{
  "id": "emitters:electrical-service-panel",
  "collection": "emitters",
  "slug": "electrical-service-panel",
  "name": "Electrical service panel and meter base",
  "summary": "The highest-current point in a building: readings in the tens of milligauss are normal within a metre, falling to background within two to three metres.",
  "status": "verified",
  "lastVerified": "2026-08-12",
  "data": {
    "aliases": [
      "breaker box",
      "distribution board",
      "consumer unit"
    ],
    "category": "elf-magnetic",
    "environment": [
      "home",
      "workplace"
    ],
    "bands": [
      {
        "label": "Power frequency and harmonics",
        "minHz": 50,
        "maxHz": 2000
      }
    ],
    "dutyCycle": "Continuous, proportional to total building load.",
    "distanceProfile": [
      {
        "meters": 0.3,
        "value": {
          "quantity": "magnetic-flux-density",
          "unit": "mG",
          "value": 10,
          "max": 100,
          "basis": "measured",
          "note": "Typical range within arm's reach of a residential panel under normal load.",
          "sourceIds": [
            "niehs-emf",
            "sbm-2024"
          ]
        }
      },
      {
        "meters": 1,
        "value": {
          "quantity": "magnetic-flux-density",
          "unit": "mG",
          "value": 2,
          "max": 20,
          "basis": "measured",
          "note": "Typical range at 1 m.",
          "sourceIds": [
            "niehs-emf",
            "sbm-2024"
          ]
        }
      },
      {
        "meters": 3,
        "value": {
          "quantity": "magnetic-flux-density",
          "unit": "mG",
          "value": 0.2,
          "max": 2,
          "basis": "measured",
          "note": "Usually indistinguishable from background by 2–3 m.",
          "sourceIds": [
            "niehs-emf",
            "sbm-2024"
          ]
        }
      }
    ],
    "mitigations": [
      {
        "action": "Do not place a bed, desk or child's play area on either side of the panel wall.",
        "effect": "Two to three metres of separation reduces the field to background; magnetic fields pass through walls unaffected.",
        "sourceIds": [
          "sbm-2024"
        ]
      },
      {
        "action": "Have an electrician check for net current on the neutral and for shared or crossed neutrals.",
        "effect": "Wiring faults, not the panel itself, cause the elevated whole-house readings that do not fall off with distance."
      }
    ],
    "measureWith": [
      "elf-gaussmeter"
    ],
    "related": [
      "limits:sbm-2024-magnetic-bands",
      "emitters:household-background-magnetic"
    ]
  },
  "sources": [
    {
      "id": "niehs-emf",
      "title": "Electric and Magnetic Fields",
      "publisher": "National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences",
      "url": "https://www.niehs.nih.gov/health/topics/agents/emf",
      "kind": "government",
      "retrieved": "2026-08-12"
    },
    {
      "id": "sbm-2024",
      "title": "Building Biology Evaluation Guidelines for Sleeping Areas (SBM-2024)",
      "publisher": "Institut für Baubiologie + Nachhaltigkeit (IBN)",
      "url": "https://buildingbiology.com/site/downloads/SBM-2024_EVALUATION_GUIDELINES_EN.pdf",
      "year": 2024,
      "kind": "ngo",
      "retrieved": "2026-08-12"
    }
  ],
  "links": {
    "self": "https://emfbase.com/api/emitters/electrical-service-panel",
    "html": "https://emfbase.com/emitters/electrical-service-panel",
    "markdown": "https://emfbase.com/emitters/electrical-service-panel.md",
    "collection": "https://emfbase.com/api/emitters"
  }
}