Federal Pacific panel replacement in Norfolk

A Lynnhaven shop and a Union Street electrical file is how a lot of Hampton Roads letters start. The carrier still named Federal Pacific on the panel.

The city inspector will not own the Dominion Energy seal. Dominion will not print the 810 Union Street permit. Those two systems do not match. A helper with a van cannot stand in for either one.

What the utilities actually wrote

Most Norfolk, Virginia Beach, Chesapeake, and Portsmouth bills are Dominion Energy. Confirm the logo on the bill before anyone prices the job.

Start with the Virginia stop-service page. Schedule a temporary service disconnection before working on the panel or fuse box, other than increasing service size.

Call 866-366-4357. There is no fee for temporary disconnections.

Dominion wants notification several days before the disconnection. Disconnections are dispatched between 8:00 a.m. and 10:00 a.m.

Without documentation of a completed, passed electrical inspection, Dominion will not reconnect you.

The Blue Book is harder still. The Company seals all electric meters and will need at least 24 hours notice to remove a meter.

No meter is to be removed or reset without direct, specific authorization from the Company.

Where a Company seal must be broken or removed, the Company shall be consulted twenty-four hours in advance. A Company representative will arrange to remove the seal. In special circumstances, such as service upgrades, the Company may give a licensed electrician authorization to remove the seal and meter. Immediately upon completion, the electrician shall notify the Company. The seal will be replaced by an employee of the Company. That exception is not a homeowner meter-pull path.

Dominion Energy does not publish a guaranteed power-off hour count. Castles writes a few hours off for a straightforward swap. That is a contractor field note.

Permits in Norfolk and in the nearby cities

Inside Norfolk, start at the Development Services Center, 810 Union Street, 1st Floor. The phone is 757-664-6565. Electrical files go through the E-Permit Portal.

Who pulls the permit matters. The electrical application has its own line for a panel upgrade, a panel replacement, and a meter base. The city’s building-permit page lets a property owner obtain a permit in their own name. That owner still has to submit an affidavit accepting responsibility. The same page says it is highly recommended that the contractor be the responsible party. Owning the home does not mean you should pull the permit and then hire someone under your name.

Virginia Beach, Chesapeake, Portsmouth, Hampton, Newport News, and Suffolk file at their own counters. A quote that only says “we handle the permit” should name the city on the address.

Price, without inventing one

Two Hampton Roads contractor pages publish panel bands and do not hide the split.

Castles’ Norfolk page prints a standard 100-amp to 200-amp upgrade at $1,500 to $3,500. Allen’s 2026 Virginia Beach page prints a 100-amp to 200-amp service upgrade at $3,000 to $4,500+. Those two systems do not match. We will not average them. We are not inventing a Union Street midpoint from either line.

Virginia license lookup is public. Ask for the DPOR number and check it before you sign. Two shops advertise this work on their own sites and print a license number. Castles’ Norfolk page names Federal Pacific Stab-Lok and Zinsco. The shop’s own footer prints Master Electrician #2710048784. Allen’s cost page names Federal Pacific or Zinsco replacements. The shop’s own about page prints Virginia Contractor’s Lic #2705172342. They write daily work from Virginia Beach. They are listed for the panel letter, not as a Hampton Roads directory.

Directory-only shops are omitted. A page that names these brands and does not print a Virginia license number is not a listing. The listed shops are not affiliated with Panel Letter.

What to hand the carrier

The useful packet is the closed City of Norfolk or other Hampton Roads electrical permit, the passed electrical inspection, an invoice with the license number that was on the permit, and photos if the letter asks. If your electrician produces a load calculation or panel schedule, send that too. We did not find a carrier page that publishes a single statewide sticker form. Ask the agent what they will actually open.