns about breakers failing to trip under overload or short-circuit conditions. Independent testing and decades of field reporting support that concern. It is not a rumour.

What it does not mean is that your house is about to burn down, or that you should replace the panel tonight. Plenty of these panels have operated for forty years without incident. What it means is that the protective device you are relying on may not do its job when it is finally called on, and you will not know until that moment. There are also practical problems: replacement breakers are scarce, often refurbished, and many insurers now ask about these brands directly at renewal.

Our position is straightforward. We will look at it, tell you what we actually see, and give you a price to replace it. We will not use the brand name as a lever to sell you something you do not need, and if the panel is in good condition and you would rather plan the replacement for next year, we will say so.