Eversource, National Grid or a light plant: the service upgrade request
More amps means a request to your utility, a disconnect, an inspection and a reconnect. How Eversource, National Grid and the light plants each run it, from their own pages.
Eversource, after inspection5 business daysto install service once the wiring inspector gives final approval Eversource
Eversource, work request2 business daysto be routed and assigned to a technician after you submit Eversource
National Grid, simple upgrade2 to 6 weeksdesign 1 to 3 weeks plus construction 1 to 3 weeks, your side excluded National Grid
National Grid, complex9 to 18 weekswhen it has to build or change its own equipment National Grid
The short version. Your electrician files the request, books the disconnect, and asks the town to inspect. The utility reconnects only after the town approves. The longest wait is usually the part you cannot see: the utility's design and scheduling. Ask early, and get the utility's reference number.
Which utility is yours
Your electric bill names the company that delivers your power. For the 23 towns on our rebate guides:
Utility assignments are from the rebate guide's town table, read from each utility's territory list and the Massachusetts DPU. Sources on each row. Medford electricity can come from either company by street.
What the utility owns and what you pay an electrician for
Who owns what follows Reading Municipal Light Department's homeowner page and National Grid's upgrade guide. Other utilities draw the line in slightly different places, so ask yours.The equipment on your side of the meter: meter socket, main breaker, bus and branch breakers. A licensed electrician replaces these; the utility handles its line and the meter.
The electrician licensing law, M.G.L. chapter 141, does not cover a utility's own work installing and repairing service connections and meters that stay the utility's property. Mass. General Laws Your side needs a licensed electrician. Reading Municipal Light Department spells out one version: the light department keeps the service line from the pole, the meter and the connectors at the weatherhead, and the homeowner owns the weatherhead, service entrance cable, meter box, wiring into the home and the panel. Reading Municipal Light Department
Eversource (Eastern and Western Massachusetts)
1StartElectrician submits a work requestOnline, or by phone. Needed for new, changed, upgraded, removed or temporary service.Electrician
22 business daysRouted to a technicianYou get a work request number and can look up its status.Eversource
3Apply earlyEngineering and materialsEasements or grants of location come first when required.Eversource
4Work dayDisconnect and upgradeAdvance notice, at a mutually agreed time.Electrician and utility
5After workWiring inspector approvesEversource waits for the approval.Town
65 business daysService installedCommitment once all requirements are met.Eversource
Who can request. A request is needed for any service to be installed: new, changed, upgraded, removed or temporary. Eversource Requests are typically submitted by licensed electrical contractors. A homeowner can submit one for an owner-occupied, single-family home only after being granted a homeowner electrical permit. Eversource
How. Eastern Massachusetts: 888-633-3797, Monday to Friday, 7:45 a.m. to 4:45 p.m. Western Massachusetts: 800-880-2433, Monday to Friday, 7 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Contractors can create a work request online. Eversource
What they ask for. Full address, contact, type of service (new, increased, relocated or temporary), target completion date, site plans, and written approval by the authority having jurisdiction. Eversource
Load breakdown. Not required for a single-phase, single-family residence with a maximum 200 amp main switch. Eversource
Status. You get a request number and, with the town name, can see satisfied and unsatisfied prerequisites online. Eversource
Disconnect and reconnect. Eversource's handbook says it requires advance notice to disconnect and reconnect at a mutually agreed time, and that no service will be reconnected until it receives approval from the authority having jurisdiction. Eversource The handbook posted for Eastern Massachusetts still carries the NSTAR name on its cover, so confirm current details with your representative. Eversource
Timing. Eversource's commitment is to install service within 5 business days after final approval from the city or town wiring inspector, provided all requirements are met. It tells customers to apply as far in advance as possible. EversourceEversource
Not sure if your meter and service are ready?Send a photo of the meter and the panel. Aurion looks at both and tells you what to ask the utility.
2 to 6 weeks on average: design 1 to 3, construction 1 to 3. National Grid
Complex upgrade
National Grid has to build or change its infrastructure. May need easements and permits first.
There may be additional costs.
9 to 18 weeks on average: design 2 to 5, construction 7 to 13. National Grid
Full rebuild
Complete rebuild or major renovation with demolition. A new service request after the rebuild.
Temporary service during construction has a fee.
Follows your construction schedule.
The durations chart leaves out customer paperwork, signed agreements and payment, trench approval, tree trimming on private property and the municipal wiring inspection. National Grid
Size it first. National Grid wants you to work with a licensed electrician to confirm an upgrade is needed and what type before you submit. National Grid
Submit the Electric Service Request Form. Online, by email to workrequest@nationalgrid.com, or by phone at 1-800-375-7405, Monday to Friday, 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. You then get a Job Owner as your point of contact. National Grid If you raise the panel's capacity, for example 100 amps to 200 amps, you must send an upgrade request.
Design. A Distribution Designer may be assigned and may ask for a site visit with you or your electrician.
