Metering systems inside panels, etc.

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On my advice, friends are deploying a The Energy Detective metering system. This will put CT's and other parts inside panelboards.

TED sent a certification document "TEST REPORT IEC 61010-1 Safety requirements for electrical equipment for measurement, control, and laboratory use" stating "The products covered by this report are Energy Monitoring Systems consisting of a Measuring and Transmitting Unit (MTU) intended to be installed inside a service or distribution panel along with Current Transformers for up to 3 phases and breaker wiring, and a Gateway (GW) that plugs into an outlet and communicates with the MTU over a Power Line Carrier (PLC)." (Full document available on request; it's a 6 MB pdf.)

But in one case, the CT's will be in a fused disconnect upstream of the panel. The EC is nervous the AHJ won't allow the CT's in that disconnect & a conduit from it for the metering cable. Is a disconnect a "service or distribution panel" in this case?
 
We install them in panels, starters, VFD's and disconnects all of the time. Why would they not be allowed in a disconnect because it is neither a service nor a distribution panel?
 
On a side note, the Israelis have wireless CT’s, they snap over the wire, and are powered by the current flowing thru the wire. RF signal to a receiver close by. The one drawback I found, low current or no current would eventually cause them to quit communicating. Must not have worked out well, haven’t installed any since. As others have said, shouldn’t be a problem in disconnects.
 
Thanks for the comments. As for "Why would they..." I'd guess because they are so bonded to the written Code they stop dead at the period at the end of each sentence of it; it does not mention "disconnects" so they are forbidden. Glad to hear you have not had grief.

I wish the TED had Ethernet vs. PLC connectivity (and they do in their industrial version) but the engineer I spoke to said the Cirris PLC they use gives them very little grief. I have no desire to depend on wireless links.
 
I would just call the company who wrote the "service and distribution panel" note as ask them if their listing specifically prohibits CT's in disconnect switches. The way the note is written it does not sound like it's an all inclusive list of every possible installation type.
 
It was mentioned that the EC was nervous that the AHJ would not allow the CT's.

Why not just call the AHJ and find out?

No use worrying about something that may be a non issue to begin with.

JAP>
 
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