40 amp breaker poping with only 25/30 amps of current??

[DIGITALHIPPY]

This is a good point. Not because of building inspectors or code enforcement officers, but because codes exist for a reason, which is to make sure that your installation is safe. Codes don't set maximum or even necessarily optimum standards. They usually set minimum standards.

PC

ummmm, duh, thats why im asking for help here.
im not worried about 'code' i want somthing that wont burn my fucking-house down. untill then im taking it easy on the wattage. in retro i should have gotten #4 instead of #6, but hindsight is always 20/20 , #6 was expensive enough...

 

[PharmaCan]

ummmm, duh, thats why im asking for help here.
im not worried about 'code' i want somthing that wont burn my fucking-house down. untill then im taking it easy on the wattage. in retro i should have gotten #4 instead of #6, but hindsight is always 20/20 , #6 was expensive enough...

LOL - My comment was more for the edification of the general public. It's pretty obvious that you are trying to do this right.

PC

 

[DIGITALHIPPY]

LOL - My comment was more for the edification of the general public. It's pretty obvious that you are trying to do this right.

PC

my bad! somtimes i forget ppl around here do crack jokes!...
i was just hoping for clarification on my #8 run.
code is important, because if you dont have a solid electrical foundation things go wrong real fast.
i learned that with this old-ass panel.

now its up to code, but its not EFFICIANT see how the double80 (a/c) is all the way on the left??? now unless this is done for some stupid 'code thing' its otherwise dumb, it heats up the bars the circuits are all cliped onto. now that might sound insignifigant, but the heat is powerloss for one, and it makes the other breakers trip easier. totaly poor design. i dont care to fix it, i rarely use the central a/c, i just sweat and suffer.

 

[cocktail frank]

is that the same 80a breaker that feeds your sub?
if so, i hope your not running any 120v out of that thing.
it looks like you have no neutral there, just 2 hots and a ground.
ill bet there is no neutral being that the white wire in that 6/2 rx is taped black.
please tell me that isnt for the sub.

if it is for your grow sub, and your using 120v out of that, which isnt safe for 120v, please read this link.
so i dont have to type it again
http://www.icmag.com/ic/showpost.php?p=1535001&postcount=26

 

[clowntown]

Holy shit, does this mean you have 500A feeding into the main box (to the right)? :jawdrop:

 

[PharmaCan]

Holy shit, does this mean you have 500A feeding into the main box (to the right)? :jawdrop:

LOL- One of us needs glasses. That looks like a double 100 to me.

PC

 

[clowntown]

LOL- One of us needs glasses. That looks like a double 100 to me.

PC

Now that you mention it, yeah... it looks more like "100" than "500". Can you see how I interpreted it as "500", though? Although it didn't make sense at all looking at the wire size feeding into it.

 

[cocktail frank]

a 500a breaker would be bigger than that whole panel.
the largest snap in type breaker you can get is 125a
anything larger would be a molded case breaker

 

[00420]

#10 on the 30A 120V a/c line and #10 on the 220V lights line. and its 10/2 on the #10 lines because i dont need 10/3 the price is higher and the last wire is unused anyway. my main lines #6 and #8 are both /3 with #10 ground.

is that the same 80a breaker that feeds your sub?
if so, i hope your not running any 120v out of that thing.
it looks like you have no neutral there, just 2 hots and a ground.
ill bet there is no neutral being that the white wire in that 6/2 rx is taped black.
please tell me that isnt for the sub.

if it is for your grow sub, and your using 120v out of that, which isnt safe for 120v, please read this link.
so i dont have to type it again
http://www.icmag.com/ic/showpost.ph...01&postcount=26

DH .......

main to sub 1 get a 100amp breaker & #2/3 wire
sub 1 to sub 2 use a 60amp & #6/3
run your lights on 2 20amp breakers (3 light's each)

the wire you have now is useless and could start a fire

 

[DIGITALHIPPY]

is that the same 80a breaker that feeds your sub?
if so, i hope your not running any 120v out of that thing.
it looks like you have no neutral there, just 2 hots and a ground.
ill bet there is no neutral being that the white wire in that 6/2 rx is taped black.
please tell me that isnt for the sub.

if it is for your grow sub, and your using 120v out of that, which isnt safe for 120v, please read this link.
so i dont have to type it again
http://www.icmag.com/ic/showpost.php?p=1535001&postcount=26

there is neutral, it just not in the pic.
i added/removed breakers after this pic.

dont seam to be getting any answers to my Q's.
quite frustraiting.
for the 5th time im trying to use a MLC-8 controller and there is only one input, so im not doing 2 breakers.
ill upgrade that mlc line to #8 and upgrade the rest of the wire when i harvest this crop.

