"bud--" wrote in message
...

stuff snipped

I didn't see the episode. Electricians have not been my favorite
mechanics on TOH in general (but better than Trethewey doing electrical
work).

(-:

It is not a problem if a circuit with #14 wire, but #12 at the panel, is
connected to a 15A circuit breaker. Occasionally #12 or #10 may be used
for voltage drop with smaller wire downstream. In a rewire a #14 ckt
might have #12 connecton to the panel. Would seem like a minimal check
would be to feel if the wire size matched the breaker, and if the
breaker was smaller than the wire use the smaller breaker in the new
panel.

It seemed to me that he was "throwing away" potentially valuable information
by not matching the wire to its original breaker.

There are also anomalies, like you can legitimately have perhaps a 40A
breaker on a #10 wire for an air conditioning compressor.

If enforced, the NEC requires meaningful labeling of circuits (408.4-A).
("Lights and receptacles" is not meaningful.) The original panel may
have had some of this information (or maybe not).

I've got a very detailed description of the loads (and even outlets) that
each circuit powers on my circuit panel door. I update it every time I make
a change to the panel. I created it by checking each circuit out
individually to see what did and didn't work after I flipped the breakers.
I figure it's the least I can do for the next guy to own the house.

--
Bobby G.