Disconnect and reconnect. Your electrician is responsible for scheduling time with National Grid for both. National Grid
Electrician's work. The electrician builds the service to National Grid's standard (ESB750) and labels the meter sockets, applies for permits and schedules the town inspection.
Inspection, then power. It is the electrician's job to request the municipal inspection, and National Grid cannot connect your service until it receives an approved one. National Grid The crew then makes final connections and installs any new meter.
Town light plants
A town light plant is the utility. Each runs its own process, and most are small offices that take a phone call. What we found on their own pages:
Reading and nearby towns
Reading Municipal Light Department (RMLD)
For a panel upgrade rebate the contractor calls 781-942-6598 for a Utility Authorization Number before work, gets the town electrical permit, and has the town wiring inspection done. Reading Municipal Light Department
RMLD keeps the service line from the pole, the meter and the connectors at the weatherhead. The homeowner is responsible for the rest of the service equipment and the panel. Reading Municipal Light Department
Belmont
Belmont Light
Electricians get a work authorization (WA) number for service upgrades, new or temporary service with the Application for Electric Service, sent to Belmont Light customer service. Call 617-993-2800 or email Customer-Service@BelmontLight.com. Belmont Light
Electrical permits are issued by the town's Planning and Building Department, not by Belmont Light. Belmont Light
Danvers
Danvers Electric Division
Fill out the Service Upgrade / New Construction Application and return it to the Assistant Utilities Director. For electric service sign-up, contact the Business Division at 978-774-0005. Town of Danvers
Wakefield
Wakefield Municipal Gas and Light (WMGLD)
We did not find a service-upgrade page on its site. Its business office is at 480 North Ave. and the main number is 781-246-6363, so call before the electrician orders equipment. Wakefield Municipal Gas and Light Department
Peabody
Peabody Municipal Light Plant (PMLP)
We did not find a service-upgrade page for PMLP. Its program pages are hosted by NextZero. Ask PMLP directly, and have the electrician do the same. NextZero
Lead time, in one table
Utility
What it publishes
What that leaves out
Eversource
Install within 5 business days after final approval from the wiring inspector, once requirements are met. Request assigned within 2 business days.
Engineering, materials and easements before that. It says to apply as far in advance as possible.
National Grid
Simple residential: 2 to 6 weeks. Complex residential: 9 to 18 weeks.
Customer paperwork, signed agreements, payment, trench approval, tree trimming, municipal wiring inspection.
Light plants
Not published on the pages we found.
Call and ask for a date before you commit to a work day.
No source we found promises a total door-to-door time. Plan the work day around the inspector's slot and the utility's confirmed reconnect, not around a guess.
Common questions
Do I have to tell the utility if I only replace my panel?
If the service size stays the same, National Grid says replacing only the electrical panel or wiring does not increase your capacity and is not an electric upgrade on its side. But if the meter socket or service entrance cable is changed, the utility has to disconnect and reconnect, so ask your electrician to confirm with your utility before the work is scheduled.
Who calls the utility, me or the electrician?
The electrician, in nearly every case. National Grid's guide lists "Submit an application to National Grid to request an electric service upgrade" as the electrician's job. Eversource says requests are typically submitted by licensed electrical contractors, and that a homeowner can submit one for an owner-occupied single-family home only after being granted a homeowner electrical permit.
Will the utility charge me for the upgrade?
For a simple National Grid upgrade, the guide says there is no charge from National Grid and you only pay your electrician. For a complex upgrade, where National Grid has to build or change its own equipment, there may be additional costs. Eversource points to its handbook and a representative for charges, such as for disconnects not tied to replacing a terminal box. Ask for the cost in writing.
How far ahead should I apply?
As early as you can. Eversource says to apply as far in advance as possible, so there is time for engineering, ordering materials, easements and scheduling. National Grid's chart lists simple residential connections at 2 to 6 weeks of its own time, and complex residential service at 9 to 18 weeks, not counting your side.
Can the utility reconnect before the town inspects?
No. National Grid says it cannot connect your service until it receives an approved municipal inspection. Eversource's handbook says it will not energize new, upgraded, relocated or repaired wiring until approval has been issued by the authority having jurisdiction.
How do I know who my utility is?
Your electric bill names the company that delivers your power. The towns table on this page shows the utility for 23 towns. Medford has streets served by both Eversource and National Grid, so check your bill. A town light plant is its own utility with its own process.
What do I do if my town has its own light plant?
The light plant is the utility. Its steps are not Eversource's or National Grid's. For its panel rebate, Reading Municipal Light Department has the contractor get a Utility Authorization Number first. Belmont Light issues a work authorization number against an application for electric service. Danvers has a Service Upgrade application. Wakefield and Peabody did not publish a service-upgrade page we could find, so the first call is to the light plant.
Is there a fee to disconnect and reconnect?
Eversource's handbook says to contact it for the charges that apply, and that there is no charge to disconnect and reconnect when the customer is replacing an existing terminal box. National Grid's simple upgrade has no National Grid charge per its guide. Light plants set their own fees; Belmont Light, for example, lists a prepaid fee for temporary service on its forms page.
