Rewiring a house

My husband wants to rewire our house. It is an older Jim Walter house that is on a 100 amp box. We have lived in two other locations that had 200amp boxes. Our light bills at the other two locations was no where near as high as it is here. He believes that the box is overloaded. When rewiring plugs in the wall, can you use the old 12-2 wire and just have a junction box or do you have to run all new wire down into the wall etc.?
Thanks

 

You can use the older wires if they are still in good shape. But there is a possiblity the old wires would not have grounds, that might cause problems if you are contemplating extending any circuits while your doing the upgrade. Now if your just replacing receptacles you can do that with no problem as long as you repalce with an approved device. If you have no ground wire present then you would either have to install two prong receptacles or GFCI receptacles.

 

If the wiring is in good shape, and has a ground, there's no reason not to use it.

Upsizing your panel will have no effect on your bill. What you may find though, is that there are some loose connections, stuff running you weren't aware of etc.

200amp service is a good idea though. Check with the inspector to ensure that the homeowner is allowed to do the work, and what special considerations there are in your jurisdiction.
Get a permit and have the work inspected. You'll need the power company to pull the meter unless you have a disconnect between the meter and the panel.

This is not a job for an amateur, and you must consider how the cutover will be accomlished. That is, you can install a new panel, move all your circuits to it, then have the power co. pull the meter, then hook up the new panel to the mains, and have the power co. reinstall the meter. Or you could install a new panel and feed you old panel from it. A lot depends on how long you're able to go without power.

 

If the amount of energy your using is a concern have the power company check your meter and make sure it is accurate that has happened in the past. Another thing to check is if your appliances are not energy effiecent, as appliances get older they tend to draw more. The hot water heater if electric may also be running too much this is a commone thing when one element gets weaker then the other. Also as abnormal pointed out see if things are running you didn't know about

 

"A lot depends on how long you're able to go without power."


This must be a local thing. In VA we shut down the main, pull the meter, hook up the new meter base to the old meter base, place shorting bars in the new base, and re-install the old meter. This temporary wiring is used until final inspection is signed off and the power company runs the new service drop.

 

Doesn't load balancing the two bus bars affect kwh? I read something on this site that your meter takes the max current draw. So, you want to evenly distribute your current across the two sides of your breaker box.

Anyone really know about this?

 

The amount of power you are using has nothing to do with the size of your service panel. Upgrading to 200 amps will not reduce your power consumption. Trying to balance the load across the bus will not reduce your power consumption either. If you are not having problems with circuit breakers tripping or planning to add some new loads like an AC then your service does not need to be changed.

 

In adressing the problem of hi power consumption I suggest you consider your heating system which may be a "heat-pump" system which is a cooling system "in reverse" and too complex and expensive for heating puposes. Often auxiliary electric heating coils are necessary to augment the heat-pump during periods of low temperatures.

 

I would recommend an evaluation of your energy loss. That is, if you are losing heat or cooling through windows and doors. Also, if you are using older appliances that are not Energy Star certified, you may contemplate upgrading them. Also if the house is on a crawl space, inspect the condition of the insulation and weather barrier. Do this for the attic as well.

As stated earlier, do not upgrade the panel to attempt to lower energy costs, unless you are replacing the appliances, in which case you may have no choice.