Optional method · 220.82 · NEC 2023
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Worked example — for a 2,000 ft² dwelling with 6,000 VA of fixed appliances and a 9,600 VA EV charger, 240 V, the engine returns:
68 A at 240 V — 16,440 VA demand (220.82 optional method)
How it works. The optional method is the one most dwellings actually use. It totals the general load — lighting, small-appliance and laundry circuits, fixed appliances and the EV charger — then takes the first 10 kVA at 100% and everything above it at 40%. Space conditioning is handled separately at 100%, and 220.82(C) picks the largest of the six heating and cooling selections for you. It is shorter than the standard method and usually returns a smaller service.
What this covers: 220.82(C) is resolved for you across all six selections. EV charging (625.42) has its own field — enter it there, not under fixed appliances. A largest-motor 25% adder (430.24) is NOT included; enter that under fixed appliances.
Educational reference, not code. Based on NEC (NFPA 70) 2023 (220.82). Your state or local AHJ may enforce a different edition or amend it — theirs is the one that counts. No NEC text is reproduced here.