If you hear rumors that replacing your electrical panel could save you as much as 30 percent on your energy bill, don’t believe them. An electrical panel typically does not add any load, or voltage, to a household’s electric system. The panel doesn’t consume energy. Instead, it organizes electricity that comes from the power grid.
Since an electric panel doesn’t consume energy, it’s implausible to think that replacing one could result in such drastic energy savings as 30 percent. But, an old and worn out panel could have loose or corroded wire connections.
If this were the case, the old electric panel might waste power by creating excess heat, since the corroded connections would resist current flow. Yet even in this scenario, a 30 percent energy savings would be highly unlikely. Replacing your electrical panel might benefit your home in other ways, such as increasing safety, but don’t count on it slashing your energy bills.
