afci breakers

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mal619

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just trying ti figure some things out with these breaker's. I am looking at a remodel job and plan on adding they breaker's , but can they share the neutral with another circuit or do thay have to have their own seperate neutral?
 
So far, only Siemens has a 2-pole AFCI breaker, but I've never seen one in captivity. GE is supposed to be coming out with 1p breakers than can be used on MWBCs with the use of a handle tie.

My best advice: If you're adding new circuits, don't use MWBCs.
 
480sparky said:
GE is supposed to be coming out with 1p breakers than can be used on MWBCs with the use of a handle tie.
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The GE single pole combination-type AFCI that can be used for multiwire branch circuits has the designation "MOD 3" on the face of the breaker near the handle. They've been available here for several weeks now. The interesting thing about them is they don't need the load neutral connected to them.
 
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al hildenbrand said:
The GE single pole combination-type AFCI that can be used for multiwire branch circuits has the designation "MOD 3" on the face of the breaker near the handle. They've been available here for several weeks now. The interesting thing about them is they don't need the load neutral connected to them.
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That is surprising, I wonder how it knows a ground fault from a line to neutral load.
 
acrwc10 said:
That is surprising, I wonder how it knows a ground fault from a line to neutral load.
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I don't recall actually seeing that the ground fault detection is part of the AFCI performance requirements. The microcircuitry and software that does the arc discrimination is evidently meeting the performance requirements of a combination type AFCI all by itself.
 
al hildenbrand said:
I don't recall actually seeing that the ground fault detection is part of the AFCI performance requirements. The microcircuitry and software that does the arc discrimination is evidently meeting the performance requirements of a combination type AFCI all by itself.
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It may not, I just know the combo units I've installed have gfi detection also, not 6ma.
 
I have put in a 2-pole 15 AF breaker from GE on the house I am working on. The 4 other panels are Square D and they do not make a 2-pole AF.
 
Here is the ge diagram. Here is a link to the info

ry%3D480
 
Chamuit said:
I have put in a 2-pole 15 AF breaker from GE on the house I am working on. The 4 other panels are Square D and they do not make a 2-pole AF.
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Pay close attention to Dennis' linked diagram from GE, and the way the load neutral from the multiwire branch circuit is connected to only one of the two GE single pole AFCI breakers.

Interesting, no?

You won't need a 2-pole AFCI, the next time.
 
acrwc10 said:
It may not, I just know the combo units I've installed have gfi detection also, not 6ma.
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Until the GE MOD 3, that has been true. But I suspect that was because the manufacturers still weren't giving us a product that could actually meet the AFCI performance requirements without the kludge of a signal processing arc descriminator and a ground fault detector.

I, for one, am extremely curious to learn more about what this GE AFCI is actually doing.
 
Chamuit said:
I have put in a 2-pole 15 AF breaker from GE on the house I am working on. The 4 other panels are Square D and they do not make a 2-pole AF.
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I know sq.D homeline doesn't make a dp afci but I don't know about their QO series.

I might add that all the SP ge afci that are manufactured now can be used as a DP with handle ties.
 
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