TrueLoad gives electricians and heat pump installers a fast, defensible way to calculate existing service capacity: from the home's own utility data when it's available, and from the traditional NEC calculation when it isn't. One project, one AHJ-ready report, anywhere in the US.
The average U.S. home peaks at just 40 amps on a standard 100-amp service. That's a 60-amp gap — sitting there unused. Before you recommend a service upgrade, check the data.
TrueLoad uses the home's actual measured demand to prove the existing service is adequate. Where that data isn't available yet, the same project runs the traditional NEC calculation instead. Data access and documentation have been the problem - until now.
Authorities Having Jurisdiction (AHJs) increasingly require a formal calculation before approving heat pump or EV charger installations on existing services. A verbal assurance isn't enough.
Recommending a service upgrade when one isn't needed adds thousands in cost and weeks of delay — and can kill a sale before it starts.
The code has allowed it for years, but access to data and clarity around how measured demand can be used have kept the method overlooked. TrueLoad closes that gap.
Smart-meter data is spreading, but it's uneven: one job has a year of interval history, the next has none. TrueLoad handles both from the same project, so it works anywhere in the US and you don't need a second tool for the homes without data.
TrueLoad suggests a path from the utility you select, and both stay one click apart. If the data exists, request it. If it doesn't, run the traditional calc today.
If the traditional calc comes up short, request the customer's data and run measured demand in the same project. When both have run, you pick which one the report is based on.
The report carries the method you chose, with its full worksheet and citations. Add the side-by-side methods comparison only when the method choice itself is being questioned.
TrueLoad walks you through the whole process on either path, from establishing the existing load to printing a report ready for the AHJ.
One project per job site. Enter the customer information and your details.
Enter service information such as the main breaker size and service voltage plus utility account information.
Measured demand if the utility has interval data, traditional calculation if it doesn't. TrueLoad suggests one from the utility you selected, and both stay available.
Measured: one-click data request, your customer authorizes it, and you drag in the file (CSV, Excel or XML). Traditional: floor area, circuits and the appliance inventory.
List each piece of new equipment — heat pump, EV charger, water heater — and provide nameplate equipment demand.
PASS or FAIL is displayed immediately. Print a formatted report on the method you chose, ready for permit submission or for your records.
Below: the measured-demand path, start to finish.
TrueLoad is designed for licensed electricians and heat pump installers who need an existing-service load calculation they can hand to an inspector, quickly and reliably. It works with or without utility interval data, anywhere in the US, so one tool covers your existing-home jobs.
If you're adding a heat pump, EV charger, or other major load to an existing residential service and want to avoid an unnecessary panel or service upgrade, this is the tool. New to measured demand? Start with our plain-language guide.
Start free — your first project is on us. Scale as you grow.
No subscription. Pay only when you need it.
Unlimited projects, one flat rate. Break even at 2 projects/month.
For firms with multiple users.
Not ready to commit? Start with a free trial — no credit card required. Want the full breakdown? Compare all plans. Questions? Email info@ethermsolutions.com
You may not. Most homes use far less of their electrical service than a worst-case calculation assumes, and the code lets your contractor prove it with your own smart-meter data. TrueLoad is the tool they use to do that. Read the guide, then send it to your electrician or heat pump installer.
It is the code's way of sizing the load on an existing service from what the utility meter actually recorded, instead of from nameplate ratings and demand factors. The highest measured peak over the past year is taken at 125 percent, the new load is added, and the total has to fit within the rating of the service.
A traditional calculation models the home from square footage, appliance nameplates and demand factors. It is a worst-case estimate. Measured demand uses the home's own record. In LBNL research covering 11,940 homes, the measured approach came out roughly 40 percent lower on average.
Run the traditional calculation instead. The same TrueLoad project runs either method, so a home with no smart-meter history still gets a load calculation and a report, in minutes, with no data request.
Often, yes. The average U.S. home peaks at about 40 amps on a 100-amp service. Whether a specific home has room depends on its own measured peak and the equipment being added, which is exactly what a measured-demand calculation documents.
It is part of the code, not a workaround, and TrueLoad's report shows the data source, the peak, the 125 percent factor and the new load so the math can be checked. The Authority Having Jurisdiction always has the final say, so it is worth a conversation with your AHJ before the first submission.
TrueLoad is built for the licensed electrician or installer who prepares and signs the calculation. If you have been told you need a panel upgrade, send your contractor our homeowner guide and ask them to check your measured demand first.
More in the Resource Library, including measured demand vs. the traditional calculation and how to get interval data from a utility.