Service versus Feeder

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Erik Jurgens

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Location
Colorado
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SCADA technician
Please help me understand something regarding the service conductors and the feeder conductors. The code defines the service conductors as "The conductors from the service point to the service disconnecting means. The feeder is defined as "All circuit conductors between the service equipment, the source of a separately derived system, or other power source and the final branch-circuit overcurrent device". So, if you take a house that has an underground service that goes to a meter, then out of the meter into a main breaker on a panel what portion of that is the "feeder". The service disconnecting means would be my main breaker in the panel and after that I have my buses that my breakers are tied into. What would the feeder be in this very simple scenario?
 
There very well may not be a feeder in your situation.
If you had a breaker in your panel that fed another panel then the supply to that second panel would be a feeder.
 
In your situation the main breaker panel is the service disconnecting means as you said. If from the main panel only branch circuits originate, then I don't believe you have a feeder in your installation. If you were to add a sub panel from the main panel, the conductors from the main panel to the sub panel would be a feeder.
 
Erik, a meter is seen by the NEC as a "lump in the service cable." As stated above, not every installation has a feeder.
 
Thanks Larry, that's what I was trying to say. Should I have said it differently? I appreciate the feedback being new here.
 
Service laterals are unfused from the transformer -- feeders have OCPD on the line side of the circuit that protect them
 
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Technically the panelboard busbars are a feeder but there's not all that much that the NEC has to say about them that isn't superseded by the product standard that the panelboard is listed to.
 
The service and service conductors end at the first disconnect.

Look at the definition of feeder. Pretty much a feeder has to feed another panelboard or disconnect with overcurrent protective device's after it.

Feeder. All circuit conductors between the service equipment,
the source of a separately derived system, or other power
supply source and the final branch-circuit overcurrent device.
Click to expand...

Going one step further
Branch Circuit. The circuit conductors between the final overcurrent
device protecting the circuit and the outlet(s).
Click to expand...
 
When you look at the definition that Dennis posted you'll see that if you feed a panel that has a single main circuit breaker and no other OCPD's then the feeder ends at the circuit breaker. Add one branch circuit breaker and then the feeder ends there.
 
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