Various circuit breakers are found inside electrical panel. They can provide single 120V circuits or 240V circuits and depending on the power demand, the circuit breakers can range starting at 15 amps to hundereds of amps. Some circuit breakers use a single space but supply two different circuits called tandem breakers.
There are many options in choosing from various circuit breakers. Even with these options you also consider various brands, main breakers and GFCI breakers. To help you with, we have listed the important details that will help you with your selection.
- Single-Pole Circuit Breakers
These breakers provide safety by managing the branch circuits from the circuit breaker panel. They supply 120V power to circuits and may come in different amperage ratings. For household installations, 15-, 20- and 30-amp circuit breakers are usually used.
- Double-Pole Circuit Breakers
They supply 240V circuits with power and have a combination handle that allows both legs of the circuit breaker to trip. They provide safety by protecting the circuit wiring from producing too much power. It shuts the circuits off by tripping the breaker as it senses excessive amperage.
- Installation and Safely Removal
Sometimes, breakers inside your electrical panel get into bad condition. This may be because of circuit problems that have repeatedly tripped the breaker or due to an overload.
- Main Breaker
A main breaker is a two-pole breaker where the feeder wire is connected to. It acts as the disconnecting means to the whole power load of your breaker box; hence, if you turn this off, there will be no electricity that will course through the branch circuit breakers. When performing any electrical work on a circuit or any device connected to it, begin your electrical safety measure by turning the main breaker off.
- Tandem Breakers
These are also called as split breakers or double breakers. They supply two separate circuits within a regular-sized breaker opening. Each circuit breaker panel has a limited number of available circuit openings.