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Do gcfi breakers operate with only hot and neutral ?
michael gilbride
yes. A GFCI monitors the amount of current flowing from hot to neutral. If there is any imbalance, it trips the circuit.
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Any problems with shared neutral for for 4 15 amp breakers each on dedicated circuits?
Yes. If it a residential home then you can only have two breakers per neutral and they need to be on opposite legs of your panel. If it is a commercial 3phase panel then you can only put 3 breakers on a shared neutral. Here's why. In your panel assuming its residential you have two power wires and one neutral and these power wires are called legs. If you attach two breakers on the same leg that is across from each other on opposite sides of the panel or skipping a space between breakers on the same side at 15A apiece you return on the neutral will not be balanced and you will have the possibility of 30A coming back to your panel on the neutral which will fry a 14 Awg or even 12 Awg for that matter and cause a fire. Now if the breakers are in tandem that is they have the breaker tie that connects two breakers together they will be on separate legs and then only will your breakers/circuits be balanced and it will be safe to share a neutral on. If two tandem breakers are connected to a single neutral and they are all 15A breakers your return would be 30A again because although your tandem breakers are balanced now you have two tandem breakers returning a potential 15A per two breakers and that adds up to 30A. The next problem you have is when you share a neutral as per the National Electric Code if one breaker trips the other breaker also sharing that neutral must trip so that when the power is off any current that could possibly return through the neutral wire will be cut off. So now this creates another problem with 4 breakers sharing the same neutral is now there is no way to get all four to trip at the same time if there was a ground fault (a short) or an overload. and someone could get nailed by any current coming back on the shared neutral. All the same applies for 3phase except there are 3 power wires and you can use 3 breakers with a 3 breaker tie instead of just two. You either need to run one neutral per tandem breaker or four neutrals for four circuits/breakers. Tandem breakers controlling two separate circuits are a pain because when one breaker trips they trip the other circuit also. Tandems are mostly used for two circuits going to the same appliance so that no power on either leg reaches the appliance when it needs to be off.
How can you tell if a home fuse is open?
Usually there will be lights or equipment in the house that will not operate. If all of the branch circuit breakers or fuses have not tripped or blown the only conclusion left is that the main breaker or fuse has tripped or blown.
Can you use mini breakers instead of regular breakers?
Yes, but only use them if absolutely necessary and I would never install more than one set of min-breakers in a service panel. Otherwise you can overload the panel.
What happens when you share 2 20 amp breakers with 1 neutral wire?
if it is (1) a-phase and (1) b-phase then this is the common and preferred wiring method (balanced). if you have two circuits of the same phase sharing the neutral then it is wired wrong (imbalanced). gfci and afci breakers need there own neutrals too. as far as what happens two examples: A: (balanced system) a-phase carrying 10 amps, b-phase carrying 10 amps, neutral carries 0 amps. B: (imbalanced system) a-phase carrying 10 amps, a-phase carrying 10 amps. neutral carries 20 amps. hope this helps. good luck This is not strictly true. Most residential power is supplied in a single-phase 120/240 volt format and has nothing to do with multiple phases. A single phase transformer secondary winding is center-tapped to provide two segments, each of which is 120 volts to the center tap point, which is grounded. There are then 240 volts between the outside ends of the full secondary winding. If both breakers are fed from the same ungrounded end of the winding, all of the current would pass through only one half of the secondary winding, and hence, through the neutral as well. If two breakers were installed such that they were fed from remote ungrounded ends of the secondary winding, then the only current through the grounded center-tap neutral would be the imbalanced current of the two circuits.
Can double pole circuit breakers be changed into single to create more room in the pannel box?
Yes. The double pole breaker can be removed and replaced with two single pole breakers. The double pole breakers are only used for 240 volt supply loads.
Any problems with shared neutral for for 4 15 amp breakers each on dedicated circuits?
