Across the Skyway, Longboat Key and Lakewood Ranch have a lot of homes with solar and battery backup. A SPAN smart panel gives you circuit-level control of that backup power.
Keywest Lights & Electric is a SPAN Authorized Installer based at 6248 Seminole Blvd in Seminole, licensed (EC13014717) and doing electrical work across Tampa Bay since 2010. We’ve completed 20 SPAN installs, and SPAN works with the solar and battery system you already have.
- SPAN Authorized Installer
- 20 SPAN installs completed
- Licensed & Insured EC13014717
- Since 2010
- 3-year workmanship warranty
- Financing available
Longboat Key and Lakewood Ranch are at the southern edge of our area, 32 to 38 straight-line miles from Seminole, so we take on SPAN work here as scheduled projects rather than service calls. They’re very different places. Longboat Key is a narrow barrier island of Gulf-front condos, bayfront homes and luxury rebuilds. Lakewood Ranch is one of the largest master-planned communities in the country, with mostly new construction and many solar roofs.
Why SPAN fits solar and battery homes here
On Longboat Key, the appeal is storm resilience. A battery keeps power on when the island loses it, and SPAN lets you decide what that power runs: the refrigerators, a few lights, the internet and the elevator, but not the pool heater. You can check estimated backup time from the SPAN Home app and change priorities from the mainland if you’ve evacuated and the home still has a connection.
In Lakewood Ranch, the appeal is efficiency and control. New homes often came with solar, or added it soon after closing, and many owners have added batteries and EVs since. SPAN shows each circuit’s use next to solar production, lets you time big loads for sunny hours, and can slow or pause EV charging to keep the home within its service rating. During an outage, it gives you the same backup control as on the island.
SPAN works with your existing solar and battery in Longboat Key & Lakewood Ranch
SPAN works with a home’s existing solar and battery backup system when the battery is on SPAN’s compatibility list. Per SPAN’s product guide, Tesla Powerwall 3 and FranklinWH aPower work with every SPAN Panel model, and Powerwall 2, SolarEdge and Enphase IQ Battery 5P and 10T work with the SPAN Panel MAIN 32. SPAN says it extends battery life by 40% in an outage,* and its Backup Overload Protection (NEC 2023 Article 702.4) helps prevent brownouts and battery resets. We confirm your inverter, battery and gateway before we quote.
Don’t have solar or a battery yet? We can add solar, battery backup and energy monitoring through our licensed partner installers as one coordinated project. Our partners install the solar and battery equipment; we manage the project and handle the electrical work, including panel upgrades, SPAN and the interconnection wiring. Solar, battery backup & energy monitoring →
Homes, panels and what we usually find
Longboat Key’s median home was built in 1980. Original bayfront homes from the 1960s to 80s often have exterior panels and meter cans corroded by salt air, plus dock, lift and pool circuits added over the years. Gulf-front rebuilds are larger, with 320- or 400-amp services and more than 48 circuits, which may mean more than one SPAN Panel. Every SPAN model is NEMA 3R rated for indoor or outdoor installation, which helps with placement in raised homes.
Lakewood Ranch’s median home was built in 2014, the newest anywhere we serve. Panels are modern, so a SPAN install here is about adding control, not fixing problems. Many homes have 200-amp services that suit SPAN well, and garage-mounted panels make for clean installs. Homes built with a solar-ready or battery-ready layout often make SPAN integration simpler.
Hurricanes and outages south of the Skyway
Hurricane Helene’s surge in September 2024 flooded many homes and condos on Longboat Key, and Hurricane Milton made landfall at Siesta Key two weeks later, bringing damaging winds and long outages to Sarasota and Manatee counties, including Lakewood Ranch. After storms like those, island access can be restricted and power restoration can take time. SPAN helps a battery last longer by keeping heavy loads off and shedding lower-priority circuits automatically.
If your panel on Longboat Key took on saltwater, it should be evaluated before it’s re-energized and usually needs replacement. Flood-zone homes may face substantial-improvement or substantial-damage review, and replacement equipment may have to meet elevation rules. Inland Lakewood Ranch homes rarely deal with surge, but wind and outages are just as real.
Permits, communities and FPL
Longboat Key is its own town, and building permits come from the Town of Longboat Key whether the address is on the Manatee or Sarasota side of the island. Lakewood Ranch is split between Manatee County and Sarasota County, and permits come from whichever county your home is in. We confirm which applies and pull the permit.
Most of this area is served by Florida Power & Light (FPL), and some eastern parts of Lakewood Ranch may be served by an electric cooperative, so check your bill. We coordinate the disconnect and reconnect with your utility. Lakewood Ranch villages and Longboat Key condo associations often require architectural or board approval for exterior changes, and we provide the equipment details they ask for.
