The Building Says 200 Amps, the Units Say 60
I was in the basement of a Boston three family, a pre-1930s triple decker, looking at the electrical service where it comes into the building.
The building has an apparent 200 amp main service. The upstairs living units are each supplied by an individual 60 amp feeder.
What I could see was the main service equipment rated at 200 amps, an underground service drop, and aluminum service entrance conductors. Off that, separate 60 amp feeders running to the units above. I noted it for further investigation, because what happens between the main equipment and each unit is not something I can fully trace in a building like this.
The number on the main disconnect describes what the building can draw from the street. It does not describe what any one apartment can draw. In a three family, each unit lives on whatever its own feeder gives it, and that is a separate number that nobody puts on the listing. A 200 amp building can hold three units running on 60 amps apiece, which is what this one is.
What I told the buyer to do is find out what each unit is actually fed by before counting on the main number for anything. Some insurance carriers require, or strongly prefer, at least 100 amp service for each dwelling unit. That is worth knowing before you own the building, not after a carrier tells you.
My opinion is that this is one of the easiest things to miss in a multi-family purchase, because the main service number looks fine on paper and nobody thinks to ask a second question. The number that affects the person living upstairs is the one feeding the apartment they are standing in.
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