main panel upgrade for shop

[KJ4VYI]

Hello all -- long time lurker 1st question

in the planning stages for my shop -- 20x24 or 24x24 haven really narrowed it down completely as the city has not told me how far from my fence line i have to be

i thought about upgrading the main panel at the house from 100 amp service to 200 amp service -- 100 for the shop -- i forgot to ask the city about needing a permit and now of course when i get a chance to call the permit office they are closed -- figured i would ask all the great guru's here for some advise -- knowing i would have to talk to the gulf power company about it im guessing i would have to get a permit and a new box and being it is a new box would i have to upgrade any of my circuit breakers to the new arc fault if i remember there is the main-- dryer-- hwh-- stove-- AC i think there are 2 to 4 more spaces on the panel now or do i just call the power company and have them upgrade the line to the box and use what i have

any thoughts

 

[kd3pc]

it all depends on the authority that has jurisdiction (AHJ)

in my part of the state, the homeowner can do almost anything, once a year, electrical with only two inspections...

when I lived in VA the county would want a licensed electrician doing all the work, and if you update the house panel, it would have to conform to current code, ie arc faults and such.

You really need to speak with those folks about, or post your location and you may get a better idea what you are up against.

 

[Dr.Jones]

You might be able to get away with not having a permit. I've done this more times than i can remember, but then you need to hook up to the utility power yourself. For this you will need the correct tools. You can NOT just put a bigger panel in with a 200 amp breaker. The wire going out to the meter base needs to be rated at 200 amps and the wire going to the utility power needs to be rated at 200 amp as well, this would need to be 4/0 aluminum, you could use copper but its more $$. You will also have to upgrade you meter base and your bonding and grounding need to be up to code. Any sub panel leaving you first means of disconnect needs to be ran in 4-wire. For underground 100 amp that would be #2 aluminum URD. You can buy it by the foot at most of your local home improvement stores, like Lowes. If you do the service upgrade yourself and call the power company to hook up there end they may not do it with out an inspection. Good luck!

 

[CNGsaves]

Welcome to GJ. You'll get some great advice here from gurus . . . IF . . . you provide enough information.

Thus, critical information like Country, State & City will influence what electrical standards you need to follow. Now would be good time to Update GJ Profile with Location.

Also, pictures are always good to give idea of what you've got now.

Finally, hard to read your post since it's essentially one giant run-on sentence. Capitalization, punctuation, and paragraphs make it easier to read !!

 

[pattenp]

Technically by the NEC #2 aluminum as a branch feed is limited to 90 amps. As a 3 wire dwelling service then #2 Al is 100A. One downside of URD is it cannot be installed inside the structure, it has to be terminated outside.

.............. Any sub panel leaving you first means of disconnect needs to be ran in 4-wire. For underground 100 amp that would be #2 aluminum URD. ..............

 

[Dr.Jones]

Technically by the NEC #2 aluminum as a branch feed is limited to 90 amps. As a 3 wire dwelling service then #2 Al is 100A. One downside of URD is it cannot be installed inside the structure, it has to be terminated outside.

Yes, technically this is true. However i have yet to ever seen an inspection fail because of the 90amp rating. SER cable would need to be used inside, i was just referring to burying the URD if it was an unattached garage.

 

[KJ4VYI]

KD3PC , Dr Jones ( where is short round!! ) CNG PattonP

Thanks for the heads up got some info updated -- I'm located in Pensacola, FL -- tried this morning to talk to one of the building inspectors -- no go had to leave message and then tried to talk to the head guy -- no go left message !!

I'll get some photos for you all to look at in the morning as i was running late this morning for a meeting -- this time of year for me is crazy with companies wanting new gear and wanting to spend year end budgets.

House was build in 58 but hs some upgrades done about 10 years ago when i bought it.

I converted the carport to a new living room a few years after i bought the place -- but I'm sure that things have changed

Ill get more info and pics and hope to have more info from the building permit office if and when they get back to me

KD3PC -- what watering hole to you hang out at

Thanks

Chad