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	Subject - 100amp to 200 amp service FredH i have a 100A service now and all breaker spots are full. i want to add a central air unit so i assume i need to upgrade to a 200a service. what i dont know is what all this entails. i was told i will need a new meter outside with a new meter box and i will have to replace the wire all the way up to the main wire. is this true? what type of wire do i need for outside? and i know my power company wont do this. any detailed help would be appreciated JimmyDee Heres where we will get some that say, yes you need to up grade to a 200 amp. I have been running my gas heated, gas water heater, gas range, gas dryer, and central air cond. house for about 5 years with a 100 amp service. No heat from the panel. Never have tripped a breaker and it works just fine. Borrow a recording amp meter from someone and do about a week of recording and you will be surprised just how low the amp draw on your service actually is. I would check it out first before investing in a new service. You can always get a couple of piggy backs to free up space and it will work just fine. If you are adding a hot tub in the future, then I might look into going bigger. Contrary to what many will say, a 100 amp service will take care of the need for most people unless you live in a 4000 sq ft house. Jim FredH can you give me a web site that shows a picture of what a piggyback looks like? lctrc789 Fred, what size panel do you have? How many breakers spaces do you have? What electrical appliances do you have as far as Range, dryer, water heater,etc... How many sq feet is your home? It sounds as if though you need to answer these questions before any one can really tell you what you need for central air. The outside disconnect for the central air will depend on what size central air you are getting. The hvac installer may be able to do this for you and tell you what size air conditioner you are getting. As far as a piggy back breaker they sell them at lowes, menards etc... they look like a regular breaker except it has two brekers screws in the place of one, be advised that some panels do not use tandem or piggy back breakers. lctrc789 Fred I just finsihed inspection for a house in my town that was built by the local school (high school) I usually ride them pretty tough on codes, However this was a 1250 sq. foot home with 100 amp service. They have 1 laundry circuit, 1 dishwasher circuit, 1 garage door opener circuit,1 microwave circuit, 1 240 volt electric water heater circuit, 1 240 small range top circuit, 1 240 volt central air circuit and electric dryer. After doing my calculations they have just met a 100 amp service guideline, I asked them to install 200 amp service for future use, however the 100 amp service is adequete for this house. This is just an example for what a 100 amp service can provide, I do suggest for future use if you can afford a 200 amp service it may be good idea. You never know what you may want to add down the road. Again a lot depends on your size of home what you have and what your local codes may require for you. Electricman Hello Fred, How big is your house? What kind of appliances do you have? Do you have KVA ratings for any of your appliances? Electric Water Heater? Electric Range? Dishwasher circuit? Give us some ratings and maybe we could do a calculation for you. Also you might want to check out the dwelling load calculator on this site. Scott worked hard on it