Back fed device

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drg

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I want to back feed through a 100 amp breaker on a Square D QO panel .

My question is do they make a retaining clip for this 100 amp 2 pole breaker in the QO Series ??
 
drg said:
I want to back feed through a 100 amp breaker on a Square D QO panel .

My question is do they make a retaining clip for this 100 amp 2 pole breaker in the QO Series ??
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It would help if you told us the panel number. As you can see from the information provided, it all depends on the panel not the breaker.
 
Thanks fellas, I don't have the panel # with me , its a 100 amp QO series 32 space panel and right now thats all the info I can offer.

The panel was purchased for a panel change out but since then the owners have included a sub panel ( remote panel ) that they want in the garage. (The reason for adding the 100 amp 2 pole breaker.)

Saturday I will stop on that job and get the number off that QO panel ,
again, thanks everyone.
 
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If there's any chance it's convertible to MDP, I bought a main breaker for a homeline panel where the main was actually a QO, and it was only $40 or so. Just a thought. :)
 
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Today I stopped to look at the panel at the residence.

It is a square D QO series 32 space panel with a 100 amp main.

Looking on the box, and the panel it self there was nothing that said model number or anything else !!

By looking at the panel I don't see any threaded holes or anything else that would support a retaining clip to hold a dbl. pole breaker in place .

My goal was to comply with artice 408.36 (f) when using this breaker to feed a sub panel in a garage.
In the past we have always just put the breaker and feeders in and be done with it, no one ever required it..........no one is requiring it now but being aware of 408.36 (f) I thought it would be the right thing to do.

Has anyone here ever used a retaining clip on a Square D QO double pole breaker before when they have used the breaker as a back fed device ??

Also I ran #3 cu to feed this 100 amp sub panel while in the past we always ran #2 Al, my feelings on that part is table 310.15 (B) (6) does not apply past the service panel , anyone disagree with that part ?
 
georgestolz said:
I'm a dummy. I don't get the joke, and I bet it was funny.
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A QO panel will never be a MDP to many of us.

A QO is a IMO a dwelling unit panel.

What does an I-line panel look like?
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Big or Bigger.

Follow this link for a picture of a 100 amp 2 Pole I-Line next to a standard breaker.

"http://extreme.infomagic.net/static/breaker.jpg"

It is a type of 'plug in panel' that is of very high quality.

You could pull out an 800 amp 3 pole I-line breaker and replace it instantly with a single pole 15 I-Line.

With other types of distribution panels you would have to change the breakers and the bus fingers.
 
drg said:
My goal was to comply with artice 408.36 (f) when using this breaker to feed a sub panel in a garage. In the past we have always just put the breaker and feeders in and be done with it, no one ever required it..........no one is requiring it now but being aware of 408.36 (f) I thought it would be the right thing to do.
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If I read your posts correctly, the 100A breaker at the QO panel supplies the feeder for the garage subpanel. If this is the case, it is not a backfed device.
 
georgestolz said:
How much do you think a 30A 3-pole I-line breaker would be?
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I don't see many prices, I did see our cost for a 225 amp I-Line with a higher than standard AIC rating and it was more than $2,000

Another issue with I-Lines is if your ordering one or two pole breakers you must specify which phase you want them to connect to.

You could load an I-Line with 42 phase 'A' single pole breakers.
 
Smart $ said:
If I read your posts correctly, the 100A breaker at the QO panel supplies the feeder for the garage subpanel. If this is the case, it is not a backfed device.
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The 32 space QO 100 amp panel has a main breaker fed by the service conductors , now I am adding a 100 amp breaker to feed the subpanel in the garage. Would you not call this breaker a back fed device ??
 
drg said:
The 32 space QO 100 amp panel has a main breaker fed by the service conductors , now I am adding a 100 amp breaker to feed the subpanel in the garage. Would you not call this breaker a back fed device ??
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John, this would not be a back-fed breaker, it is a breaker that is simply feeding the feeder and needs no special consideration as far as locking it in place.

If it were to come loose from the busses the power would be dropped from the conductors whereas in a back-fed breaker the breaker would still be live and floating around.

I am assuming the panel in the garage will not have a Main Breaker and will be Main Lug Only.

Roger
 
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Oh boy , I have been calling this wrong all along and admit it !!!!

See what you guys mean now and appreciate the explanations.

Thanks
 
A good thing

A good thing

Well at least I don't have to worry about locating a retaining clip anymore .

Its funny, have always called this arrangement back-feeding, just another one of many things learned and never looked at it different, this kind of stuff really use to bug me but not so much anymore , I guess early in ones career its typical to learn wrong, do wrong and then one day be told you ARE WRONG, Im learning how to live with that and sometimes I just say what a dope and laugh !!

Again thanks for the heads-up .
 
drg said:
I guess early in ones career its typical to learn wrong, do wrong and then one day be told you ARE WRONG, Im learning how to live with that and sometimes I just say what a dope and laugh !!
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That's one of the coolest aspects of this forum - nobody here was present when you were trained, and have their own training experiences. So some of those oddball things we picked up are occasionally brought to light and blow our minds. :D

It is a cool sensation.

I wouldn't call you a dope for the event, though. :)
 
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