An electrical service upgrade is one of the most consequential improvements you can make to an older Denver home. The 100-amp panels installed in homes built through the 1960s were sized for a world without central air conditioning, electric dryers in every unit, EV chargers, or smart home systems drawing continuous low loads. For many homeowners in neighborhoods like Curtis Park, Five Points, and the Highlands, those panels are not just at capacity — they are undersized for the home they are attached to.
What most homeowners do not know is that a panel upgrade is not a one-trade, one-permit job. It involves Xcel Energy, Denver Building Services, and a licensed master electrician working in sequence — and the sequence matters.
The Xcel disconnect step
Before the old panel can be removed, Xcel Energy must disconnect the service drop — the overhead cable from the street transformer, or the underground service lateral from the vault — at the weatherhead or meter socket. This is Xcel's equipment up to the meter, and they have the authority and the obligation to disconnect and reconnect. We submit the permit to Denver Building Services, coordinate the Xcel disconnect request, and schedule both in the same window so your home is without power for as short a time as possible — typically four to six hours.
In some older Denver neighborhoods, the meter base (the socket the meter plugs into) also needs replacement when upgrading to 200-amp service. A 100-amp meter base is rated for exactly that — installing a 200-amp panel behind an undersized meter base is a code violation and Xcel will not reconnect until it is corrected. We quote the meter base as a line item if it is needed; it adds $200–$400 to the project cost.
What the finished upgrade includes
A complete Denver 200-amp service upgrade includes: a new Square D QO or Eaton BR main panel (200-amp rated, with at least 30 circuit spaces for future capacity), all new branch circuit breakers transferred and relabeled, a bonded and grounded panel with a separate ground bar, a new grounding electrode conductor to the ground rod and water pipe bond, a new meter base if required, and the service entrance conductors from the weatherhead to the panel replaced with 2/0 AWG aluminum service entrance cable rated for 200 amps.
Permits are pulled with Denver Building Services before work starts. The inspection is scheduled for the morning after the rough work, and we attend. Our 100% first-try inspection pass rate has held since 2004. On average, a standard service upgrade takes one day from Xcel disconnect to inspection sign-off.
Final cost for a straightforward Denver single-family home: $1,800–$2,800. Homes with complex service entrances, older wiring that needs remediation, or attic/basement panel locations that require more labor are typically $2,800–$4,000.