Home Electrification & Title 24 Reach Codes in Santa Clara & San Mateo Counties

Title 24 Part 6 is California’s Energy Code, and its 2025 edition took effect January 1, 2026. Title 24 is the broader California Building Standards Code; CALGreen is Part 11, not another name for the Energy Code. Confirm the code edition governing the permit application and the requirements attached to the actual work.

An addition creates new conditioned space, while an alteration changes existing components or systems; a project may include both. Requirements can address insulation, fenestration U-factor and solar heat gain coefficient, duct sealing, lighting controls, and heating or water-heating equipment. Replacing a system and leaving it untouched are different compliance situations. Do not transfer new-home requirements wholesale onto a limited kitchen remodel.

The 2025 code strongly favors heat pumps in new construction, but that does not establish a universal all-electric mandate for every existing-home renovation. An energy consultant should identify the applicable prescriptive route or performance approach using CBECC-Res where appropriate. Certain measures require Home Energy Rating System, or HERS, field verification; allow for documentation and testing in the construction sequence.

Reach codes are local requirements that exceed the statewide baseline, and their applicability must be confirmed for each project. A rule may distinguish new buildings from additions, major alterations, or equipment replacements. Ask which requirements apply to the proposed scope and permit timing instead of relying on a summary written for a different kind of project.

Many Silicon Valley cities adopted all-electric new-construction policies around 2019–2022. Following the 2023 Ninth Circuit decision in California Restaurant Association v. City of Berkeley, many jurisdictions paused, amended, or replaced natural-gas prohibitions with other approaches, including energy-performance or electric-readiness provisions. The decision should not be read as eliminating state energy requirements or making every local electrification measure identical.

Requirements vary and are actively changing; Heartwood Residential confirms the current ordinance per project. This article does not state that any particular city currently bans gas or requires a specific replacement appliance. Before design decisions become fixed, obtain project-specific confirmation of applicable energy provisions, electrical readiness, and any separate local requirements.

Electric-ready design preserves practical paths for future equipment even when the remodel does not electrify everything immediately. It can include reserved panel capacity, dedicated circuits, conduit routes, equipment locations, and space for future heat pump, induction, or EV connections. The required provisions depend on the applicable code and scope; voluntary readiness can extend beyond that minimum.

Begin with an electrical load calculation covering existing loads and plausible future equipment. A new panel does not necessarily increase the utility service capacity, and a service upgrade is not automatically necessary whenever an appliance becomes electric. The electrician and design team should distinguish panel condition, breaker space, service rating, and calculated demand rather than treating them as interchangeable.

Load management can coordinate compatible loads to stay within a designed limit; some smart panels provide related monitoring or control functions. Neither label guarantees code acceptance, utility approval, or compatibility with every appliance. Compare a documented managed-load strategy with a service upgrade, and reserve accessible pathways while walls are open so future work does not undo finished interiors.

Electrification works best when heating, hot water, cooking, transportation, and future generation are designed as interacting systems. Size equipment from actual needs rather than simply matching the old gas appliance rating. Improved insulation or windows may change heating and cooling loads, so finalize envelope assumptions before selecting HVAC capacity.

A heat pump HVAC system needs a room-by-room comfort strategy, suitable ductwork or indoor units, condensate routing, and an outdoor location that addresses noise and service access. A heat pump water heater needs appropriate space, air access, condensate handling, and a hot-water delivery plan. Confirm manufacturer installation requirements rather than assuming either appliance can occupy the old equipment location unchanged.

Induction cooking requires the correct circuit and appliance fit; maintain effective kitchen ventilation rather than treating electric cooking as ventilation-free. Include EV charging in the load calculation and consider solar and battery pathways, roof conditions, inverter locations, and backup priorities. Solar generation does not by itself resolve service capacity, and backup operation requires a deliberately designed system with appropriate controls and approvals.

The organization selling your electricity may differ from the utility responsible for service equipment and interconnection. In many surrounding communities, PG&E handles electric delivery and service upgrades. Palo Alto operates its own municipal utility, City of Palo Alto Utilities, or CPAU, so electric service coordination there goes through CPAU rather than PG&E.

Silicon Valley Clean Energy, or SVCE, and Peninsula Clean Energy, or PCE, are community choice energy providers serving much of Santa Clara and San Mateo counties. In participating PG&E service areas, they generally supply the generation portion of electricity while PG&E continues delivery. Confirm the provider on your bill and the property’s service arrangement rather than inferring it solely from the county.

SVCE and PCE have offered electrification programs, but availability and eligibility can change. Verify current terms before selecting equipment or starting work; do not assume support is guaranteed. Separately, ask the delivery utility about service capacity, meter location, equipment clearances, interconnection, and lead times early enough that utility coordination does not become a surprise after interior work is complete.

The most effective sequence resolves compliance and service capacity before demolition, then installs concealed infrastructure before finishes. Start with household goals, existing equipment condition, the planned addition or alteration, and an inventory of future loads. Have the design team align the energy documentation, electrical calculation, mechanical design, and proposed permit scope.

Next, confirm utility requirements and any local provisions before committing to equipment locations. Resolve outdoor-unit placement, water-heater space, panel clearances, and circuit pathways alongside the architectural plan. If electrification will occur in stages, identify which circuits and routes should be installed now and how interim heating, cooking, and hot water will remain available during construction.

During construction, coordinate rough electrical and mechanical work, inspections, insulation, testing, and equipment commissioning. Closeout should include operating instructions, required compliance documents, and a clear explanation of load controls or backup circuits. A staged plan is useful only when the later phase remains technically practical, so document reserved capacity and routes instead of relying on memory.

A complete homeowner brief states both the immediate remodel scope and the household’s likely future electrical needs. Bring utility bills, available plans, equipment information, and photographs of the panel and service area to the planning conversation. Treat photographs as starting information, not a substitute for professional inspection or a load calculation.