Overhead Electrical Lines: What You Need to Know Before Building Your Garage

When planning a new garage build or renovation, homeowners often overlook one major obstacle: overhead electrical lines. These utility lines can interfere with garage roof height, door clearance, and even the safety of your construction crew. Understanding your options early can save you time, money, and a major headache down the road.

Why Overhead Lines Matter

In many established Calgary neighborhoods, especially those built before the early 2000s, overhead power lines still run from the back lane directly to the house. When you're planning to build a new garage or rebuild an old one, these lines can cross right through the area where your roof or framing needs to go.

This creates two major challenges:

1. Clearance & Code Compliance

The Alberta Electrical Utility Code requires a safe buffer—both vertically and horizontally—between your garage and any live electrical lines. This can restrict the overall height of your garage, affect the slope of your roof, or limit the size of your overhead door.

2. Safety Hazards During Construction

Overhead lines aren’t just a design issue—they’re a safety risk. Working around live power requires special precautions.

Your Options When Overhead Lines Are in the Way

The good news? You’ve got a few solid options to work around or resolve these issues:

1. Customize the Roof Truss Design

If your overhead line runs across the back of the garage (usually where the peak would be), we can lower the roof pitch or switch to a mono-slope truss design. While this might slightly change the appearance, it allows your garage to meet height requirements while maintaining clearance from the line.

Pros:

• Cost-effective

• Avoids relocation timelines

• No need to involve utility providers

  
  

Cons:

• May limit height of garage and/or potential storage options.

• Changes to visual symmetry of your garage

  
  

2. Move the Electrical Service Entry Point

Sometimes the line runs directly to the house and conflicts with the garage roof. In these cases, we can coordinate a service mast relocation or have the entry point moved to another wall of the house. This is a good compromise if roof design changes aren’t enough.

Pros:

• Maximize the power to your house and garage

• Avoids major structural redesign

• Maximize on height options

  
  

Cons:

• Requires involvement from utility company

• Can delay construction if not planned early

• Costs can run between $8k - $10k, depending on location of power line pole and potential in home panel upgrade.

Planning Ahead Saves You Time and Money

If you’re considering building a garage and suspect you might have overhead power lines in the way, it’s best to bring this up during the initial planning phase. We’ll assess your site, review clearance requirements, and offer design solutions tailored to your home and budget.

Our team works closely with designers, engineers, and utility providers to ensure your garage meets safety codes without compromising on curb appeal.

Need Help Navigating Your Options?

We’re happy to walk you through all the details and help you choose the solution that’s right for you. Reach out today for a site evaluation or quote—we’ll make sure your garage build goes off without a hitch (or a shock!).

Call Us today 403 700 6759 / https://www.buildgarageyyc.ca/contact-us