It is very uncommon to see houses getting electrical upgrades because there are only a few electrical appliances used in home like television set and washing machine, etc. Modern homes usually don’t get electrical upgrades from the time they are built. However, large scale and powerful upgrades are becoming common nowadays. The amount of appliances and recreational equipments used in modern homes means greater load on electric wires. Modern households may also feature three or more sets of television, computers from different brands, sound system and some other modern appliances like refrigerator, etc all of this adds to the already existing load.
It is not difficult to see why electrical upgrades have become a necessity in the modern households. There are occasions when a home built 3-5 years back may need to go in for electrical upgrades. However, most of the homeowners are staying in a house that was built two or three decades ago. In such scenarios, they are left with no other option but to go through upgrades. At such times, it is inevitable that as a home owner you go in for electrical upgrades.
Before starting anything, a homeowner should take into account several things.
- Considerations before getting upgrades:
The very first thing that you should consider is actual planning of the major electrical upgrades. A homeowner should work closely with the electrical contractor to determine the electrical needs of the family and balance their needs with what they can afford. About 25% to 30% homes need some sort of electrical upgrades before new wiring can be installed. If your older home had 60-amp electrical wiring then you can replace it with 100 or more amp. The most important thing that you should consider for upgrades of your home is the circuit breaker and distribution boxes and distribution cords.
- Why do you need a licensed electrician?
Only a licensed electrician can do his job properly. You should plan carefully and work closely with the contractors during this phase so that you can closely estimate what needs to be done at your home and how much money you’ll need to spend. An experienced electrical contractor should be hired so that they can determine if the existing breaker can handle the upgrades or not. Only a professional can help the homeowner to know the difference between a circuit breaker that runs on 60 amps or the one that runs on 100 amps. The 60 amp circuit needs to be upgraded, but if the installed circuit breaker may not be determined by a homeowner immediately. There are many differences between an industrial electrical upgrades and residential upgrade because they have different requirements.