Calgary Secondary Suite Planning: Where Does the Electrical Panel Need To Be?

Introduction

Electrical panels and their placement have historically been one of the biggest nuisances for homeowners with legal suites. It used to be that the electrical panel needed to be accessible by both upstairs and downstairs tenants. With most panels being originally located in mechanical rooms not accessible by both suites it was either costly to move, or made turning suites legal nearly impossible. Thankfully regulations have recently changed allowing for more flexible panel placement. In this article we will review what the new electrical panel regulations are, and what our recommendations are for electrical panel placement on new and existing homes.

Related: The Top 5 Benchmarks To Look For in a Home You Want To Suite

The New Regulations

The City of Calgary’s secondary suite site says that “A common electrical panel can serve both units, provided there are no shared branch circuits between the suites. It is recommended the electrical panel be located in a common area, or that sub-panels be installed in each suite.” I italicized one of they key words in that quote for emphasis. This is a big change, as just a few years ago it was required to have electrical panels accessible to both suites. For you to make a suite legal you would have to either connect and add a sub-panel to the other suite, move the entire electrical panel to a common space, or get lucky and somehow have a home with a mechanical room that connects to both suites. Now, although it is great if the electrical panel is accessible in both suites, it is no longer necessary. You do want to make sure that you add a line to your leases that states that if the upstairs needs access to the electrical panel that they will have to contact the renter of the basement or landlord and that access will need to be provided within a reasonable timeframe.

Personal Examples

Our first home in Nolan Hill was planned with a second suite in mind and was built when the old regulations were in place. We had to make sure that the stairs from the upstairs lead down to the mechanical room “common space” where the electrical panel was located. It  took some serious planning to make happen, but turned out nice in the end. Related: Suite Showcase: Tour Our First Suite

In our second home in Ranchlands the mechanical room (and therefore electrical panel) is not accessible by the upstairs tenant. We currently live in the basement, so if upstairs needed access they would text us and we can flip a switch for them immediately. Extra planning does have to come into play if we are out of town or on vacation however. So be careful about the added responsibilities of going down this route.

Where Should I Put My Panel?

The answer, like most, is that it depends on your space.

New Homes

If you are building a house new and are planning on adding a suite, then I would highly recommend that you look for a way to put the panel in a common space. It will cause the least amount of future headaches. If there is not common space, then a sub-panel is a great (but slightly more costly) alternative. Related: The Top 3 Requirements for Adding a Legal Basement Suite to Your Home

Existing Homes

When you are suiting a home that already has an electrical panel installed that is not easily accessible by the other suite I would recommend looking at what it costs to get it moved. If the drywall is already up, then that usually means it will be too pricy for most, but it is always worth checking out first. If the cost is too high, then know that you have the option to still legally suite the home without giving the upstairs immediate access to the panel. But make sure that you have a way to allow the other suite a way to switch a breaker within a reasonable time. I am not a lawyer, so make sure that you talk with one to keep your lease on the up-and-up.

Related: The Hidden Costs of Investment Properties

Conclusion

Whether in a new home, or existing one, ideally you would want to have a home with an electrical panel accessible to both suites. Fortunately, this is no longer required however, meaning that more homes than ever have the ability to turn their existing suites into legal ones, or add entirely new legal suites altogether. Make sure that you talk to the electrical inspector about panel placement if you have any further questions Thank you for reading our article. Make sure that you subscribe to our site to learn even more on how to legally suite your home.