Electrical is my weakness. So bear with me, please. This main panel appears to have two main breakers. The top one is 125 amp and the lower one is 200 amp. Looking to understand. Can someone explain?
Same here, thanks for asking Randy coz I’m lost as well. Can’t wait to hear what others have to say.
Looks as though the lower one is the main and the top is feeding another panel or single appliance such as furnace or AC. Hard to say looking on a phone. Electric is not my strongest suit either.
Top breaker powers a remote distribution panel somewhere. Bottom powers this panel.
Correct. There are two throws for the service disconnect.
I agree two service disconnects, hard to tell from the photo but there could be other issues regarding the entry of the cables into the enclosure at the bottom.
Am I missing the neutral conductor?
Thank you, gents. There is a sub inside the residence. I’ve attached its photo. This is a 4000sf residence.
Then it’s safe to say it’s a 200amp main service…
In my limited electrical mind, it would be a 325A service. There may be other limiting factors though. The service panel and meter box looks to be all one box, which would explain not seeing a neutral conductor on the panelboard from the meter section. I may be wrong…
You do not add the total (200+125) together for your service size.
In this case list them separately, right? A 200 amp and a 125 amp.
Since we don’t know the service size or the service entry conductor size I would bet that it is simply a 200 amp service. There are two main breakers; a 200 amp and a 125 amp. The panel rating will be on the tag that is not visible to us.
This is similar to a split bus panel with the exception that the 125 amp is feeding the sub panel at a remote location in the home.
I believe it is entering the panel at the neutral bar location. We just can’t see if very clearly.
The feeds to the breakers and the neutral bar are installed at the factory since this is an all in one panel/meter assembly.
Thanks. I’ll admit I’ve never seen a setup quite like this. But I often see two separate 200 amp panels fed from same meter, and they are identified as such (two 200 amp).
I have seen and installed many different styles. Over 30 years in electrical construction prior to starting my inspection business. Straight out of high school.
Again, thank you gentlemen! I didn’t think you added them together. Once someone said the 125 went to another sub, the light went on for me.
If you have two service disconnects how do you determine the service size?
To Paul Abernathy It is great to see you back in the forum. Would you please comment on this question. Thanks, John
That setup is very common here in the Las Vegas valley. Kinda threw me for a loop the first time I inspected one.
It seems pretty obvious that the 200 amp disconnect is the service disconnect. There’s only one of those on a house. That’s the point of first disconnect. There’s not two different service disconnects in this one panel.
Then there’s a 125-amp disconnect, pretty obvious that it goes to the sub-panel, a common condition. I can’t see in this photo where the sub-panel disconnect pulls it’s power from. Randy? Is it connected to a breaker at the bottom of the supply bus bar? Is it connected to a set of lugs (connection points) that are connected to the bottom of the supply bus bar?