Electrician help - Unbiased opinion on changing circuit breaker panel.

[Rtmac]

You sure about the no cost? I dont have 200a to the main outside panel. They'll need to trench to the curb, about 20-25ft. I was told and on PGE site that it can be up to $4500 to trench. To my knowledge PGE doesn't do that for free. I'll find out. My request is in and it can takes 30-60 days. I dont NEED 200a now but once we add a pool and hottub, I can see that being a good upgrade, plus it future proofs the home and labor and parts are only going to get more costly.

No, I should have been more clear that my statement was for overhead service drops only. The underground services are a completely different situation and actually out of my wheel house (I've never done an ug service change on a house). The fist thing I would do is check to see what size the service conductors are and then check with PG&E to see what size panel they will support. Sorry for the misinformation, I was assuming a house in Concord from '65 would be overhead.

 

[mean dad]

Your father actually put his own eyeballs on it and said it's fine leave it alone, and you're online asking if you should ignore his advice.


You make him proud, son.

 

[ctwo]

If you’re unqualified, untrained, or just “pretty sure you saw a guy do this on YouTube,” you have no business doing electrical work or providing advice.
This isn’t painting a fence or installing a towel bar.
Electricity doesn’t care about your confidence, your weekend‑warrior attitude, or your bargain‑bin tools.
It will kill you, burn your house down, or leave someone else cleaning up your mess.
Respect the trades….
Simple….
PaulR

I'm not a fan of doing things wrong but I also do not want to have to ask my government for permission to do basic things like house wiring, installing a window, or someday, hanging a picture in my bathroom.

 

[needles]

Totally dependent on the size of the house, the lot, and your plans . I've done a shit-ton of residential service changes. Most track houses in Concord will never exceed 200 amp... but there are exceptions.

I totally want to be that guy, but it's not worth the $ to go from 200 to 400. Having 2 EVs, hot tub, HVAC, electric kitchen and dryer, it all adds up quickly.

 

[auntiebling]

No, I should have been more clear that my statement was for overhead service drops only. The underground services are a completely different situation and actually out of my wheel house (I've never done an ug service change on a house). The fist thing I would do is check to see what size the service conductors are and then check with PG&E to see what size panel they will support. Sorry for the misinformation, I was assuming a house in Concord from '65 would be overhead.

i was making the same assumption

and now knowing there is trenching involved, which is the actual expensive part, i'd say go for a 11ty billion amp service so you really really really never need to trench again

$4500 for pge to officially dig a trench sounds pretty dang reasonable.

 

[Dubbington]

Your father actually put his own eyeballs on it and said it's fine leave it alone, and you're online asking if you should ignore his advice.


You make him proud, son.

100%, If you know my dad you'd understand.
We re-did the bathroom, to the studs. He wanted to keep the 1965 shower/tub valve because "its not broken". We're spending $8k not including labor on a bathroom and he didn't want me to spend the $200 on a new valve which would have allowed us to update to non-chrome faucet etc. Plus, once re-tiled, if the valve fails I'd have cut a hole in the back of the wall and fix it from behind. All just to save $200 now? Nope. We changed the valve to a modern one. Some work is preventive not mandatory.

 

[ctwo]

100%, If you know my dad you'd understand.
We re-did the bathroom, to the studs. He wanted to keep the 1965 shower/tub valve because "its not broken". We're spending $8k not including labor on a bathroom and he didn't want me to spend the $200 on a new valve which would have allowed us to update to non-chrome faucet etc. Plus, once re-tiled, if the valve fails I'd have cut a hole in the back of the wall and fix it from behind. All just to save $200 now? Nope. We changed the valve to a modern one. Some work is preventive not mandatory.

All of the faucets that were in my house when sold were about 40 years old and still functional. All replaced before acquired with new Kohler. 5 years later they were leaking, getting stuck, and flaking or corroding. The plastic coupling to the handle broke and now I'm saddled with a lifelong plumbing commitment.

New stuff is build with the cheapest materials to lowest possible cost. Even the sliding shower door frame developed crazing corrosion within a few years. It sucks.

 

[PaulR]

100%, If you know my dad you'd understand.
We re-did the bathroom, to the studs. He wanted to keep the 1965 shower/tub valve because "its not broken". We're spending $8k not including labor on a bathroom and he didn't want me to spend the $200 on a new valve which would have allowed us to update to non-chrome faucet etc. Plus, once re-tiled, if the valve fails I'd have cut a hole in the back of the wall and fix it from behind. All just to save $200 now? Nope. We changed the valve to a modern one. Some work is preventive not mandatory.

Reasonable
If the old showe value had a hot and cold it not currently code….
New mixing valve meets code.
This matters in a resale inspection if that occurs in your area.
Either way out with the old is the approach that makes the most sense…
Remodels are expensive and doing it yourself saves monies when possible

 

[Mike95060]

Some work is preventive not mandatory.

Especially replacing a Stab-Lock panel

 

[GAJ]

Especially replacing a Stab-Lock panel

Why They Are Dangerous

• • Failure to Trip: Testing has shown that a high percentage of Stab-Lok breakers fail to internal safety standards and will not cut power during a short circuit or overload.
  • Loose Connections: The physical "stab-in" design can loosen over time, causing dangerous arcing and intense heat buildup.
  • Insurance Problems: Many home insurance providers refuse coverage or require immediate replacement before issuing a policy. [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]

 

[mean dad]

100%, If you know my dad you'd understand.

