Our breaker box is on the wall at the end of our galley kitchen. We would like to change to an L-shaped kitchen. I heard that breaker boxes need clearance all the way to the ceiling and down to the floor. Is this true? We live in Southern California and our place was built in the early 1970s. If we flipped the box, it would be in the bathroom... :(. Does anyone have a ballpark estimate of how much moving it should cost? Any help would be WONDERFUL!!

Panelboard is not allowed in a bathroom.

Yes, a panel needs 6.5 feet of headroom in front of the panel, 30 inch wide clearance.

Can't help with pricing, I have no idea how big the ballpark is.

Remod, this is going to be an issue for you. As TK said, the bathroom is totally out of the question. If you renovate the kitchen then you DO still need to maintain clearances of where ever the panel goes.

Considering this is So Cal I would say the price is OUT of the park. So Cal has probably the highest pricing for trade work in the country.
From what I hear they can regularly get $3500 for a 200A service upgrade. A job I normally get around $2200 for on the East coast.

Not what I wanted to hear, but thanks so much for the responses. :)

The pricing is shocking for that area.

But I am sure the costs are relative.

If you want to hear what you want, call Congress and Barry and his merry band of thugs, they seem to have the knack of lying to us, and get away with it.

Look in the yellow pages an estimation for the work to be done should be by an license electrician. There is normanly no charge for this! Please check for a license and a state certifaction card of the person doing the work.

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Originally Posted by daddysmurf

Please check for a license and a state certifaction card of the person doing the work.

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This is actually a rarity. The person doing the actual work is typically unlicensed, it's the owner of the company that is licensed in the areas that a license is required.

Some places do require certification and a form of licensing for the field workers. CA and MA I believe are like this.
Most places only require licensing for the owner.
Some places require owner licensing only in certain areas. NY and PA are like this.

I can attest that every state in New England requires not only a master license to operate a business, every tradesman needs a license, or be a registered apprentice, or be kicked off the job, and someone will be paying a fine.

New York State, outside of Westchester County, well at least Rockland County, allows a master to operate a company, but none of the field workers needed a license.

When I went to Rockland County to wire a sprawling apartment complex, I hired a company with a masters license, and was able to hire off the street workers to to the actual wiring.

I surely did not do that, just hire warm bodies, found some hell of good wiremen.

Funny how some states handle this trade.

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Originally Posted by tkrussell

Funny how some states handle this trade.

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Agree! :mad:

In My area, I am one of the Few Working Masters. One local master(who does not work in the Electrical Trade), who has Several Companies working under his License. Or Cell Phone Contractors, Don't actually work, They hire the cheapest(unqualified) help. But they make big Money.
Before I started My Company, I worked for 1 that The helpers loved to run Off the Masters and Journeyman Electricians, It was like a Daycare Gone Bad.
They Make suicide Cords for generators. And have seen a pair of #10's with No Ground, on a 150 Amp Breaker that was upside down, to feed an Electric Gate. (Down is ON?) Very Dangerous stuff.