Electrician in Santa Rosa: Generators, Chargers, Zinsco Panels

The work

From shutoff backup to chargers: what the city's checklists cover

A standby generator and its transfer switch
The city's submittal sheet for a residential backup generator asks for a site plan showing the distance to combustible construction and vegetation, typically 5 feet, at least 30 inches to any property line and at least 5 feet to operable doors and windows, plus any trench for gas or conduit. The electrical diagram shows the generator rating, inlet box, disconnect, the lockout device or manual or automatic transfer switch listed for the panel, conductor sizes, grounding and a sign at the main panel giving the location and type of the second power source.
An EV charger sized by load calculation
Santa Rosa's EV charging checklist asks for a site plan, an electrical floor plan, the charger's listing and a single-line diagram showing panel busbar capacity, breaker sizes and wire. The load calculation follows California Electrical Code Article 220 and counts the charger at 125 percent. Outdoors the connector sits 24 to 48 inches above grade, indoors 18 to 48 inches above the floor. The disconnect carries an Emergency Power Off label, and above 60 amps it must lock open. If the numbers call for a new panel, the plans say so.
Taking out a Zinsco or other aging panel
A panel or meter-main swap is a building permit, since the city requires one to replace any electrical system the code regulates, and one application can cover the electrical, mechanical and plumbing parts of a project together. The city's SB 407 form names an electrical service change-out as a repair, so on a house built on or before January 1, 1994 it does not trigger the fixture upgrades that a remodel does. A C-10 contractor's load calculation decides whether the new panel stays at 100 amps or goes larger.
Solar, batteries and a reroof
Licensed contractors can get an instant permit for an eligible rooftop solar system, with or without energy storage, by running the design through SolarAPP+ and then the city's Accela portal; owner-builders apply another way. Since January 8, 2026, a reroof that lifts panels off and puts them back needs a permit with a plan of the panel layout, anchorage spacing and anchorage detail. The city warns that a C-39 roofer without a C-46 Solar license lacks the license to remove and reinstall the panels.
Getting a voucher rental through NSPIRE
For Housing Choice Voucher units, the city's Housing and Community Services checklist fails missing cover plates, cracked or chipped receptacles and outdoor outlets without weatherproof hinged covers, and it requires GFCI protection on every outlet within six feet of a water source whatever the unit's age. Smoke alarms belong in each bedroom and each hallway serving bedrooms, within 21 feet of every bedroom door, hardwired or on a sealed 10-year battery, with a smoke and a carbon monoxide alarm on each level.

White two-story house with tall columns, a front balcony and shutters on McDonald Avenue in Santa Rosa, framed by oaks and clipped shrubs. Photo: Frank Schulenburg, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

The houses here

Zinsco panels in the permit log, solar on the rebuilds

Santa Rosa's Building Division publishes every permit it issues, and its September 2025 report alone lists more than a dozen permits to take out Zinsco equipment, mostly 100-amp meter mains and subpanels, alongside other services upgraded from 100 to 200 amps. That fits a city whose Housing Element counts almost a third of its homes as more than 50 years old, the oldest of them in the districts around downtown. At the other end are the houses rebuilt after the 2017 and 2020 fires; the city's reach-code FAQ notes that the 2019 Building Code made on-site solar part of new low-rise homes.

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Permits and local rules

Santa Rosa paperwork behind an electrical permit

Who may pull a generator permit
Portable generators used with extension cords and not permanently attached to a structure need no permit. A fully self-contained standby unit can be permitted to an owner-builder or an electrician. One installed with gas line work goes on an addition/alteration permit that an owner-builder, a B general contractor, an electrician or a plumber may hold, provided the application names the subcontractor doing the trade the holder's license does not cover. Stored fuel above 10 gallons of gasoline, 50 of diesel or 25 of propane needs a separate fire department permit.
City of Santa Rosa Building Division (opens in a new tab)
How an EV charger is reviewed
The Building Division does the plan review and the inspections for charging stations. Planning approval is not required unless the Building Official finds a specific adverse impact on public health or safety, and the fire department reviews the installation only when it includes an energy storage system as the California Fire Code defines one. On a lot in a 100-year flood hazard zone, the charging equipment must sit above the base flood elevation, shown on an elevation certificate from a licensed surveyor or, as applicable, a civil engineer.
City of Santa Rosa Building Division (opens in a new tab)
The suspended all-electric reach code
On November 19, 2019 the City Council passed a reach code requiring all new residential construction of three stories or less to be all-electric. On May 30, 2024, after a Ninth Circuit ruling against Berkeley, the city suspended enforcement and said it was researching alternatives for its greenhouse gas goals. The city's FAQ was clear from the start that the rule applied only to new construction and would not affect residents who already have gas appliances.
City of Santa Rosa Planning & Economic Development (opens in a new tab)

