John Grabowski wrote:
I am helping my brother in law renovate his condo. He has an old FP
electric panel that I want to replace due to the problems they are
known to have. There is a 50A main in the meter room, and the feed to
the existing panel is #6 wire. The panel supports 2- 220V a/c's (on
top of pic), 2- 20A breakers, 2-15A breakers, and one open slot for a
spare.
https://picasaweb.google.com/mikeroc...eat=directlink
Can someone tell me what panel I would need or maybe point me to a
link of a panel that would work for this application? Maybe made by
Murray, Cutler hammer, or GE?
By the way, one of the A/C's I am converting to 110V because one of
the A/C units is actually 110V and its like new, but the previous
owner never converted the plug to 110V, he just used an extension cord
to an adjacent outlet.
*The panels that I usually see now can be top or bottom feed so you should
have plenty of slack for your hot wires. Your neutral my be short, but you
can splice onto that. Many panels are made to fit between two studs with
16" centers. It looks as though your spacing is less. My first thought is
to notch the existing studs, but that may not be possible for you. I know
years ago some manufacturers made narrow panels that had extra space at
the
top and bottom. Here is a link to Square D's catalog. Page 7 and 8 lists
the load centers and page 19 has the dimensions. It looks as though they
have a 100 amp 8/16 panel that's narrow (QO816L100F or S). They show a
picture of the inside on page 7. You would probably have to go to a supply
house that is a Square D distributor to get one. Be sure to get a separate
ground bar.
http://static.schneider-electric.us/...ibution/Lo...-
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Thanks for the Square D link. Yeah, that panel would work. But I
should mention the stud to the left can be moved/relocated and one of
the studs is just a filler, so I can go a little wider.
I just came back from HD, and they had Siemans and Eaton CH 8/16
boxes. The Eaton CH is a bit smaller than the Seimans, at 11"W X 13"
high. Lowes has Square D, but I think the biggest they have is 6/12.
I'll definately loook into the Square D though at a supply house. The
existing FPE panel
In terms of seperate ground bar, the existing wiring in the condo is
BX w/o ground, and the feed to the panel is BX and no ground. Do I
still need it? I see "ground straps" that come with the new panels,
should those be installed?
In terms of quality, any of them better or worse? I know Square D has
been around for ages. What about the others?
*I agree with RBM. If all of your grounds are through the BX armor, then
you don't need a ground bar. It is a cheap and easy installation now though
in case you add a Romex circuit later. You will need to make sure that all
of your connectors and locknuts are tight to ensure good ground continuity
through the BX. Do not bond the neutral bar to the panel using the ground
straps. That would only be done if this was a main panel. What you have is
a sub-panel. The bond strap is already (Or should be) installed at the
meter and main breaker location.
I think that Square D QO and the Cutler-Hammer tan line are best known for
their higher quality, but any brand should suffice for your needs. Murray
is made by Siemens and the circuit breakers are interchangeable. Lowes sells
GE panels with white covers for apartments and condos. If you are able to
move the stud and install a regular size panel, I suggest something like a
20 circuit or 24 circuit panel or at least a 12/20. You will have more room
inside of the panel to work in and plenty of room for future expansion
should the need arise.
You may want to get some white electrical tape and apply it to the neutral
conductors as it looks as though the color is fading on the existing wiring.
I'm a big fan of Square D QO series as top quality. Just a week ago I
helped someone replace a failed CH tan breaker feeding their heat pump,
nothing wrong on the circuit, strictly a breaker failure. Even
disconnected and sitting in my hand the breaker handle would not latch
on.