Electrical Panel Upgrade & Rewiring

Handle EV Chargers, Solar, and Modern Loads Safely.

An electrical panel upgrade replaces your home's main breaker panel — usually along with the meter socket and service entrance conductors — so the house can safely carry more power, most often moving from 100-amp to 200-amp service. In the South Bay the trigger is typically an EV charger, a heat pump, a kitchen remodel, an ADU, or an aging Federal Pacific or Zinsco panel. Paragon handles the sequence end to end: a load calculation to confirm the size you need, the electrical permit from your city building department, scheduling with Southern California Edison for the disconnect and reconnect, installation by a licensed electrician, and the final city inspection. The power outage itself is usually limited to part of one day.

Deciding Whether Your Home Needs a Panel Upgrade

How a Panel Upgrade Works With Paragon

1. 01Site visit and load calculation — a licensed electrician inspects the existing panel, meter, grounding, and overhead or underground service, then calculates current and planned demand.
2. 02Written quote — the scope spells out panel size, any subpanels, grounding corrections, wall patching around the new enclosure, permit fees, and utility coordination as separate lines.
3. 03Permit and utility application — we pull the electrical permit with your city (or LADBS or LA County Building and Safety, depending on your address) and submit the service change request to Southern California Edison when the service size changes.
4. 04Installation day — the service is de-energized in coordination with SCE, we replace the meter socket and panel, transfer and clearly label every circuit, and install code-required grounding and bonding.
5. 05City inspection — the building inspector verifies the installation, and once it passes, the release goes to SCE so the meter can be reconnected and the service re-energized.
6. 06Energize and test — circuits are brought up one at a time, voltage and breaker operation are checked, and we walk you through the new panel directory before leaving.
7. 07Closeout — you receive the finaled permit record and photographs of the installation, which matter later when you sell the home or add solar.

Panel and Service Upgrade Work

• 100-amp to 200-amp main service upgrades
• 200-amp to 400-amp service for large homes and full rebuilds
• Federal Pacific Stab-Lok panel replacement
• Zinsco and Sylvania-Zinsco panel replacement
• Fused service and split-bus panel replacement
• Meter socket, service mast, and weatherhead replacement
• Subpanels for ADUs, detached garages, and pool equipment
• Grounding electrode and bonding upgrades to current code
• Load calculations for EV, solar, and heat pump projects
• EV energy management and load-sharing device installation
• Whole-home surge protection at the panel
• AFCI and GFCI breaker upgrades
• Circuit relocation and re-labeling during panel replacement
• Stucco and drywall patching around the new enclosure
• Permit, inspection, and Southern California Edison coordination

Paragon Panel Upgrade Standards

• Every panel upgrade is permitted and inspected — no unpermitted swap that resurfaces at escrow or during an insurance claim
• Licensed electricians perform the work, with an insured, CSLB-licensed general contractor accountable for the entire job
• One company manages the permit, SCE scheduling, installation, and wall repair, so you are not coordinating three trades yourself
• 18+ years serving South Bay homeowners, based on Calamar Avenue in Torrance

Panel Upgrades — Frequently Asked Questions

How much does a panel upgrade cost in the South Bay?

For a typical South Bay home, a 100-amp to 200-amp service upgrade generally runs about $4,500 to $9,000 including the permit. A same-size replacement of a Federal Pacific or Zinsco panel usually costs less, while 400-amp service or an underground service needing new conductors can exceed $12,000. The biggest cost drivers are whether the meter has to move, overhead versus underground service, grounding corrections, added subpanels, and stucco or drywall repair around the enclosure. Paragon gives you a fixed quote after an electrician has been to the house, so the number does not move once work starts.

How do I know if my home needs a 200-amp panel?

Common signs are breakers tripping when two large appliances run together, a panel with no open breaker spaces, lights dimming when the air conditioning or dryer starts, or plans to add an EV charger, heat pump, induction range, hot tub, or ADU. Age by itself is not the deciding factor — the load calculation is. We total your existing and planned loads using the method in the California Electrical Code, then tell you whether 100 amps still works, whether a load-management device solves it, or whether a service upgrade is genuinely the right call.

Are Federal Pacific and Zinsco panels actually dangerous?

Both are widely documented as problem panels. Independent testing and decades of field reports found that some Federal Pacific Stab-Lok breakers may not trip during an overload or short circuit, which defeats the purpose of a breaker. Zinsco panels are known for breakers that loosen and overheat where they meet the bus bar. Neither brand is manufactured anymore, so replacement breakers are difficult to source. If you own a 1950s or 1960s home in Torrance, Lomita, Gardena, or Hawthorne with one of these panels, replacement is a reasonable safety upgrade even without new loads.

Do I need a permit and SCE involvement for a panel upgrade?

Yes to both. Replacing a panel or changing service size requires an electrical permit and a final inspection from the local building department — the City of Torrance, Redondo Beach, or Manhattan Beach, LADBS for San Pedro or Westchester, or LA County Building and Safety in unincorporated areas such as Del Aire. When the service size changes, Southern California Edison must disconnect the service and then reconnect it after the city inspection releases the meter. We file both applications and attend the inspection. Unpermitted panel work tends to surface during a home sale.

How long does a panel upgrade take from start to finish?

The installation itself usually takes one working day, and the power is off for most of that day. The lead-up is the longer part: South Bay cities often issue electrical permits quickly, but when SCE has to review a service change or replace its own equipment, scheduling can add several weeks. Inspection availability varies by city. We sequence the permit, the utility appointment, and the inspection so the outage happens once, and we tell you in advance which day to plan around if someone works from home or depends on medical equipment.

Can I add solar or a battery to my existing panel?

Sometimes. Solar that backfeeds through the main panel is limited by the panel's bus bar rating and main breaker size, so many 100-amp and 125-amp panels can accept only a small array without changes. Options include derating the main breaker, a supply-side connection ahead of the panel, or an upgrade sized with solar and storage in mind. If solar is on your horizon in the next few years, sizing the new panel for it now is usually cheaper than paying for a second service change later. We coordinate interconnection details with your solar installer.

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