Whole-home remodel electrical planning comes down to one question asked early: can the house's electrical service support everything you're adding, and where does each circuit, outlet and light need to go before the walls close? Answering it means a load calculation, a room-by-room plan, a decision on the panel and utility service, and a permit path. Get those settled during design and the rest of the remodel runs far more smoothly.

Whole-home remodel electrical planning starts with how you live

An electrical plan follows the floor plan and the way you live. For each room, list what happens there and what gets plugged in or hardwired: a home office with two monitors, a kitchen with a larger range, a primary bath with heated floors, a garage that might host an EV charger. Include outdoor areas, since patios, pools and landscape lighting all draw power.

Share appliance and equipment specifications where you have them. A range, cooktop, wall oven, heat pump or tankless water heater each has a nameplate rating that affects circuit size and total load. Guessing leads to redesign later; real spec sheets let the electrician size circuits correctly the first time.

Think about the next ten years, not just move-in day. Aging in place, a teenager's gaming setup, a home gym, a future ADU or a detached studio in the backyard can all change the electrical picture. It's cheaper to size a panel and run conduit for likely future needs now than to reopen finished walls.

Load calculation and panel capacity

Before recommending new circuits, a licensed electrical contractor calculates the home's expected demand using the methods in the electrical code. The calculation accounts for square footage, fixed appliances, heating and cooling, and anything new you're adding. The result shows whether the existing service and panel can handle the remodel as planned.

Many older Los Angeles homes still have 100-amp or smaller services, and some have panels that are full, outdated or no longer easy to source parts for. A remodel that adds central air, an induction range, an electric dryer and an EV charger can push that service past its capacity. Sometimes a subpanel or a load-management device solves the problem; sometimes the right answer is a larger panel and service.

  • Current service size and panel brand, age and free breaker spaces
  • Existing large loads: AC, pool pump, dryer, water heater, range
  • New loads in the remodel plan, with nameplate ratings
  • Future loads you want to allow for, such as EV charging or batteries
  • Whether a subpanel near the kitchen or garage would simplify wiring

Panel location matters too. Older homes sometimes have the main panel in a spot that no longer meets required working clearances after a remodel, such as inside a new closet or behind cabinetry. If the layout changes around the panel, ask whether it needs to move, and budget for it early.

Service upgrades with LADWP or SCE

If the load calculation calls for a bigger service, the job involves your utility as well as the city. In the City of Los Angeles that's usually LADWP; in many surrounding communities it's Southern California Edison. Each utility publishes service requirements covering meter locations, clearances and equipment, and each has its own process for reviewing requests, disconnecting and reconnecting power.

Service upgrades can take longer than the rest of the electrical work because they depend on utility scheduling and, sometimes, work on the utility side of the meter. Ask your electrician to start that conversation early in design, not after demolition. Moving the meter or changing an overhead service to underground can also affect landscaping and exterior finishes, so bring it into the architectural plan.

If you're adding an ADU or detached structure, ask how it will be served: from the main house panel through a feeder, or with its own meter. That choice affects capacity, cost and utility coordination, and it's best made while the site plan is still flexible.

Lighting plan and controls

A lighting plan shows each fixture, switch and dimmer on the drawings, room by room. Think in layers: general light for moving around, task light at counters, desks and vanities, and accent light for art, shelving or architectural features. Decide where you want three-way and multi-location switching, and whether you want smart controls or scenes.

California's Title 24 energy code sets lighting requirements for new construction and many alterations, including efficacy of light sources and certain control requirements. Your designer or electrician identifies which rules apply to the rooms being remodeled. Settle recessed light locations against the framing and HVAC ducts before drywall, because moving them afterward is costly.

Don't forget outdoor and path lighting, closets, stair lighting and outlets in places that are easy to overlook: inside a pantry for small appliances, at the top of a stair landing, near a window seat, in a bathroom drawer for hair tools. A walkthrough of the drawings with each room's routine in mind catches most gaps.

Coordinate drawings, trades and rough-in

On a whole-home remodel, electrical overlaps with nearly every trade. Kitchen cabinets set outlet and under-cabinet light locations. HVAC ducts and plumbing compete for joist bays. Tile layouts decide where switches land in bathrooms. The most useful thing you can do is freeze decisions before rough-in and route every change through one person.

  • Final appliance and fixture selections before electrical rough-in
  • Cabinet and millwork drawings with outlet and lighting locations marked
  • HVAC and plumbing routes reviewed against lighting and wiring
  • Low-voltage needs: data, TV, speakers, security, doorbell camera
  • One current drawing set that everyone builds from
  • A walkthrough of box locations before insulation and drywall

Low-voltage wiring for networking, audio and security is easiest to run during rough-in too. Even if you're not installing it now, pulling conduit or cable to key locations is cheap insurance.

Smoke and carbon monoxide alarms are another item that usually gets updated during a major remodel. The building department typically expects them to meet current requirements when permitted work is done, and hardwired, interconnected alarms are far easier to run while ceilings are open. Confirm the requirement for your project with your electrician and designer.

Permits, inspections and sequencing

Electrical work in a remodel is permitted work. In the City of Los Angeles, permits come from LADBS; many cities in LA County, such as Santa Monica, Beverly Hills and Culver City, have their own building departments with their own review processes. Larger remodels often have electrical included in a combined building permit tied to the approved plans.

Expect at least a rough-in inspection before walls are closed and a final inspection at the end, with additional inspections for a service upgrade. Build those into the schedule. An inspection correction at rough-in is a minor delay; one discovered after drywall is a real cost.

Plan temporary power for the construction itself. Tools, lighting and sometimes a temporary panel are needed while the main service is being worked on, and the permit or utility may have requirements for how that's set up.

Next step: what to send for an estimate

  • Floor plans or architectural drawings, even in draft
  • A room-by-room list of how each space will be used
  • Appliance and equipment specs you've already chosen
  • Photos of the electrical panel, meter and main disconnect
  • Your city and utility, LADWP or SCE
  • Target construction start and whether you'll live in the house during work

Send these to Chain Construction. Our licensed electrical contractor reviews the load and service first, then works through the lighting plan and circuits alongside your designer and the rest of the construction team.