About Panels & Plugs

Who I Am

I’m Marc Reeves. I’m not an electrician — I’m a homeowner who got completely hooked on residential electrical systems 12 years ago after my first panel upgrade, and never really stopped. Since then I’ve pulled permits and done my own panel work, solar install, and EV charger circuits under a licensed electrician’s inspection, and I’ve spent a genuinely unreasonable number of evenings reading the electrical code just because I find it interesting. Panels & Plugs is where I explain home electrical systems the way I wish someone had explained them to me, standing in my garage with the panel cover off.

The Rule This Site Lives By

Electricity doesn’t give second chances, so every guide here is honest about the line between a homeowner job and a pro job — and because I’m a hobbyist and not a licensed electrician myself, I draw that line more conservatively than a tradesperson might. Swapping a light fixture with the breaker off? Reasonable weekend work, and I’ll walk you through it properly. Anything involving the service panel, a new circuit, or a permit? That gets a licensed pro — full stop, no exceptions, and I’d rather lose a click telling you that than have you find out why the hard way. Knowing where that line sits is half the value of understanding your own electrical system.

How I Write About Gear and Projects

Load calculations before shopping lists. When I cover a solar setup, I start with your actual usage and roof, not the marketing payback numbers. When I review a charger, a generator interlock, or a smart panel, I care about what fails after two summers in a hot garage — because I’ve replaced plenty of gear on my own property that reviewed well and aged badly. Specs tell you what a product claims; living with it tells you what it does.

What You’ll Find Here

Plain-English wiring explanations, panel and breaker guides, solar economics without the sales pitch, EV charging at home, generator and backup power planning, and troubleshooting guides for the weird stuff — flickering lights, warm outlets, the breaker that trips only when it rains.

Transparency: this site runs ads, and some product links are affiliate links that earn a small commission at no cost to you. My recommendations come from my own installs and tear-outs, not commissions.

Get In Touch

Have a question, or want a topic covered? Contact me here.