New service or source from house

[Crazy68Dart]

I am most likely going to source the electricity from the house. It is going to be 110-120 ft worth of cable and a big mess. Otherwise, I could hook up new service at the utility pole right off the transformer near the new garage (still planning everything out).

My panel in the house is pretty much maxed. We have a hot tub that is a hog and electric range. Everything else (dryer and hot water heater) are NG. So, that is part of the problem. House is 150A service.

Since I am likely going to run internet/phone and possible NG from the house, I am not sure it makes sense to source electric differently. Plus extra monthly charges I would guess. I've not talked to the electric company yet. However the thought of another power source is kind of nice. It would be on a different transformer than the house, which we are at the end of the line on this side of the street and the power is so/so.

What have your experiences been?

Thanks.

 

[G_P]

They will charge you an extra monthly fee for the second meter. Plus they will likely nail you with a hefty fee to run the new drop to the shop.

I would look into upgrading the house to a 200a service and then run power from there to the other building.

 

[Charles (in GA)]

For a second service you will need to talk with both the Power Company, and the building codes/inspection folks locally. Some locations do not allow a second service on residential property. Some power companies have policies that require that a second service be considered commercial and billed at commercial rates.

I was told by a local POCO engineer that the rate would be commercial. When I got to the business office, the woman in there (who I had dealt with on our HOA power bills previously, so she at least knew me) said the engineer was "crazy" and that is wasn't commercial and would be set up at a residential rate. (I had other bad comments about that particular engineer from the underground crew that ran the line to my shop meter, so apparently the guy had a reputation in the local POCO office that was not the best).

The advantages are that mine is on a different transformer, and I've had the underground feed to my house fail on a Friday evening and they could not repair it till Monday. I ran a couple of 100 ft extension cords from the shop to the house to run a few lights and the fridge and I was set.

I can also shut off the house power while working on the panel, and still have power to the shop, or the other way around for that matter.

Main reason I did the separate power feed/meter was that my house has three wire from the meter in to the disconnect at the main panel. To tap off for the shop, I would have had to have a new transformer to house service run for 400 amp (or at least 320 amp) and install a new meter with dual disconnects. In addition, I would have had to run new 4 wire from the new outside disconnect to the panel, and then split all of the neutrals and grounds in the panel, a difficult feat at best, and probably requiring a new panel with both neutral and ground bars on both sides. It was way too much for me to do, both money wise, and time and work wise.

Charles

 

[Crazy68Dart]

Thanks guys.

Charles, sorta same situation here. I've got a long run for cable, and the main residence is the last house on the transformer. We are in a newer house 1998, where the rest of the neighborhood is circa late 60s early 70s. So I don't think there was ever a "plan" for this house on the grid. Power is generally fine, although when A/C kicks on in the summer we see lights flicker, and some other things that make me think we are dragging on this side of the transformer. It has been looked at multiple times and in general the quality of work on the electrical in the house is above average from what I have seen. Line voltage is typically pretty stable, but again, panel is also maxed and it would be a hell of a mess to upgrade it.

We lose power here more than I would like, lots of older trees, etc. in this area. So a different power source would be really nice as there have been plenty of times where our side was out but the transformer that would feed the garage is okay.

I'll check with the power company. I have a licensed electrician friend that knows guys that can do the drop for a good rate. I would bury it at the pole and run under ground. Rest of our neighborhood is overhead drops from poles since older neighborhood.

Who knows... they might not even let me like you said. No HOA or anything like that but they might say the transformer could not take it, or some other restriction that you mentioned.

 

[BKB]

Just getting power to my barn and its 150ft away from the house for a total of 300ft from the pole. PPL gave me a quote of 10k for the barn to run off the pole. It would be commercial just because its the second feed to this property, plus I would still need to dig the trench, lay the pipe, and pour a pad for the transformer.
For $1200.00 I had the house meter changed to a 400amp meter base with a 200 amp disconnect in the basement. Going to cost another $1200 to have the cables pulled from the basement to the barn.

 

[plow]

How much juice does a medium sized home shop draw?

 

[Crazy68Dart]

I have made due with 30A service for a long time. The thing that was a little annoying was not being able to run the compressor, welder, and heat at the same time. This was at my old place, where the heat was electric.

I would like 60A to the new garage.

 

[plow]

So 100 Amp would be generous?


Just trying to get a feel for it as I'm building a 40x60 150' from the house. Debating on a new service drop, or running wire to it. I should have done a quick amp calc at my old shop while I was over there today.

 

[James-W]

I had the power company run a separate line to my garage. I only have 100 amp electric service in the house and with the exception of the furnace and the hot water heater, everything is electric. I preferred to have the garage on its own electric service. I contacted the power company and was told they would run the lines to the garage for free. The only charge would be for the power I use plus the monthly meter charge, which is a little less than $10. So I have a 200 amp service in the garage which is more than I really need, but it doesn’t cost any more money and it certainly doesn’t hurt anything to have the extra power available.

The really nice thing about having the house and the garage on separate meters is that I know EXACTLY what it costs me each month to do stuff in the garage. I have a separate gas meter as well, and there again, I know precisely how much it costs to heat the garage. Maybe knowing what it costs to work out in the garage is not important to some people, but it is something that I would like to know. With separate meters I have that information on paper every month.

 

[Charles (in GA)]

Forgot to mention, my house is total electric, with a heat pump and a regular 4500 watt electric water heater. The shop has about 7000 watts of lighting alone (though it is rare that it is all on at once, plus a 7.5 hp compressor (32 amps running) and a few other draws, so I didn't want less than a 200 amp service on the shop. Lights dim enough as it is when the compressor starts up. Power companies tend to undersize the feeds, so you want to ask for more than you need.

Charles

 

[plow]

Good info. Thanks guys.