Main Breaker Tripping - But Only Half
 

Situation: Have a mobile home I use only in the summer. It is fed
from the pole to a main 60AMP breaker than then feeds panels inside the
mobile home.

This spring, half of the main breaker was tripping. Replaced main
breaker (60A) with a 50A breaker by mistake. No big deal, or so I
thought.

Main is still tripping -- but only HALF is tripping! I thought these
things had internal mechanisms to make sure they always threw both legs
and not just one.

Trying to get an electrician, but quickly finding out that around these
parts if it isn't a "large" job then nobody is interested. I've called
6 places and not one call back.

Electric company is no help. Keep telling them I SWEAR I smell the
meter "burning" when this trip helps. It smells like the meter itself
has burning insulation or plastic inside it.

Any ideas on what to check next? Could something be wrong at the
meter?

Robert

Main Breaker Tripping - But Only Half
 

Robert Stinnett writes:

Main is still tripping -- but only HALF is tripping! I thought these
things had internal mechanisms to make sure they always threw both legs
and not just one.

They're not joined at the handle?

Main Breaker Tripping - But Only Half
 

Most double pole breakers have a handle tie that forces them to trip both
legs, but if it's been removed, only one leg will trip. You could have a bad
connection at the meter, but most likely an overload on that leg in the
home. You need to get an ammeter to check the current draw of each leg at
the main breaker




"Robert Stinnett" wrote in message
oups.com...
Situation: Have a mobile home I use only in the summer. It is fed
from the pole to a main 60AMP breaker than then feeds panels inside the
mobile home.

This spring, half of the main breaker was tripping. Replaced main
breaker (60A) with a 50A breaker by mistake. No big deal, or so I
thought.

Main is still tripping -- but only HALF is tripping! I thought these
things had internal mechanisms to make sure they always threw both legs
and not just one.

Trying to get an electrician, but quickly finding out that around these
parts if it isn't a "large" job then nobody is interested. I've called
6 places and not one call back.

Electric company is no help. Keep telling them I SWEAR I smell the
meter "burning" when this trip helps. It smells like the meter itself
has burning insulation or plastic inside it.

Any ideas on what to check next? Could something be wrong at the
meter?

Robert

Main Breaker Tripping - But Only Half
 

go buy a clamp on ampmeter and check the current draw on each leg.

you may have a bad panel where the breaker plugs in...

the poor connection can heat causing the breaker to trip.

use ampmetter to check whats up

Main Breaker Tripping - But Only Half
 

It should trip both sides but by virtue of the handle not anything inside.

Each of the two legs of the main breaker feeds some 220V loads but most are
split up between the 110V circuits.

What troubles me is that you have a 110V load tripping the 60A main but not
any of the 20A breakers before it. So if it is not the dryer or range
tripping the main, then you may have at least one 20A breaker that is
defective or you are just drawing more than 60A divided up between at least
3 or 4, 20A branches on the same side (phase)

If you do have an electrician look at it, ask him to rearrange the breakers
(WRT the phase they are plugged into) so that the loads are better balanced.


"Robert Stinnett" wrote in message
oups.com...
Situation: Have a mobile home I use only in the summer. It is fed
from the pole to a main 60AMP breaker than then feeds panels inside the
mobile home.

This spring, half of the main breaker was tripping. Replaced main
breaker (60A) with a 50A breaker by mistake. No big deal, or so I
thought.

Main is still tripping -- but only HALF is tripping! I thought these
things had internal mechanisms to make sure they always threw both legs
and not just one.

Trying to get an electrician, but quickly finding out that around these
parts if it isn't a "large" job then nobody is interested. I've called
6 places and not one call back.

Electric company is no help. Keep telling them I SWEAR I smell the
meter "burning" when this trip helps. It smells like the meter itself
has burning insulation or plastic inside it.

Any ideas on what to check next? Could something be wrong at the
meter?

Robert

Main Breaker Tripping - But Only Half
 

"PipeDown" wrote in message
nk.net...
It should trip both sides but by virtue of the handle not anything inside.

Each of the two legs of the main breaker feeds some 220V loads but most
are split up between the 110V circuits.

What troubles me is that you have a 110V load tripping the 60A main but
not any of the 20A breakers before it. So if it is not the dryer or range
tripping the main, then you may have at least one 20A breaker that is
defective or you are just drawing more than 60A divided up between at
least 3 or 4, 20A branches on the same side (phase)

If you do have an electrician look at it, ask him to rearrange the
breakers (WRT the phase they are plugged into) so that the loads are
better balanced.
..
Small point; although the word 'phases' is sometimes used most likely they
are not?
Most likely Leg A and Leg B being the two 'ends' of a typical North
American 220 volt single phase 3 wire (110 - 0 -110) service?
BTW either an overload on one 'side' (leg) or a bad connection somewhere?
Possibly a corroded meter socket; not uncommon in our maritime climate?
Do not leave unattended!

Main Breaker Tripping - But Only Half
 

"Robert Stinnett" wrote in message
oups.com...
Situation: Have a mobile home I use only in the summer. It is fed
from the pole to a main 60AMP breaker than then feeds panels inside the
mobile home.

This spring, half of the main breaker was tripping. Replaced main
breaker (60A) with a 50A breaker by mistake. No big deal, or so I
thought.

Main is still tripping -- but only HALF is tripping! I thought these
things had internal mechanisms to make sure they always threw both legs
and not just one.

Trying to get an electrician, but quickly finding out that around these
parts if it isn't a "large" job then nobody is interested. I've called
6 places and not one call back.

Electric company is no help. Keep telling them I SWEAR I smell the
meter "burning" when this trip helps. It smells like the meter itself
has burning insulation or plastic inside it.

Any ideas on what to check next? Could something be wrong at the
meter?

Robert


I think Federal Pacific main breakers used to do that. I remember many
years ago finding that to be the case on more than one occasion. One side
of the breaker would be dead and the other hot. I would reset the breaker
and everything would be fine.

As others have suggested, you should check the load first to see how many
amps are being pulled through that breaker. If the amps are low, look for
loose connections.

Main Breaker Tripping - But Only Half
 

Just a thought...

Try to narrow down the source of the problem.

It could be an individual circuit in the panel tha is faulty or a
combination of breakers that are creating an imbalance on the one leg
of the mainbreaker (although unlikely as I assume that it was working
before). However, to see if this problem is originating from the panel
in the mobile home, TURN OFF all the the breakers in the panel and then
try to reset the main breaker.

If the main breaker stays on, then try turning on circuit breakers in
the mobile one at a time to see when it trips the main.

If turning off all the breakers doesn't solve the problem with the main
breaker, then the problem might be some damage in the wiring from the
main breaker to the panel in the mobile. To check this try
disconnecting the cable that feeds the mobile from the main breaker and
just try setting it on its own. If it stays on then try reconnecting
the cable to the breaker, but reverse the red and black wires and see
if the breaker still trips.

The purpose of the main breaker that is tripping is to protect the wire
that is feeding the mobile home, so it is not usually an issue that is
being created by a problem between the meter and the main breaker.

Hope this information helps...