# 200 amp upgrade for solar?



## cdub (Apr 29, 2017)

I have an old 100 amp box on SoCal in a house that was built in the 40s or 50s. It was fine for my one EVSE but I want to add another EVSE for our second EV and eventually get solar.

The electrician mentioned that there's a regular 200 amp panel and one that's ready for solar.

If we're going to get a dollar roof eventually I should get the one that's ready for solar? I wasn't aware there was separate versions.


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## GDN (Oct 30, 2017)

Most every house built here in the last 50 years has a 200 amp panel, so plenty of those standard. For the other, I'm guessing some company has gone specialty and built in the cut off/cut over switch for Solar/generator perhaps? Maybe it is becoming more common, but I bet we won't find them off the shelf at Home Depot or Lowes. Likely special order or Wholesale only to installers.


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## cdub (Apr 29, 2017)

GDN said:


> but I bet we won't find them off the shelf at Home Depot or Lowes.


I saw one listed at home Depot as solar ready. I guess I don't understand enough about solar yet to know. Still looking into it.


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## cdub (Apr 29, 2017)

cdub said:


> I have an old 100 amp box on SoCal in a house that was built in the 40s or 50s. It was fine for my one EVSE but I want to add another EVSE for our second EV and eventually get solar.
> 
> The electrician mentioned that there's a regular 200 amp panel and one that's ready for solar.
> 
> If we're going to get a dollar roof eventually I should get the one that's ready for solar? I wasn't aware there was separate versions.


Getting back on topic.....

If I upgrade my panel to 200 do I need to get a specific type of panel to work with Tesla solar?

It seems like no? Any 200 would do but "solar ready" is fine too?


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## JasonF (Oct 26, 2018)

cdub said:


> Getting back on topic.....
> 
> If I upgrade my panel to 200 do I need to get a specific type of panel to work with Tesla solar?
> 
> It seems like no? Any 200 would do but "solar ready" is fine too?


The answer is...maybe.

I went and looked at what "solar ready" means exactly. It seems to only apply to combination meter box and load center. It just means there is enough room for an additional tap on the bus bars inside the load center so you can connect the solar output to it, and a slightly larger meter connection (because the sellback meters are a little larger). Some combo meter and load center boxes don't have an exposed bus bar where you can tap in additional stuff like solar or a backup generator. If you have a separate meter from the load center, you don't have to worry about it - and some solar installers will separate it for you anyway.


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## SR22pilot (Aug 16, 2018)

When I got solar I had a second 200 amp panel added. adding the chargers had filled the original 220 panel. The second panel has allowed shifting to a heat pump hot water heater (love it) and replacing the gas furnace based HVAC with a heat pump based system. That has allowed disconnecting my gas line.


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## msjulie (Feb 6, 2018)

Solar ready means enough room for the breakers to feed juice back in; friend with 100amp service at the house had a small daughter breaker box put in next to the main box, moving a house circuit to the new smaller box to allow for the newly required slots to connect them together. No batteries at that home and no current provision for one which is something to think about when doing any work. The house is on the raggedy edge of having enough capacity to run everything


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## garsh (Apr 4, 2016)

cdub said:


> Getting back on topic.....


Apologies cdub.

I've move the whole "300 amp" sub-discussion into a separate thread:
https://teslaownersonline.com/threa...use-300-amp-or-larger-electric-service.18237/
This thread should now only contain posts discussing the "200-amp panel" vs "200-amp solar-ready panel" discussion.


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## KeithBook (Sep 23, 2021)

Hi....Would need to be a huge sun oriented cluster to should have the option to take care of 200 amps back to the framework. I have seen numerous all electric homes make due with 100 amps. All relies upon what is being utilized a how all around protected the house is.


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