2 Neutrals under screw

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Fordean

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New Jersey
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Electrical Contractor
Panel has no room for neutral separation. 2 neutrals under same screw. Need to make all separate. No grounds left to double up and free up a screw.


Adding ground bars. Screwing to main panel casing, Which is a bonded neutral bar, and it the main breaker (neutral and grounds together point).

Can i add a ground bar and put neutrals on it. I never do. And don't like the practice. But their is no alternative. Usually its called adding a ground bar. But i never put neutrals on it.

Only alternative is to get a better panel. Older QO panel with small neutral/ground locations. Someone already tied up all the grounds together
 
Why can't you put an overall larger bar in to accommodate the neutrals and the EGC's?

Or, why can't you install another smaller bar and relocate all the EGC's to it freeing up room on the existing bar for your added neutrals?

The enclosure can not carry neutral current so you can not land the neutrals on a bar solely connected to the enclosure.

Roger
 
All the grounds were removed leaving screws for neutrals. Even then not enough room. How can u expand neutral bar.
 
do they sell extra neutral bars in usa yet? UK uses more than one neutral bar in split boxes, and more than one ground bar as well. Standard practice in UK is for all breakers, neutrals and grounds to match locations on bars... for tracing purposes and for testing.
 
Add a bar, or sell your customer a new panel.
What I don't understand is that there are more neutrals than screw holes and that there are less screw holes than legit circuits.
If there are doubled up circuits just pigtail the common neutrals.

Done deal.
 
Something like this. The question may be what size jumper do you use from the main neutral to this neutral? I believe that would depend on the calculated load.

8141iG5qnOL._SL1500_.jpg
 
Usually there are spaces for at least one neutral and EGC for every breaker space. If you have MWBCs you should wind up with extras. What is it about this panel that requires so many neutral/EGC spaces?

-Hal
 
hbiss said:
Usually there are spaces for at least one neutral and EGC for every breaker space. If you have MWBCs you should wind up with extras. What is it about this panel that requires so many neutral/EGC spaces?

-Hal
Click to expand...
Would filling all slots with duplex/tandem breakers likely do it?
 
I read something recently that I'm not sure about:

Is it legal to in effect create multiwire circuits in panel?

For example:
Find neutrals for 2 circuits one of each leg

pigtail with one of same size wire to neutral bar

and of course add handle ties/rearrange breakers where nescessary
 
readydave8 said:
I read something recently that I'm not sure about:

Is it legal to in effect create multiwire circuits in panel?

For example:
Find neutrals for 2 circuits one of each leg

pigtail with one of same size wire to neutral bar

and of course add handle ties/rearrange breakers where nescessary
Click to expand...
If the pigtail is sized for twice the current, you would not even have to choose two neutrals fed from opposite phases.
From the point of view of safety if you should disconnect the pigtail, feeding them from the same phase creates the same shock hazard but will not apply excess voltage to connected equipment on either circuit.
 
GoldDigger said:
If the pigtail is sized for twice the current, you would not even have to choose two neutrals fed from opposite phases.
From the point of view of safety if you should disconnect the pigtail, feeding them from the same phase creates the same shock hazard but will not apply excess voltage to connected equipment on either circuit.
Click to expand...

Wouldn't 200.4(A) not allow a larger size neutral to be used for circuits of different phases?
 
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