State license for this work: C-10 Electrical. Look up a contractor's license on the CSLB website (cslb.ca.gov).

Timing

Getting backup power permitted before fire weather

The city's emergency pages warn that when extreme fire danger is forecast, PG&E may switch off lines in advance, and that any customer in Santa Rosa can lose power if the community relies on a line passing through a high fire-threat area. A permanent generator takes several steps: the site plan and diagrams come first, then inspections for underground conduit, the gas line and the final electrical, which the city's sheet groups into two trips, or three when a concrete pad needs its own. Start in winter or spring, well ahead of the dry months.

Before you hire

What to settle with a Santa Rosa electrician first

Check the C-10 Electrical license at cslb.ca.gov and confirm the company has an active City of Santa Rosa business license.
For a standby generator, ask who draws the site plan with distances to the property line, combustibles and operable windows.
For a charger, ask to see the Article 220 load calculation with the charger counted at 125 percent.
If solar panels come off for a reroof, ask whether the crew holds C-46 Solar as well as C-39 Roofing.
In Oakmont, ask whether outdoor equipment needs the Village Association's Architectural Committee approval before the permit is filed.

Questions

Santa Rosa wiring questions, from generators to Sonoma Clean Power

Does a portable generator need a permit in Santa Rosa?

Not if it runs appliances through extension cords and is not permanently attached to the house; the city's generator sheet says those need no permit. The city also says not to connect a portable generator to a home's electrical system and to get advice from an electrician before buying one. A permanent standby unit wired through a transfer switch, or one connected to the gas line, needs a building permit.

Will Santa Rosa make us replace a gas stove or water heater with electric?

No. The city's 2019 all-electric reach code covered only new residential buildings of three stories or less, and its FAQ said it would not affect residents who already have gas appliances. Enforcement has been suspended since May 30, 2024. Air district rules on what new gas water heaters may be sold are a separate matter from the city's code.

Who sends the electric bill in Santa Rosa, PG&E or Sonoma Clean Power?

Both appear on one PG&E bill unless the account has opted out. Sonoma Clean Power, the public power provider for Sonoma and Mendocino counties, charges for generation, and PG&E charges for distribution, the poles and wires. Sonoma Clean Power offers its customers rebates on cooking, heating and cooling and water heating upgrades and lends induction cooktops for free; check its current terms before an electrical upgrade is planned around them.

Do heat pump water heaters and induction cooktops work during a PG&E shutoff?

Not without stored power. The city's reach-code FAQ says electric water heaters and induction cooktops will not work in a power failure unless the home has a battery backup system, and adds that gas appliances may not always work in an outage either. A battery, or a generator with a transfer switch, decides which circuits stay live.

Will the fire department have to review our EV charger?

Usually not. Santa Rosa's charging-station checklist says fire department plan review and inspection are not required unless the system includes an energy storage system as defined in the California Fire Code. The Building Division reviews the plans and inspects the work, and Planning approval is not needed unless the Building Official finds a specific adverse impact on health or safety.

Keep exploring

More on electrical work and Santa Rosa

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Guides and smaller jobs

Where this page belongs

Where these facts come from

Checked against these public sources in October 2026. Rules and programs change: confirm permit requirements with the city before work starts, and a contractor's license on the CSLB website.

Santa Rosa wiring for shutoff season, EV chargers and old panels

From shutoff backup to chargers: what the city's checklists cover

A standby generator and its transfer switch

An EV charger sized by load calculation

Taking out a Zinsco or other aging panel

Solar, batteries and a reroof

Getting a voucher rental through NSPIRE