Favorite residential 200 amp main panel and why

[Little Bill]

MY favorite panel is FRANK ADAMS i get them at CENTRAL HARDWARE.

With your dial-up phone sitting next to the panel.

 

[jeff48356]

My favorite is the Square-D Homeline 200A, 40 spaces, 80 circuits max. I've installed that model in every house I've wired in the past 3 years. Only exception is if the panel goes in a finished wall on the main floor, if the house doesn't have a basement, then I'll use the 200A 30 space, 60 circuit model.

I see from comments above that the Homeline panel has some limitations that some electricians don't like, but neither of them matter to me:
1) No 3-phase option... I only do residential work, so never an issue.
2) AFCI breaker quality issues... Michigan doesn't use AFCI at all.

 

[jeff48356]

Maybe I wasn’t clear.

You purchase at HD.
Enter the HD receipt number on the HD website for the matching rebate.
HD sends you a gift card for 11% of the receipt value.

Menards only involvement is the fact that they have a store in the same area as the HD you made the purchase at.

Wow, thanks! I never knew that. There is a Menards right across the street at I-96/Middlebelt Rd. in Livonia.

 

[retirede]

Wow, thanks! I never knew that. There is a Menards right across the street at I-96/Middlebelt Rd. in Livonia.

Yeah, HD doesn’t actively promote this. I wonder if they keep it up now that Menards has basically gone to permanent 11% rebate??

My local Lowe’s will also match by giving 11% discount at time of purchase, but they seem to be very selective about what items qualify (never if the item is on sale, for example) and I seem to get different results depending on which manager is on duty.

 

[kwired]

Always love SD QO and it seems the price has come way down on the breakers. The qo breakers are excellent. On a short they usually trip without any delay of further damage at the source of short. .

That is particularly true for their standard 15 and 20 amp single pole breakers. They have lower magnetic trip setting for those particular units. If it causes nuisance tripping for motor starting or other high inrush loads there is a QO1__HM breaker available, I think has same mag trip as say a standard two or three pole of same amp rating.

 

[kwired]

My favorite is the Square-D Homeline 200A, 40 spaces, 80 circuits max. I've installed that model in every house I've wired in the past 3 years. Only exception is if the panel goes in a finished wall on the main floor, if the house doesn't have a basement, then I'll use the 200A 30 space, 60 circuit model.

I see from comments above that the Homeline panel has some limitations that some electricians don't like, but neither of them matter to me:
1) No 3-phase option... I only do residential work, so never an issue.
2) AFCI breaker quality issues... Michigan doesn't use AFCI at all.

That is an issue with all AFCI's not just one particular manufacturer

 

[djd]

In 90% of the cases I like to buy materials from my local supplier. They work hard for you and try to get you the best prices on products and they deliver materials to your job site when needed. That said, there are some items that they just can't compete with in price. For example, a 250 coil of 14/2 NM cable is $41.00 at HD. My supply house sells it for $51.00. It goes on and on from there. Now, $10.00 is not going to break my bank and if I needed it in a pinch or if going to HD would cost me more time and gas to get to I would most certainly buy it from my supply house.

Another "that said" story, I generally use Sq D Homeline breakers and load centers for residential work. It's a well-designed panel, the breakers fit tightly and don't wobble in place and if I install a generator interlock kit (which is listed for the panel) it fits and operates perfectly. I used to buy them from a particular supplier until one day I purchased a compliment of breakers and a load center from them and as I was driving up the highway I thought to myself "gee, this seems like a lot of $$ for this". I then went to HD and purchased the same material for about $100.00 less. I brought the original material back to the supply house and they credited me. When I told them about the difference they claimed that what I bought at HD was counterfeit. Everyone is entitled to make a profit on their sales but this was out of the question.

Hey im surprised at first your supply house cant beat home depot pricing, but then home depot has how stores this country. A Sales rep here bragged that he could beat hd easy , but the they get you on walk ins counter sale when your not at your home store , like you said cant sweat the little stuff.