I know your dad gives 1,000 more fucks about you than anyone in this thread or on barf in its entirety.

That the person who gave you life evaluated this and deemed it safe enough for his son and his daughter-in-law and his grandson tells me you're being you...which is obviously fine. You cannot be anyone else so here we are.

 

[N4teTheGreat]

Dad's aren't always right. Years ago my dad didn't believe me when I told him the clutch was slipping. He just figured I sucked at driving since I was new. It was his car so he eventually found out it was in fact slipping when he couldn't take the highway home from work because it'd gotten worse. I managed to avoid having a told you so moment

 

[Dubbington]

I know your dad gives 1,000 more fucks about you than anyone in this thread or on barf in its entirety.

That the person who gave you life evaluated this and deemed it safe enough for his son and his daughter-in-law and his grandson tells me you're being you...which is obviously fine. You cannot be anyone else so here we are.

There's been no actual evaluation. There's only been no definitive electrical issue to indicate a need. Actually, he tried to show me how to trip an outlet to make it easier to swap out instead of guessing what breaker. Well...that little outlet did not want to be tripped and my dad laughed. Turns out it was a 20a breaker and probably should be a 15a since it's in the kitchen.

 

[Rtmac]

@Dubbington, another thing I'd be interested to know is where is the meter located? PG&E uses there own standards for conductor size on their side of the meter. I've been certain that they would increase the size of a service drop (again, I'm talking overhead) just for them to say "Nah, it's fine" once they got there.

It sucks that the service is buried... it adds another huge job to the project.
In the meantime, I would make sure all the wires terminated in that panel are tight and wiggle test all the breakers (with the power off, please)... it sounds like your father is probably capable of doing that. If not let me know... I know an old moto-electrician guy that does free inspections.

 

[ST Guy]

For the record, I wasn’t suggesting a non electrician do any work. And I don’t believe anything I suggested would’t work or be dangerous. What I didn’t know was what can be done and still be compliant with electrical codes. I have a huge respect for the power of electricity.

I have installed wiring and lights and sockets in my garage, though. And when we had our home, built in 1936, upgraded to 200 amps, we had licensed contractors do the work.

 

[augustiron]

I know your dad gives 1,000 more fucks about you than anyone in this thread or on barf in its entirety.

That the person who gave you life evaluated this and deemed it safe enough for his son and his daughter-in-law and his grandson tells me you're being you...which is obviously fine. You cannot be anyone else so here we are.

Dude,
Nobody's questioning a dad's love or intention, but it is absolutely reasonable to question a dad's quality of work standards

My dad was great, built his own 40 foot steel boat over 30 years, and built our summer house all by himself.

Impressive knowledge and confidence

The boat sank a couple of years after being in the water

I almost got electrocuted at the house when I was cleaning it out to sell because he had left a coil of Romex on the floor of the garage I was cleaning out.
It was actually live and just laying there with the ends sticking up in the air. I didn't have any tools with me to check or test anything. My job is just to get rid of everything and make the house empty.

That is just one of 1000 absolutely sketchy electrical, plumbing and structural things done at that house. It's why I didn't want to keep it in the family (deal with it) and we sold it.

Dads don't know it all

 

[Rtmac]

I found this a few months ago at the house my son is renting. His complaint was the lights were flickering when the microwave was running. Sometimes just pulling the cover off the panel and doing a good visual inspection can catch something like this before it becomes more serious. Waiting for the smoke is another option.

 

[Mike95060]

I found this a few months ago at the house my son is renting. His complaint was the lights were flickering when the microwave was running. Sometimes just pulling the cover off the panel and doing a good visual inspection can catch something like this before it becomes more serious. Waiting for the smoke is another option.
View attachment 599740

I had a similar tell in my situation too. The exhaust hood over the stove would sometime work and sometimes not. I thought it was a jenky switch. Nope it was a breaker on the edge.

 

[auntiebling]

Dad's aren't always right. Years ago my dad didn't believe me when I told him the clutch was slipping. He just figured I sucked at driving since I was new. It was his car so he eventually found out it was in fact slipping when he couldn't take the highway home from work because it'd gotten worse. I managed to avoid having a told you so moment

there is also in the barf lore, a dad that claimed that 3 cylinder engines were terrible and prone to spontaneous disassembly or other such nonsense. it's important to recognize when your parents might need to be questioned

 

[ST Guy]

My father was good at a few things, but not great. And he made errors in judgement. The worst was at the end of doing a valve job on our 1952 Cadillac. He had a wire brush that was filled with greasy funk and decided to clean it. I was sitting nearby, arms deep in a pan of gas, cleaning parts. He decided that filling a coffee can with gas and sticking the wire brush inside, attached to an electric drill, was a good idea. He pulled the trigger, gas went everywhere, and sparks ignited the gas, setting himself on fire. I never saw him move so fast. He leapt up, sprinted for the lawn, and dropped and rolled to put himself out. Meanwhile I’m sitting next to him, covered in gas. He spent the rest of the day on a lounge chair drinking his wine and contemplating his mortality.