Service Disconnect

[ActionDave]

Ouch.

Well, I'm a Bronco fan from way back when they got to their first Superbowl.

 

[iwire]

In Oklahoma last year we had to install a non fused disconnect before the meter.
It was a commercial building.
Turning off the disconnect Killed power to the meter and bldg.

That is called a meter disconnect and is being required by more and more power companies for plug in meters operating at more than 250 volts to ground. Not an issue for home services.

 

[kwired]

In Oklahoma last year we had to install a non fused disconnect before the meter.
It was a commercial building.
Turning off the disconnect Killed power to the meter and bldg.

What iwire said, plus this is not a service disconnect per NEC, you should have been required to install a service disconnect after the meter to meet NEC requirements.

Now should such disconnect be present when fire dept shows up, they are likely to use it.

 

[mwm1752]

It has been a requirement where I live to have a disconnect on the outside of any building for a long, long time. The whole county functions with no major problems, very little minor ones for that matter. You are allowed to put a lock on your disconnect to prevent any ne?er-do-wells from messing around with your power.

The POCO here now reqires that all meters have a bypass lever -- this is within a couple of years now -- code still does not reconize this as a disconnecting means but is alot safer to remove the meter.

 

[maallen]

I don't know the reason for it (star alignment I guess) but I find a lot of fire fighters working as electricians as a second job.

As far as the code is concerned the meter is niether a disconnecting means nor a isolation device. It is one method fire departments use to remove power from a burning structure since entering the structure to switch off the main may present hazards beyond removing the meter.

 

[kwired]

As far as the code is concerned the meter is niether a disconnecting means nor a isolation device. It is one method fire departments use to remove power from a burning structure since entering the structure to switch off the main may present hazards beyond removing the meter.

I agree, but also need to consider it doesn't work that way with all structures.

Even with just dwellings you can't rely on all of them being able to be isolated from electric power by pulling a meter. Some larger dwellings or those with larger services for whatever reason, do have CT metering or other complexities when it comes to isolating electric power in such an emergency.

One higher end home I did in more recent years has padmount transformer at property line with CT metering at the transformer. If fire dept were to show up there they don't know where the service disconnecting means is, and the transformer is located about as close to this home as it is to the neighboring home so it isn't even all that clear what property it serves (it only serves the one BTW), but pulling that meter still wouldn't kill power to the home either. Overhead cutout supplying this transformer is 900 feet or so away, I know I had to bury raceway to it - POCO pulled their cable in my raceway.