200A Service Relocation — Pool Install, Underground Feeder & ADU Upgrade

This job came out of a pool installation. The customer was adding an in-ground pool to the backyard, but the existing utility service drop crossed too low over the construction area — a clearance problem that had to be resolved before any excavation could happen near it.

The solution was to relocate the main service panel entirely. The new location is on the detached garage wall, where the utility can make a clean drop without crossing the pool area. A Square D meter-main combo handles the service entry — the meter and main disconnect are in a single enclosure, which simplifies the installation and meets the NEC requirement for a means of disconnect at the service point.

From the new main, a 2" underground conduit run goes back to the original panel location. That feeder now feeds a new 200A subpanel where the old main used to be, so all the existing branch circuits in the house continue to work without rewiring. The underground run required trenching along the side of the house between the foundation and the fence — the trench photo shows the conduit laid and ready to backfill.

The existing 70A garage panel was also upgraded to 100A as part of the work, sized for ADU use. That gives the garage its own capacity for an accessory dwelling unit without pulling load from the main panel.

Jobs like this are a good example of how one improvement triggers a chain of related work: pool requires clearance, clearance requires service relocation, relocation reveals an undersized garage panel, garage panel gets upgraded while everything is already open. It's more efficient to address it all at once.