Electrical Setup

[silent mystic]

i'm having some issues with my electrical, and i have never had these problems before... just moved into a new place, maybe this is why...

Anyways heres the problem:
From my breaker box, which has a 125 amp max, i am running 2- 15 amp breakers for regular lights and outlets. What i want to do is hookup a 40 amp breaker to my timer board which has a intermatic t103 timer setup with 6-240v outlets, and 2-untimed 120v outlets... I've got 8/3 wire running from the box to the board... the problem is i'm not getting any power through the wire (yes, the wires are connected properly to the breaker)... i've tried using different breakers already in place and they dont work... what the hell coul dbe wrong...

Furthermore when i orginally moved in i hooked it up to a 60amp breaker and tried plugging in my lights, except it blerw one of my ballasts, and then regular flourescent lights in the place stopped working and some of the outlets too... i tried hooking the wiring of these regular outlets and lights upto new breakers, but still dont work... is there some correlation here??? anybody have an educated opinion as to why i am getting no power, and have only 3 15amp breakers as a result...., FUCK... must solve this... thanks for the help

 

[imnotcrazy]

Are you in US? If you only have one piece of 8/3 going to the panel there is your problem.
To run a 120V line:
Get correct gauge wire for the amp load/ 3 conductor wire. White-Neutral, Black-Hot 120V line, Green/Bare Copper-Ground. In the main entrance panel where the house Main breaker is, the Neutral bus is Bonded or connected to the ground bus and a green wire of #6 AWG goes from it to a grounding rod. The Neutral and Ground conductors get connected here. ( If you were wiring into a sub panel, the Neutral and Ground Buses are separated and you must put the Neutral on the Neutral Bus and the Ground on the Ground Bus. The "Hot" Black wire goes to the breaker/fuse which should be sized accordingly.

Wiring 220V line:
Black-Hot 120V A Phase line, White-Hot 120V B phase line, Green/Bare Copper- Ground. The Ground is wired the same as a 120V circuit. The White wire should be taped Black/Blue/Red (Basically any color but white to signify that it is a Live wire) then the Black A phase and the Taped B phase are tied to one pole (screw terminal) each. You must use a "Internal Common Trip" breaker which should look like 2 normal breakers but be held together and tied with a bar at the handle on the front. Using a "Piggy Back" Breaker, where 2 switches are one one breaker, will supply the same phase on both hot legs and you would have just created a parallel circuit and it won't work.

 

[silent mystic]

Ya i understand this. I have a signal switch on my 220v 40 amp breaker. i have a black and a red connected to each side of the breaker, a white at the top connected to the neutral area, and the green/ground connected to the ground area...

 

[Guest]

is the 40 a brkr in your panel or the timer? make sure your double pole breaker is connected to both phases (which it should be) your 8/3 is the correct guage for a 40a circuit. did you try using voltage testers to make sure you have power leaving the breaker at the panel. pics would help

 

[Guest]

I bet you blew a "leg" on your service,do you have a voltage tester?Do you have a fused disconnect?Check fuses in disconnectEDIT Your "fused" disconnect can also be a breaker enclosure,check for tripped breaker.Follow service to meter and see if there's a disconect in thar somwhar.If you have a voltage tester,test each "hot" lug in your main panel to ground this will tell you if you blew a leg

 

[Guest]

A few months ago,my brother lost a lot of power in his house,what happened in the 100A breaker between the meter and the main panel went bad and was only letting power flow on one leg,all I did was repalce the breaker.Do you have a main lug panel?(Panel with no main breaker)if you do there has to be some means of disconnect between the meter and the panel.I think thats where you'll find the problem a simple voltage test to ground on each lug in your panel will tell you

 

[imnotcrazy]

I thought he might have blown an incoming phase also. SKELETOR already said it, follow his advise with the tester and work from there.

 

[silent mystic]

Thanks guys, I will test out your advise...

I have a main disconnect (which has the two main hot wires coming in with a lever switch) from here it runs into my main panel (which houses my 40 amp breaker et al), thios 40 runs to my timer board...

So, I should try to see if power is running into my main panel on both legs from the disconnect switch? then check both legs of my breaker to see if power is coming out both legs?

is this correct?
thanks for the help

 

[Guest]

Test both hot lugs to ground in your panel with a voltage tester,if you have power on 1 leg and not the other,go to the disconnect and either replace the bad fuse(if its a fused disconnect)or replace the breaker(if its a breaker enclosure)EDIT Afer rereading your post you have a fused disconnect.You should have a bad fuse if a leg is out

 

[imnotcrazy]

It could be a fused disconnect. Max number of switch throws to cut bulding power is 6 switches. Usually just a Mian Breaker. While you have the power off at the DISCONNECT, I would tighten the lugs where the wires are connected in the disconnect going to the main breaker in the panel, and th elugs in the main panel also. Good preventative maintainence.

 

[Guest]

The reason I think its a fused disconnect is he talked about it having an external lever,a breaker enclosure just has a main breaker thats all

 

[silent mystic]

i'll take a pic tomorrow... and show u the setup....

cheers

 

[Guest]

A pic isn't really necessary if you have a basic understanding of what I'm talking about.Do you have a voltage tester?You are testing the two hot lugs in your main panel to see if you get 120V to ground on each leg.If you are missing power in one leg,go to the box thats feeding your main panel and replace either a fuse(probably 40A)or a 2 pole breaker.If its a fused disconnect feeding your main panel,you only need to replace the fuse proyecting the leg that has no power.If its a breaker and the breaker is on,check both wires coming out of the breaker feeding your main panel.Its either going to be 1 fuse or 1 2 pole breaker you are replacing,not 2 fuses

 

[imnotcrazy]

I was thinking it could be an industrial disconnect. They are not fused sometimes, and I'v seen all kinds of crazy messes in houses. Usually when people who have no clue try to do it themselves and just rig it till it works, the results can be scary. But I'd say SKELETOR has you on the right track.

 

[Guest]

Man for someone who lost half their power you dont seem to concerned about it lol

 

[imnotcrazy]

^^^ I was thinking the same thing

 

[Guest]

Probably fried himself

 

[imnotcrazy]

^^ I hope not.

 

[silent mystic]

Haha... i'm still alive... i'm goign to be working on it tonight....
i'll get back to you with an update

 

[silent mystic]

It may well be an industrial disconnect. There is now fuse in the main disconnect, rather a large lever that switches the main power on.. buty i will look into it tonight