Wednesday, August 17, 2011

150 vs 200 amp service?

Hi,we just bought our first house--a small cape cod, with 4 teens--4 bedroom air conditioners and one dehumidifier. The range is electric, we have a boiler system, no water heater, oil tank.1100 watt microwave and naturally tvs for everyone. We have already blown our outdated fuse box, and have gotten 3 different opinions from electricians. The first recommended the 200-amp breaker, then another said 100 + is ok for us, and the third said 150 should be fine, that's what he has. I'm concerned that we have 4 kids, they all have 2 or less, and I feel 200 amp is better. My fiancee seems to feel the 150 is plenty because we will have several circuits open to add to down the road. I'm just afraid we'll be throwing switches then, now that it's over 100 degrees here, if we get a 150 amp. In winter we will be using the electric oven more, and I'd like to have a dishwasher installed as well. Can anyone back up any of these opinions? I'm scared to use the blow dryer at night now, for fear of blowing more fuses until we upgrade. That's another 1875 watts!! Ugh!

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