Yes. If it a residential home then you can only have two breakers per neutral and they need to be on opposite legs of your panel. If it is a commercial 3phase panel then you can only put 3 breakers on a shared neutral. Here's why. In your panel assuming its residential you have two power wires and one neutral and these power wires are called legs. If you attach two breakers on the same leg that is across from each other on opposite sides of the panel or skipping a space between breakers on the same side at 15A apiece you return on the neutral will not be balanced and you will have the possibility of 30A coming back to your panel on the neutral which will fry a 14 Awg or even 12 Awg for that matter and cause a fire. Now if the breakers are in tandem that is they have the breaker tie that connects two breakers together they will be on separate legs and then only will your breakers/circuits be balanced and it will be safe to share a neutral on. If two tandem breakers are connected to a single neutral and they are all 15A breakers your return would be 30A again because although your tandem breakers are balanced now you have two tandem breakers returning a potential 15A per two breakers and that adds up to 30A. The next problem you have is when you share a neutral as per the National Electric Code if one breaker trips the other breaker also sharing that neutral must trip so that when the power is off any current that could possibly return through the neutral wire will be cut off. So now this creates another problem with 4 breakers sharing the same neutral is now there is no way to get all four to trip at the same time if there was a ground fault (a short) or an overload. and someone could get nailed by any current coming back on the shared neutral. All the same applies for 3phase except there are 3 power wires and you can use 3 breakers with a 3 breaker tie instead of just two. You either need to run one neutral per tandem breaker or four neutrals for four circuits/breakers. Tandem breakers controlling two separate circuits are a pain because when one breaker trips they trip the other circuit also. Tandems are mostly used for two circuits going to the same appliance so that no power on either leg reaches the appliance when it needs to be off.
Why dont you use earth wire place of neutral?
Earth is neutral, but only at the distribution panel and upstream from it. Downstream of the distribution panel, earth and neutral shall not interchange or cross connect their connections or their roles - earth is protective ground - and neutral the current carrying return conductor.
What are the types of isolator?
there are two types mainly... off load and on load on load isolators are those which can break the circuit when the supply is still there. off load breakers cannont do that. the can only operate when there is no supply.
Will GE breakers fit a Murray panel?
No, they will not work. Use only Murray breakers for safety.
How can you tell if a home fuse is open?
Usually there will be lights or equipment in the house that will not operate. If all of the branch circuit breakers or fuses have not tripped or blown the only conclusion left is that the main breaker or fuse has tripped or blown.
Will zinsco and gte circuit breakers interchange?
To my knowledge Zinsco/Sylvania breakers are the only breakers that will fit in a Zinsco panel. My recommendation as a journeyman electrician is to have your panel changed out. Those panels are old and outdated, not to mention replacement breakers are expensive. Most newer panels, and breakers are the cost of about 2 replacements.
What breakers are in the power distribution box of a 1996 dodge ram pickup?
There are no breakers, only fuses in the under hood fuse box.
How do you get shambles and the code?
the only way to get it if its in your pack of code breakers
Can you use mini breakers instead of regular breakers?
Yes, but only use them if absolutely necessary and I would never install more than one set of min-breakers in a service panel. Otherwise you can overload the panel.
How you using ref relay in transformer?
an REF relay (restricted earth fault) is used to provide ground fault protection for a transformer. Its' operation is limited by CTs starred towards the transformer (usually on the transformer bushings or in breakers used to isolate the transformer), so it will only operate for transformer related faults. Because of this, it can be set to operate very quickly.
Have existing a 125 amp main need more breakers spaces?
You can swap a single breaker for two mini breakers or you can add a sub-panel. If you only need a couple of extra circuits then just add mini-breakers.
How do you wire 240V straight blade outlet when both screws are brass?
Both screws are brass because in the US you need two hots to get 220V. In a 220V only circuit you do not connect the neutral, only two hots and a ground. This is why 220V breakers are twice as wide as 110V and have two terminals instead of one.
