The house has the Main disconnect located in the garage, A single pull type lever to shut the power of to the house. The service panel located in the basement does Not have a main disconnect. Is this acceptable?
I dont know about the pull out but I know that the sub panel doesn’t need a shut off.
That is acceptable if overcurrent protection is part of the disconnect.
Is the garage attached? What type of conduit is into the bottom of the disconnect switch?
Yes, This was an attached garage.
The conduit is plastic/pvc.
This was just a little unusual for my area to see a separate disconnect. Most are located in the main panel.
The “disconnect” is the service equipment. The panel in the basement is a sub panel.
Hopefully, you checked to ensure it was wired as a sub panel and not as service equipment.
Since it’s attached the panel does not require a separate main disconnect. If the PVC is in the possible path of an automobile then it’s required to be SCH80.
If indeed the panel in the basement is a Sub Panel, then its incorrect since the grounds and neutrals are not on their own bus bars. I was under the inpression that the panel in the basement was still the service equiptment panel, not a sub panel.
Any panel after the service equipment is a sub panel so the panel in the basement needs to have the grounded and grounding conductors separated.
There are a few other issues with that sub as well.
Take a closer look at your neutrals as well Ron…
Bert
Yes, I am aware of the other problems in the panel. I am just inquiring about the absence of a single disconnect in the panel. I thought all panels were required to have 6 or less throws to shut off power.
The six throw rule only applies to service disconnects with few exceptions Ron.
Bert
Its not for all panels. Its just for the service equipment.
I agree with the posts so far. However, the main disconnect needs an integral OverCurrent Protection Device or an OCPD adjacent to it.
2008 NEC
230.90 Each ungrounded service conductor shall have overload protection.
230.91 Location. The service overcurrent device shall be an integral part of the service disconnecting means or shall be located immediately adjacent thereto.
So, fuses just after the switch would be ok.
Sorry, I got busy yesterday and didn’t have a chance to return to this thread.
“Service” equipment is where the service disconnect is located. Any other subsequent panels are “load-side” equipment - i.e. sub panels. There will only be one service panel in a residence.
As Glen said, the service equipment should also include over-current protection. Did you open that box to see if it includes fuses, or is it a standard knife switch?
The grounding of the basement panel is definitely wrong.
Also (as previously mentioned), the “six throw” rule does not apply to load-side equipment, unless located in a detached/separate building.
Equipment/panels don’t require a disconnect, it’s the building(s) that require the disconnect.
In this case the fuses would be required to be in the switch since there in only the disconnect between the meter and the sub-panel. The sub-panel here requires nothing further.
I disagree, " 230.91 … or shall be located immediately adjacent thereto.", means the switch could immediately feed an unswitched fuse box.
What Rob is saying is there is nothing between the disconnect and the panel below therefor due to the lack of the missing fused box the fuses must be in the disconnect
We don’t see the located immeniately adjacent thereto
Yes, it did include Fuses, Not a knife switch.
Thanks