 

[PharmaCan]

DH .......

main to sub 1 get a 100amp breaker & #2/3 wire
sub 1 to sub 2 use a 60amp & #6/3
run your lights on 2 20amp breakers (3 light's each)

the wire you have now is useless and could start a fire

That main panel is probably only rated for 100 amps. I'm pretty sure that 100 amps is cumulative and doesn't apply to each individual circuit. I'm probably wrong, but I think this might create a tad of an overload.

DH - It's getting harder to read about your problems then it would be to fix them, so here's the deal. I've got a bad back and can't do a whole helluva lot of work, but you get a lawn chair, and a real big pitcher of ice cold lemonade, and plenty of good smoke, and I'll come over with all the tools and sit there drinking lemonade and getting high while you do the work. I'll even handle the hot Edison feeds if needed and make-up the panel - because, after all, Edison lines aren't for novices and because I still have some dignity left and nobody makes up the panel but Sparky. lol

Seriously dude, I think you need a new main panel.

Hey Frank, sensi, take a look at the old, original, fiber & paper wrapped wires in the upper left. Why is the exposed wire silver? Is that aluminum wire? (In all my years I've never seen aluminum in a residence. Only aluminum I've ever used was big underground cable and only the connection is exposed & it's coated with de-ox so I don't even know if aluminum wire oxidizes in the air.)

PC

 

[cocktail frank]

pharma, only time i see Al in residential is for the service entrance conductors.
but i have seen older rx using Al grounds, no more tho.
that fad lasted a year.

and DH, did you rerun a wire out of that panel to replace that 6/2 rx?
cuz if you didnt, you have no neutral.
its 2 hots and a ground in a 2 wire rx.
if its the same romex feeding your sub, right now, you have no neutral.
regardless if you changed your breaker, dont mean anything.
take some pics, as of today, of your main panel.
just trying to help you out.
and your original question has been answered, i guess nobody is telling you what you want to here.
starting to feel like im wasting my time.
remember, regardless of how you feel, right is right.
i dont want to see a new thread stating "my grow burnt down and i got arrested"
if you dont want our help, no problem for me.
ill keep on trucking

 

[DIGITALHIPPY]

pharma, only time i see Al in residential is for the service entrance conductors.
but i have seen older rx using Al grounds, no more tho.
that fad lasted a year.

and DH, did you rerun a wire out of that panel to replace that 6/2 rx?
cuz if you didnt, you have no neutral.
its 2 hots and a ground in a 2 wire rx.
if its the same romex feeding your sub, right now, you have no neutral.
regardless if you changed your breaker, dont mean anything.
take some pics, as of today, of your main panel.
just trying to help you out.
and your original question has been answered, i guess nobody is telling you what you want to here.
starting to feel like im wasting my time.
remember, regardless of how you feel, right is right.
i dont want to see a new thread stating "my grow burnt down and i got arrested"
if you dont want our help, no problem for me.
ill keep on trucking

how many times do i need to say i used /3 wire. red, black, white, and bare.
yes the house has aluminum wire, and aluminum #0/1 incoming from powerco. only on some lines is it alum, thats why i ran the new drop.
the main has the ground and neutral on the same bus. and yes it probably needs to be all ripped out and re-done, that'll happen soon, but at another time. alot of the neighbors have new main-elec panels.
some more old shots of the main to laugh at.







now frank give me your hand and ill walk you through this...

now you see all thoes neutral wires???

 

[PharmaCan]

DH - Aluminum wire in residences was a passing fad that didn't last very long. Al is a good conducter, but the connections should be made using a stuff called DeOx and very few people use that when changing breakers, receptacles, etc. It is my understanding that copper and aluminum cause bi-metal electrolysis which will cause the connection to corrode, absent the DeOx.

Grounds and neutrals in the same bar is no biggie - they're all bonded together in a main anyway.

