The comfort in a home comes from its facilities, which include facilities such as electricity. A modern and comfortable home relies on the proper functioning of audio and video equipment, cooking appliances, as well as maintenance and cleaning equipment. And because most of these utilities operate with electricity, the installation and electrical panel of the home must be in very good, if not perfect, working condition.
The electrical panel is certainly the essential component of the electrical system in the house you live in. The electrical panel is the entry point of electricity into the entire house, it has both a distribution and a protection role.
Over time, the electrical panel may become outdated, with additional consumers appearing compared to the original design of the electrical network, and thus there will be higher consumption requirements. An outdated electrical panel can become a danger to the safety of the family and the home, presenting a fire risk.
What can be done in this case? The electrical panels are modernized by updating the electrical panel to 200 amps, you can replace the old fuses with modern fuses or even change the electrical panel , but all these operations must be done only by qualified personnel.
What roles does an electrical panel fulfill?
Whether it is a personal home, a company’s office, commercial space or production space, the electrical panel is designed to provide three elements:
- Electrical power routing – It means connecting for the supply against payment, to the public service network. The electrical panel has several safety elements arranged on one or more lines, depending on the consumers served. Usually, the distribution of electrical power is broken down into power lines for sockets and power lines for lighting, possibly grouped by rooms.
- Protection – An electrical panel relies on switching fuses, often called circuit breakers, which disconnect the electrical circuit in the event of a short circuit, overload, or the connection of a consumer that is too powerful. These fuses have a high degree of protection and a long lifespan.
- Replacing Electrical Components – This is important when you want to replace a light bulb, a switch, or an outlet. With a modern electrical panel, simply changing the position of the fuse switch will turn off the electricity to a specific circuit, where you can work safely to replace the faulty part. Also, due to its modular nature, a modern fuse panel provides easy access to changing safety elements, but also to modifying the routing of the electrical circuit.
When is it necessary to change the electrical panel?
- You live in an old house . The electrical grid was designed with the much lower electrical consumption requirements of that time in mind. It is time for a 60-amp electrical panel to be upgraded to a 200-amp one to be on the safe side. Replacing or upgrading to a 200-amp electrical panel will provide for modern electrical consumption needs.
- You have purchased new electrical and household appliances. Although modern appliances are more energy efficient and therefore consume less, the number of consumers in a home is constantly increasing. Larger refrigerators and washing machines, air conditioners with more features, dryers, coffee makers appear, and all of them consume enough electricity to require a change of electrical panel.
- You still have the electrical panel with fuses . It is obvious that they are technically outdated elements and you no longer want to worry about replacing them every time they burn out. Moreover, these elements may be also very difficult to find, as they are no longer a very common market demand. An electrical panel with modern fuses is required.
- Short circuits occur . Over time, the electrical panel ages and with it, the electrical connections age, increasing electricity consumption which can cause short circuits and fires.
- The lights in your house are flickering. A modern, 200-amp electrical panel will help ensure a steady flow of electricity. This way, you won’t have to worry about problems like burnt-out appliances and flickering lights.
- Savings. An old electrical panel will consume energy inefficiently, endanger electrical and electronic equipment in the house, blow fuses or even the entire house, burn out light bulbs, in short, it will cause you headaches and wasted money.
Advantages of changing the electrical panel
- Eliminating the risk of a short circuit.
- Elimination of fire risk.
- Replacing hidden wiring and checking it to ensure it does not directly affect the electrical installation.
- Replacement of all components that do not comply with safety standards.
- Replacing old and outdated materials.
- Eliminating the problems of imperfect contacts existing in the old switchboard.
- Eliminating the danger of electric shock.
- Increasing the safety level for the entire electrical installation.
- Aesthetic reasons.
What to consider when installing an electrical panel
The electrical panel installation procedure can only be performed by ANRE authorized electricians. Unauthorized interventions on the electrical panel can cause serious malfunctions, short circuits and endanger your life. The risks of electric shock are major.
The process of changing the electrical panel must take into account the characteristics of the electrical system in the house. An undersized panel can cause problems if the circuit breakers are not sized correctly, with a high risk of fire.
The fuse on each electrical circuit must cover the estimated consumption. In the event of larger consumers are added that the circuit cannot handle, additional circuits will be installed.
Specialists recommend creating an additional circuit for each room and kitchen, and others for higher power consumers, such as the washing machine, air conditioner, electric boiler, electric oven. A correct division of consumers into circuits will avoid overloads. At the same time, managing overload or short circuit trips is easier to locate.
