Thread: A how to question

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Originally Posted by Jeff Eastman

I'm curious, and may sound like a silly question, but when electricians upgrade a panel (say from 125 amp to 250amp) how do they remove/install the service entrance conductors without getting zapped?

no, not going to do it! just saw across the neighbors yard this morning an electrician finishing up installing a new panel and just got to wondering how DO they do it?!

I don't know.

I used to just wire nut off the SEC and pull the old service equipment enclosure off over them ... very ... carefully.

Yes, I've done that several times.

Okay, the real way is to call the power company, they will come out and pull the meter, disconnecting the service to the house, then (usually) disconnect the service from the transformer (with the meter pulled, there is no current, so no arc to worry about) making it safe for the electrician to work in the now deader-than-a-door-nail meter can.

Of course, though, one would have to get a permit before the power company would hook power back up.

So, most electricians will just pull the meter themselves. Which I have also done, BUT ... when you go to work on a house where the power company put their special lock on the meter because some previous owner either was, or was suspected of, stealing power and by-passing the meter. Then, well, it was either not do the work of work live. I am here today to tell you that working live *IS NOT A SMART THING TO DO*.

I truly believe I took the Darwin Award test many times, and, I flunked it, so here I still am.

I agree with Jerry,

From what I have ever seen, electrician just pulls the meter can themselves and replaces the wire.

NO WAY would you ever even want to try and do that live.

Originally Posted by Tim Moreira

NO WAY would you ever even want to try and do that live.

Come on Tim, don't be a wimp!

After Hurricane Andrew, where power was off in parts of Miami for months (yes, MONTHS), I was helping my brother-in-law out with technical questions on some apartments he was rebuilding due to wind and flood damage, so, when FPL came through his neighborhood to reconnect power after about 3-4 weeks, we had not yet replaced his riser mast (which came down with the overhead service drop when it fell down), so they did not reconnect his house. Later that week we had to make time to replace his riser, and there he was, left with the prospect of not being able to get FPL back to his house for at least a month ... so ... I took some very large wire nuts and reconnected his live service drop to his SEC which were hanging out of the weather head.

I did that with my heart racing all the time, here I was, balancing myself on the railing of his second floor deck, reaching around the corner to the SEC and pulling them toward me while pulling the overhead service drop conductors toward the SEC. I used some cable ties to take the pressure off the two sets of wires, then used wire nuts to connect them together, live of course.

Like I said, I failed the Darwin Award test on more than one occasion.

When I install service panels I call the electric/ utility provider and they come and cut the service. Once the panel is installed it has to be inspected and green tagged before the utility company will re-connect service. They do not charge for doing this and it is the safest way of doing it.

Jerry,

"There are old pilots and there are bold pilots, but there are no old, bold pilots"

Originally Posted by Tim Moreira

Jerry,

"There are old pilots and there are bold pilots, but there are no old, bold pilots"

Yep.

The saying is, and it is true, "I'd rather be on the ground wishing I was in the air, than in the air wishing I was on the ground."

I've been in the air, wishing I was on the ground.

Originally Posted by Jerry Peck

Come on Tim, don't be a wimp!

After Hurricane Andrew, where power was off in parts of Miami for months (yes, MONTHS), I was helping my brother-in-law out with technical questions on some apartments he was rebuilding due to wind and flood damage, so, when FPL came through his neighborhood to reconnect power after about 3-4 weeks, we had not yet replaced his riser mast (which came down with the overhead service drop when it fell down), so they did not reconnect his house. Later that week we had to make time to replace his riser, and there he was, left with the prospect of not being able to get FPL back to his house for at least a month ... so ... I took some very large wire nuts and reconnected his live service drop to his SEC which were hanging out of the weather head.

I did that with my heart racing all the time, here I was, balancing myself on the railing of his second floor deck, reaching around the corner to the SEC and pulling them toward me while pulling the overhead service drop conductors toward the SEC. I used some cable ties to take the pressure off the two sets of wires, then used wire nuts to connect them together, live of course.

Like I said, I failed the Darwin Award test on more than one occasion.

Jerry,
You sure did that the hard way! A good set of jumper cables will work just as well!