Timeline for answer to Is this a "shared neutral" situation? by bib
Current License: CC BY-SA 3.0
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| when toggle format | what | by | license | comment | |
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| Aug 29, 2012 at 18:15 | comment | added | Stefan Lasiewski | Thanks for clarifying that one side of the panel actually provides power from both legs. | |
| Aug 27, 2012 at 20:14 | comment | added | bib | @MatthewPK Modified - please feel free to edit | |
| Aug 27, 2012 at 20:14 | comment | added | bib | @Tester101 Modified - please feel free to edit | |
| Aug 27, 2012 at 20:13 | history | edited | bib | CC BY-SA 3.0 |
corrected based on comments; edited body
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| Aug 27, 2012 at 20:09 | comment | added | Tester101 | @bib Most panels are set up where every other pair is on a different leg. You'll notice one side will be odd numbers and the other even, so you'll have 1-2=A, 3-4=B,5-6=A,7-8=B... So if you connect a double pole breaker at 3 and 5, you'll have Leg B on 3 and Leg A on 5. Next time you're at HomeDepot, open up a service panel package and look how the terminals on the legs are configured. | |
| Aug 27, 2012 at 19:57 | comment | added | Matthew | @bib no, alternate busses in the panel are on different legs. This is how single breakers (on one side of the panel) send 220v. Therefore in this case the two hot conductors in the same run should be connected to two adjacent bus prongs. | |
| Aug 27, 2012 at 19:50 | comment | added | bib | @Tester101 - I defer to you on matters electric, but if both are on the "left side of the panel", doesn't that mean they are on the same leg? | |
| Aug 27, 2012 at 19:44 | comment | added | The Evil Greebo | Aha! Reversing the polarity for the win! 20+20 isn't 40, it's 0! :D | |
| Aug 27, 2012 at 19:36 | comment | added | Stefan Lasiewski | Most devices on these circuits are things like a clock radio and a fan; or a mid-sized television + audio equipment. Less then 1000W maximum. | |
| Aug 27, 2012 at 19:32 | comment | added | Tester101 | It sounds like the two hots are on different legs (which is how it should be done), so the neutral will only ever carry the unbalanced load between the two circuits. If you have 20A draw on black, and 20A draw on red, the neutral will have 0A. | |
| Aug 27, 2012 at 19:27 | comment | added | The Evil Greebo | I had not considered this, but you're right - 12/3 is not rated for 40 amps, it's rated for 20 amps. The line from the junction box to the breaker box should be 10-3. Of course if you're only powering two electrical boxes - one each per line - there's very little real risk of loading up 40 amps on the line, but of course it is possible. | |
| Aug 27, 2012 at 19:16 | history | answered | bib | CC BY-SA 3.0 |