spark master
Senior Member
- Location
- cyberspace
Who makes the highest quality, 600 amp, main breaker panel board ? With at least 12 spaces for breakers.
600 amp panel boards
- Thread starter spark master
- Start date
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ptonsparky
Tom
- Occupation
- EC - retired
What are the parameters for consideration?
You might as well be asking who has the best Grandchildren.
kwired
Electron manager
- Location
- NE Nebraska
Can't argue with that.
To start with what are the basic requirements for the 12 spaces? Do you just want to feed 100 amp or less branches or feeders, or will you have 150, 200 or even a 400 or 600 amp feeder supplied? This makes a big difference in what you may specify and what may even be available in some instances.
Ragin Cajun
Senior Member
- Location
- Upstate S.C.
I know that Square D is popular but you asked for the best. Clearly Seimens 600 amp panel boards are a little better in my experience.
kwired
Electron manager
- Location
- NE Nebraska
Everyone will have their favorite, but if you look hard you will find each manufacturer has qualities you may like but nobody has every one of those qualities in one product - so pick the one that has the most qualities and take qualities that are effected more direcely by your application into consideration as well. Even things like stocked items/lead times for non stocked items may make a difference in your decision.
This is not the kind of item you walk into supply house and drive away with a complete unit 10 minutes later, at least not in most cases.
This is not the kind of item you walk into supply house and drive away with a complete unit 10 minutes later, at least not in most cases.
spark master
Senior Member
- Location
- cyberspace
This proposal needs a designer. It's a 600a replacement panel board, that is replacing a FPE, that is maxed out, with 3 line side taps. The 600amps isn't maxed out, but the #of spaces is maxed out.
Is 42 spaces still the biggest panel board for 600a? or didn't they change that recently?
Is 42 spaces still the biggest panel board for 600a? or didn't they change that recently?
iceworm
Curmudgeon still using printed IEEE Color Books
- Location
- North of the 65 parallel
- Occupation
- EE (Field - as little design as possible)
Just curious:
What voltage?
How many phases?
Any particular AIC required?
ice
What voltage?
How many phases?
Any particular AIC required?
ice
- Location
- Massachusetts
spark master
Senior Member
- Location
- cyberspace
208Y 3 phase. Nothing special. Light commercial, light manufacturing. Just need more spaces in the main panel for expansion.
SceneryDriver
Senior Member
- Location
- NJ
- Occupation
- Electrical and Automation Designer
Is a subpanel an option if you need many more spaces?
SceneryDriver
SceneryDriver
iceworm
Curmudgeon still using printed IEEE Color Books
- Location
- North of the 65 parallel
- Occupation
- EE (Field - as little design as possible)
I'd probably pick from the major players the one with the most wiring space that will fit in the available hole.
ice
iceworm
Curmudgeon still using printed IEEE Color Books
- Location
- North of the 65 parallel
- Occupation
- EE (Field - as little design as possible)
kwired
Electron manager
- Location
- NE Nebraska
But what kind of circuits are being supplied by this. You could possibly have this panel as more of a main distribution panel with nothing but larger feeders supplied by it or an individual branch circuit or two but of higher capacity - in that case something like I-Line may be optimal for the needs. If you are feeding all 100 amp or less circuits then some other product line is probably what you are after. Or maybe you get a two section type of panel that has some spaces for larger breakers and a sub section for smaller circuits that also uses a different breaker type then the main power section. Square D is what I am most familiar with so I mostly mention their products because of that familiarity. They do have a product that accepts I-line breakers for distribution but also has a section in the same assembly that accepts QO breakers or even NF for 277/480 applications.
spark master
Senior Member
- Location
- cyberspace
Do the 150a frame breakers use up more than 3 spaces ??
I haven't spoken to my supply house yet, but 4 breakers will be 150 and greater. and the rest will be <100.
I haven't spoken to my supply house yet, but 4 breakers will be 150 and greater. and the rest will be <100.
kwired
Electron manager
- Location
- NE Nebraska
What brand/series of breaker?
If you go with I-Line you don't use up spaces so much as you have different length of space along a solid bus that gets used for different frame sizes of breakers.
Some miniature type breakers will not even have a 150 amp breaker, but those that do will likely use two spaces per pole.
iceworm
Curmudgeon still using printed IEEE Color Books
- Location
- North of the 65 parallel
- Occupation
- EE (Field - as little design as possible)
Asking specific questions about general equipment doesn't usually gain much. This is usually where I pull up a catalog and verify what each specific brand has to offer:
enclosure
Dimentions
Voltage
phase
neutral
AIC
Individual Cb specs
main
wiring space
And probably some more. You are the engineer-of-record. Go forth and specify.
ice
spark master
Senior Member
- Location
- cyberspace
I spent many hours on their sites, trying to sort through information. It's difficult to find.
petersonra
Senior Member
- Location
- Northern illinois
- Occupation
- engineer
I don't use a lot of 3 phase panel boards but most have been Square D or Siemens. Not a lot of difference that I can tell overall.
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