You might check with an electrical supply and see if you can find a busbar upgrade for your existing panel. It's not the best solution, but it could allow you to put in a bigger main breaker and get the capacity of that panel up closer to what you are using. One caveat here is to check the wire size and run length on your service drop (the wires going from the PowCo's wires to your meter) and make sure they're big enough to handle the load.

Edit 'cuz of new pics. Man wuffo you twist all those ground wires together in your sub-panel. Now you have to untwist them because you need to take all the wires out of that panel and put the proper kind of wire clamps into your knockout holes. That's dangerous having Romex up against a sharp metal edge.

PC

 

[clowntown]

Edit 'cuz of new pics. Man wuffo you twist all those ground wires together in your sub-panel. Now you have to untwist them because you need to take all the wires out of that panel and put the proper kind of wire clamps into your knockout holes. That's dangerous having Romex up against a sharp metal edge.

I'm no electrician, but I would imagine you can cut that wire clamp ("O" into "C") and insert it.

 

[PharmaCan]

I'm no electrician, but I would imagine you can cut that wire clamp ("O" into "C") and insert it.

Yeah, and you could strap wings on a pig but that doesn't mean it's going to be able to fly. I'll tell you what, I'll rewire that sub correctly while you try to do it your way. I'll be sittin' in the chair sippin' lemonade and smoking a blunt, admiring my finished work, while you're still trying to figure out how to put the wire clamp in a vice without crushing it.

PC ->

CT ->

CT - I've seen you come up with a lot of good ideas - this just ain't one of them. lol

PC

 

[luciano28]

He has no ground right? Is that twist connected to the busbar? Or am I missing something here.

You need 8 Romex connectors(how many wire you got there?), Pharma Can is right, you dont want them on that sharp edge you knocked out. They cost a buck and fit in them knockouts with a wrench, the wire goes in, you clamp it down with a screwdriver, all safe and secure and stuff. 3/8" is the size I think you need.

Edit: I think I see what you did with the ground, nevermind. Im blind

 

[PharmaCan]

He has no ground right? Is that twist connected to the busbar? Or am I missing something here.

You need 8 Romex connectors(how many wire you got there?), Pharma Can is right, you dont want them on that sharp edge you knocked out. They cost a buck and fit in them knockouts with a wrench, the wire goes in, you clamp it down with a screwdriver, all safe and secure and stuff. 3/8" is the size I think you need.

Edit: I think I see what you did with the ground, nevermind. Im blind

He can get plastic clamps and slide them over the wire for the receptacle boxes. It's hard to tell from the pics, but it looks 1" & 1.5 inch holes have been opened in the panel. Whatever, the clamp has to be the same size as the hole.

PC

 

[DIGITALHIPPY]

He has no ground right? Is that twist connected to the busbar? Or am I missing something here.

You need 8 Romex connectors(how many wire you got there?), Pharma Can is right, you dont want them on that sharp edge you knocked out. They cost a buck and fit in them knockouts with a wrench, the wire goes in, you clamp it down with a screwdriver, all safe and secure and stuff. 3/8" is the size I think you need.

Edit: I think I see what you did with the ground, nevermind. Im blind

again, these pics are all old. i just recieved the same post 14 times about the neutral, so i thought id show it.
i wound up removing all but 3 of thoes plugs on that panel, added rubber/plastic corner/wire/protectors

thoes things whatever there called.

ahhh thoes twisted copper groundings...



yes i did undo all that and put them on there busbar, untwisted... i had a thread 'rate my subpanel' where i got alot of help. just havent updated pics, seamed pointless.

deox-
it seams there was some 'paste' or that deox stuff on the main from power-co.
i dont think u can see them well, but the alum tabs where the wire is cliped in has some gel in it.



should i get some de-ox and smother it in where the breakers clip onto the power-bar? it appeared to be made from brass, or very curroded copper, it was a brown/tan/rust color. never realized 6Kw needed so much elec. a bit more then i had hoped/planed for
thanks again.

 

[clowntown]

Again, not being an electrician (or anywhere close to it; a complete noob) I don't know what a wire clamp would look like that would line that hole... but I had imagined it's either a large rubber or plastic gasket / ring type device to protect from the sharp metal edges? Apparently that's not it.