Phantom circuit-breaker slots

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drcampbell

drcampbell

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This one flummoxed me: An eight-slot circuit-breaker panel with only six live slots. Two of the stabs have been cut down so that a breaker installed into one of those slots doesn't connect to the bus.

Why would they do that? It's a General Electric TLM612S.

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Best guess: marketing. I've seen this before in big box stores. For some extra $$$ you get a few extra circuits, when it probably costs more to make or saw down that stab. :roll:
 
The model number 612 indicates 6 full or 12-1/2 size breakers. Looks like that's what you've got. IMO pretty cheap on the manufacturers part.
 
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This is how GE makes the rejection feature for their half-size / pancake / piggyback breakers.

Full-size (1") breakers fit on the large horizontal tab. The half-size / pancake / piggyback breakers fit onto the smaller vertical tabs. It's a method that's impossible to defeat like you can with SquareD's HO, ITE, Siemens etc. You simply cannot modify a half-size / pancake / piggyback breaker to fit the full-size horizontal tab.

So if the panel has parts of the busbars that are not listed to accept GE's half-size breakers, they simply will not fit there.

Read the label, and you'll see "12 poles maximum". So you can install 4 full-size 1" breakers and eight half-size ½" breakers.
 
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480sparky said:
Read the label, and you'll see "12 poles maximum". So you can install 4 full-size 1" breakers and eight half-size ½" breakers.
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It's 6 full size and 12-1/2 size. There are already 4 full size on the right and it will accept 2 more on the left. Each full size slot will accept 2-1/2 size CB's.
 
infinity said:
It's 6 full size and 12-1/2 size. There are already 4 full size on the right and it will accept 2 more on the left. Each full size slot will accept 2-1/2 size CB's.
Click to expand...

This panel cannot accept 12 1/2-size breakers as the bottom two busbars are not made for them. It can only accept 8. 8 half-size, plus 4 full-size, makes 12 poles total. This is what is printed on the panel cover.

GE Rejection 1.jpg
 
480sparky said:
This panel cannot accept 12 1/2-size breakers as the bottom two busbars are not made for them. It can only accept 8. 8 half-size, plus 4 full-size, makes 12 poles total. This is what is printed on the panel cover.

View attachment 17410
Click to expand...

Not sure where your photo came from but it wrong. The two bottom slots on the left cannot hold any CB's.

The panel in the OP can accept 12-1/2" CB's it right on the label posted by the OP.

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ITE did the same with the OLD EQ 6 loadcenters, same box as a EQ 8, just had the bus clipped & the front did not have the twist outs on the omitted spot, to jog everyone's memory, those were the models that had the upside down breakers on the top section, so "ON" was down on any breakers installed those positions.
 
I remember these things.
Think many have come across it figuring they can add 1 more 1" breaker.
Even knocking out the spot on the cover.
Only to say "what the .....".

The GE load center book with a similar model states:
"Assembly of breakers not available in these two locations".

It's interesting the cover label states the maximum branch circuit breaker to be 55a AL or 70a CU on a 125a panel.
One guess is the largest branch breaker goes in that spot, as to not overload the buss with a breaker on the other side.

The main breaker kit goes on the top or bottom of the bus.
But there is a similar GE model listed with a main breaker that plugs in the side, and goes in opposing the dead space.
Guessing the original intention was the 2 unopposed spots where originally designed for a main breaker feed on the bus.
Perhaps later the top or bottom main kit appeared as a better bolt in solution.
For some strange reason it's sold without the back feed breaker.
Could be a marketing or pencil pusher trying to sell a panel in every size with the parts on their shelf.
 
I believe someone mentioned it already.
Positions #9,10,11,12 is where a main breaker would go if you chose to make it a panel with a main breaker.
Typically there is an adhesive label across the two breaker knockouts stating "Do not remove."
 
Knuckle Dragger said:
... Typically there is an adhesive label across the two breaker knockouts stating "Do not remove."
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Not this time. Would have been nice

Ragin Cajun said:
What's with the metal shavings between the incoming lugs?
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I don't think they're metal. House mice? Ordinary residential basement debris? The house is probably 50-70 years old.

K8MHZ said:
It the insulation of one of the feeder conductors squished under the screw?
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Didn't notice that. Thanks for the keen eye.
 
drcampbell said:
I don't think they're metal. House mice? Ordinary residential basement debris? The house is probably 50-70 years old.
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That loadcenter is not that old, if it were it wouldn't have the all plastic assembly that the bus bars are attached to. Panel was probably made no earlier then about mid 1980's, but guessing maybe even more like into 1990's when they switched to the all plastic interior body. More familiar with Square D on this kind of thing, but I think most everyone started to do that about the same time to remain competitive.
 
I think I-T-E Imperial & later Gould/I-T-E in the 1970's was the first w/ the plastic interiors, later SQ D copied it, then GE, Siemens continued it after buying I-T-E, & converted Murray (Crouse-Hinds) also, Eaton/ C-H, still uses steel interiors for both the BR & CH lines.
 
norcal said:
I think I-T-E Imperial & later Gould/I-T-E in the 1970's was the first w/ the plastic interiors, later SQ D copied it, then GE, Siemens continued it after buying I-T-E, & converted Murray (Crouse-Hinds) also, Eaton/ C-H, still uses steel interiors for both the BR & CH lines.
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So I could be slightly older then I first thought, 50-70 years puts you into 1947-1967 being the install date, don't think there were plastic interiors yet in those years. The THQ breaker line that still exists today probably wasn't even developed yet in 1947, most product lines still in use today were not around before about 1955-1960 I think.
 
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