Ignoramus16089 wrote in news:LS2Gg.75710$ snipped-for-privacy@fe30.usenetserver.com:
Most times a new sub panel is installed, those circuits fed by the generator are moved to it and the transfer switch is installed between the old panel and new.
Why would you want to run EVERYTHING? That's a helluva big generator needed.
Mostly critical loads, like lighting, refrigerator, freezer are put on a generator.
Marty
if you power all circuits many will have minor l;oads like a light or two on steps.
you turn off all heavy unnecessary loads.
a bit more work during a outage but actually more flexible.........
better than finding a critical load isnt on a generator line.....
Gee, don't tell the folks at Siemens Energy & Automation about that
- they bought ITE and Crouse Hinds and Murray (and a bunch of others...) and a lot of the old stuff is still in production and available by special order. That, or they have published an approved substitution cross list for newer breaker lines.
They're still making new ITE Pushmatic breakers, and I know there's a 'rocker' style two-breaker interlock for them - I have one. Don't have any IDEA where I'll ever use it, but I have one.
If you must use SquareD stuff, at least stick with the Homeline line which is ALMOST "Industrial Interchange" size. (The bus stabs are slightly different, but you can make others fit in a pinch.)
If SquareD ever goes belly up, the proprietary bus QO stuff will be a problem to get replacements for. Reference Zinsco and Federal Pacific - You can get the 'Made Somewhere in Asia' cheap replacements from UBI, but IMNSHO they're downright dangerous.
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According to Bruce L. Bergman :
But at least they work.
My luck with Homelines is abysmal. Since 1991, 3 of 4 homeline breakers in the pony panel to the Jennair cooktop have died.
They trip, and cannot be reset. [Even after removal from the panel ;-)]
I've never experienced _any_ other breaker failures (and I've worked on a fair number of systems of varying manufacturers).
Bruce I never intended to imply that parts were not available but that does not make my statement that main breaker interlock kits are not available. Since the panels themselves are no longer manufactured there is no likelihood of such an interlock kit becoming available.
I perceive you are a fan of so called universal breakers. Are you aware that the use of any breaker that is not laboratory listed or recognized for the panel in which it is installed is a violation of the US NEC. The use of so called interchangeable breakers in another manufactures panel is usually done in violation of the local electrical code. This is why professional electricians often carry the more expensive Thomas & Bettes breakers to use in universal panels because Thomas & Bettes is one of the few manufacturers to have their breakers tested for use in other manufacturers panels.
I don't ever plan to deliberately use the "wrong" breaker, I carry a decent selection of both Murray/Siemens 'MP'-'QP' AND the Cutler Hammer/Challenger 'CH' on the truck, even though they overlap quite a bit - but they are the two dominant players in the market and you need to use the proper breaker for the panel. And I carry a decent selection of GE THQL/THQP and a smattering of Homeline.
But 25 years from now when you can't get the "right" breaker for the panel, if they're all using a standard form factor someone else's will fit in a pinch. If it's a proprietary form factor, all bets are off.
T&B's best 'substitution' product is the Zinsco Q and R38/RC38 clones, those I keep around. And they are type accepted, unlike the Taiwan UBI knockoffs.
NEC is important, but the customers also need their lights, refrigerator and furnace on for the night too. You can track down the "right" breaker on Monday, or get all the parts together for a proper Panel Change to a modern panel without it being a total panic rush because the customer is in the dark.
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Hello everyone: This is my first post to this group, and I've been following this thread. First, the NEC states that the conductors from the service entrance to the main breaker (not being fused) should be as short as practicable. Personally I would be very reluctant to install any equipment upstream of ANY breakers. Second, a sub-panel can be arbitrarily large, limited only by the maximum breaker size allowed in your main panel. If you know that you are not going to use certain loads, don't install them. Or move EVERYTHING over to the sub. You will stilll have the safety of a breaker ahead of everything, and you can take your monitor light off the main panel. Just my 2 cents.
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