I hate NY state...

[MikeC]

Ok, so I'm trying to get an electrician to do some work on my house. I need my service upgraded to 200Amp. I had one guy who did some really small work for me, but he wasn't licensed for my county. Eh, no big deal. He refers me to a buddy of his who is supposed to be pretty good, but he's licensed in two counties that are adjacent to mine, but not in my county. He calls me back today telling me that in order to get a license in my county he needs to take a test and spend 500 bucks for the license. Even though he already has a state license and he's already licensed in two other counties next to me. So he tells me he can't do it. I ask him if he can recommend anyone in my area and he says he doesn't know anyone. Now mind you, I could prolly go through the yellow pages and find someone, but for something like this it's usually good to start with someone recommended to you. I'm just amazed in this state how every friggin County is like a goddam little fiefdom who can make their own rules and regulations, irregardless of the state.
Fucking aggravating!

Mike

[Darthwing Teorist]

Renovations are usually frustrating, in my limited experience. You remind me that I also have to call an electrician to install two bathroom fans.

[MikeC]

Oh, I got a whole list...I know how you feel.

[Bill]

Yes, upstate sucks donkey balls !

[MikeC]

upstate is actually the better part

[meeks]

in Canada, I can get the owner of the property to get a 'home owner permit' and then do the electrical work under that permit as long as we don't admit to any exchange of payment.... it's intended for the homeowner to do the work.

that being said, I've written an exam that allows me to work all across Canada. There might be some minor variances depending on the district/inspector, but you can usually contact them to confirm a few points before starting.

[TaoJoannes]

I can't imagine possibly needing 200Amps to live, but what a silly set of laws you have there.

[MikeC]

I can't imagine possibly needing 200Amps to live, but what a silly set of laws you have there.

Well, our needs in the North may be different than in the South, I dunno. But I have a really old electrical system, and if you upgrade a system it's good to get more than you need in case you need to add more load to the system(more appliances, hottub, central air, etc...)

[cerebus]

I can't imagine possibly needing 200Amps to live, but what a silly set of laws you have there.

Well, our needs in the North may be different than in the South, I dunno. But I have a really old electrical system, and if you upgrade a system it's good to get more than you need in case you need to add more load to the system(more appliances, hottub, central air, etc...)

Translation: "Grow-lights take alot of electricity..."

[TaoJoannes]

I can't imagine possibly needing 200Amps to live, but what a silly set of laws you have there.

Well, our needs in the North may be different than in the South, I dunno. But I have a really old electrical system, and if you upgrade a system it's good to get more than you need in case you need to add more load to the system(more appliances, hottub, central air, etc...)

Yeah, I can understand it, I'm just at such a low standard of living, it's hard to imagine maxing out a single 15 amp circuit.

[MikeC]

Doh!

*whistles*

[qiphlow]

you could get some illegal mexican immigrants to do the work...

[MikeC]

you could get some illegal mexican immigrants to do the work...

Problem is is that after the work is done I think it has to be inspected by the town or something. Don't know if they would verify the license of the contractor or not. Who knows..

[meeks]

most new homes are being built with 200 amps these days. it allows for putting in more lighting (for example) using pot lamps rather than a 65 watt bulb on a single bolt on fixture in each room. Plus with new electrical code on kitchen appliances (plus MORE APPLIANCES) such as microwave, fridge, freezer (sometimes 2 separate items), 2 counter plugs to a 2pole breaker spaced about maximum 36 inches apart (older kitchens had 1 or 2 plugs only), garbage disposal, dishwasher, instant hot water, electric stove (instead of gas), wall oven (sometimes), trash compactor, etc...

then you get into living rooms that no longer have a single switched receptacle for a floor lamp to light the whole room... 8 potlights, a tracklight near the fireplace to highlight the wall, some more accent lights over the coffee table, accent lights by the 'show wall' where you might hang large framed art.

home theater?
separate garage needing its own panel? 2 spaces for both phases
jacuzzi? (2 - 4 breaker spaces, GFI)
outdoor hot tub? (4 breaker spaces, and it's a GFI breaker - huge)
washer and dryer? (6 spaces of breakers)

I mention spaces because sometimes it's not the draw of the house (amount of amperage in use) but the number of breaker spaces required that cause a home owner to need to increase the ampacity of the panel. eg: if you need 30 breaker spaces, you can use 100 amps, if you need 48 spaces it's only available in 200 amps....