Site visit, itemized quote and warranty for Longboat Key & Lakewood Ranch homes
- Site visit and load calculation. We look at your panel, meter, grounding, solar and battery equipment, and ask what you plan to add.
- Itemized quote. You get an itemized quote after the site visit, with every part of the job on its own line. No prices over the phone.
- Permit and utility coordination. We pull the permit and schedule the utility disconnect and reconnect if the meter has to be pulled.
- Install and commissioning. Most SPAN installs take about a day. We commission the panel, connect it to your existing system and add whole-house surge protection.
- Inspection and app walkthrough. We meet the inspector and walk you through the SPAN Home app, including how backup priorities work.
Our 3-year workmanship warranty covers the electrical work we do, extended to 5 years for Member Care Plan members. That’s separate from SPAN’s own 10-year limited panel warranty, which depends on installation by SPAN or a SPAN Authorized Installer.
Financing available
Financing available through Acorn Finance, subject to credit approval. Check your options without affecting your credit score. Ask us and we’ll include the financing link with your itemized quote.
Neighborhoods we serve in Longboat Key and Lakewood Ranch
We install SPAN Panels throughout Longboat Key and Lakewood Ranch, including Gulf-front Longboat Key, Longboat Key bayfront and canals, Country Club Shores, Lakewood Ranch Country Club, Waterside and Lake Club and Esplanade and other Lakewood Ranch villages. For other electrical work in the area, see our Longboat Key · Lakewood Ranch pages.
SPAN FAQ for Longboat Key & Lakewood Ranch
Do you really install SPAN on Longboat Key and in Lakewood Ranch?
Yes, as scheduled projects. We’re 32 to 38 straight-line miles away in Seminole, so we plan SPAN installs here rather than taking service calls.
Who issues the permit?
The Town of Longboat Key for addresses on the island, and Manatee County or Sarasota County for Lakewood Ranch, depending on which side of the county line you’re on. We pull the permit.
Does SPAN work with my existing solar and battery?
If the battery is on SPAN’s compatibility list. We confirm your equipment at the site visit. If you don’t have solar or a battery yet, we can add solar, battery backup and energy monitoring through our licensed partner installers as one coordinated project.
Is SPAN worth it in a brand-new Lakewood Ranch home?
If you have or plan solar, a battery or EVs and want circuit-level control and monitoring, it often is. If a simpler option fits your goals, we’ll tell you.
Which utility do you coordinate with?
Usually FPL. Some eastern Lakewood Ranch areas may be served by an electric cooperative. We coordinate with whichever utility serves your address.
Are you a SPAN Authorized Installer?
Yes. Keywest Lights & Electric is a SPAN Authorized Installer, and we’ve completed 20 SPAN installs. We handle the install, permit, inspection and SPAN Home app setup for Longboat Key and Lakewood Ranch homes.
How much does a SPAN installation cost in Longboat Key & Lakewood Ranch?
It depends on the SPAN model, your current panel and service, any code corrections, the permit and add-ons. We give an itemized quote after a site visit, so you see every line before you decide. We don’t quote prices over the phone.
What warranty comes with a SPAN installation?
Our workmanship warranty is 3 years, extended to 5 years for Member Care Plan members. SPAN backs its panels with a 10-year limited warranty (5 years on the SPAN Home Gateway) when installed by SPAN or a SPAN Authorized Installer.
Do you install SPAN across Manatee and Sarasota Counties?
Yes. As a SPAN Authorized Installer we cover Bradenton, Sarasota and Longboat Key & Lakewood Ranch. Lakewood Ranch addresses split between Manatee and Sarasota County permits; Longboat Key likewise depends on the island side. Most of the corridor is FPL. Other Tampa Bay SPAN pages include South Tampa, Apollo Beach and Seminole & Largo.
Do you offer financing?
Yes. Financing is available through Acorn Finance, subject to credit approval. You can check your options without affecting your credit score. Ask us and we’ll include the financing link with your itemized quote.
Ready to control your backup power in Longboat Key & Lakewood Ranch?
Call or send a request and a licensed electrician will talk through your panel, your solar and battery setup and whether SPAN makes sense, then set up a site visit for an itemized quote.
* Per SPAN: results from an internal study of SPAN Panel managing backup load priorities in over 1,200 simulated outage situations. Battery backup time will vary based on home energy consumption, backup priorities, and storage systems. SPAN PowerUp™ service-upgrade avoidance requires qualification and enrollment. SPAN®, SPAN Panel, SPAN Drive, SPAN PowerUp and the SPAN logo are trademarks of Span.IO, Inc. Keywest Lights & Electric is an independent SPAN Authorized Installer.
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