Thread: Scorched bus - 1990s Sylvania Panel

This is an interesting one - 1992 Sylvania panel and a few of the lower attachment points on the bus bar are scorched and deformed. From looking at the overall installation and the house it seems unlikely that these ever had anything attached to them. It was a pretty big panel only a 1300sf house so there were a lot of empty spots.

I'm guessing the installer or someone working inside shorted something out across those scorched attachment points but who knows? Any ideas?

Any ideas?

Idea #1 - Time to replace the panel.

Idea #2 - Way past time to replace the panel.

Could very well have been shorted while working on the panel, but something would have had to made good contact with all three slots since they are quite melted. Also, the bottom breaker was present at the time because you can see the soot marks on it.

The scorch seems to radiate from the uppermost position, and then maybe molten plastic took out the breakers below?

Maybe Billy Bob tried to backfeed the panel with jumper cables and a generator? Yeah, that could be it.

Yeah, the deformation of the attachment points is what really got me. I've seen scorching in panels before and it's usually just surface soot or discoloration on the metal. This looks like someone went after it with an arc-welder.

'Scorched' just doesn't do that bad boy justice. The panel's 'toast'...

Originally Posted by Ian Page

'Scorched' just doesn't do that bad boy justice. The panel's 'toast'...

That 'toast' has been burnt, someone left it in the 'toaster' a bit too long.

If it was an FPE it may have been someone arc welding with a 20 amp breaker circuit ...

I can think many issues that could have ,may have, or did that to those buss bars, BUT there is no need to do a forensic analysis. Call for a complete panel replacement cut and dry.

Originally Posted by jack davenport

I can think many issues that could have ,may have, or did that to those buss bars, BUT there is no need to do a forensic analysis. Call for a complete panel replacement cut and dry.

Yep.... done. Just trying to learn for next time.

Originally Posted by John Kogel

The scorch seems to radiate from the uppermost position, and then maybe molten plastic took out the breakers below?

Maybe Billy Bob tried to backfeed the panel with jumper cables and a generator? Yeah, that could be it.

I think you might be right about the jumper cables (even I could not come up with that one)

- - - Updated - - -

Originally Posted by John Kogel

The scorch seems to radiate from the uppermost position, and then maybe molten plastic took out the breakers below?

Maybe Billy Bob tried to backfeed the panel with jumper cables and a generator? Yeah, that could be it.

I think you might be right about the jumper cables (even I could not come up with that one)

I have a panel and the breaker that was the culprit that has that same type of damage. I use it in classes.

I am guessing there were breakers there at some point and obviously they are toast also and now gone.