Opened up 88 year old house mains panel by myself!

[WorldwideDave]

House is 88 years old. Was added on to and partially rewired in late 1950s we believe. Today I bravely killed the breakers one at a time, killed the subpanel breaker, killed the main breaker, removed the cover of my 70 year old Cutler-Hammer panel, measured for any juice, shifted some breaker locations around safely one at a time to make room for a DPDT breaker in the future with interlock, torqued wires to spec, and slowly turned circuits back on safely. With some of those old nylon (?) over copper wires - not many - still in the box, it looked terrifying to me, but happy I conquered my fears. I've been in the junction box and subpanel many times but that old thing has always terrified me because the wires from the meter are always hot to the mains breaker. I feel confident enough to install the rest on my own without an electrician, but will likely have a friend over to help me. Slow and steady with no distractions was the key.

 

[bolhuijo]

One safety tip I like to share: when operating breakers, put your finger on the handle then turn your face away before switching it. It costs no extra time but avoids hot copper to the face in the very rare case of arc flash. yeah it almost never happens on low voltage home panels. almost never.

 

[WorldwideDave]

One safety tip I like to share: when operating breakers, put your finger on the handle then turn your face away before switching it. It costs no extra time but avoids hot copper to the face in the very rare case of arc flash. yeah it almost never happens on low voltage home panels. almost never.

I watched enough videos to know to use insulated gloves, insulated tools, a face shield, and turn my head away. Those arc flash and arc burst videos will haunt my dreams.

 

[going_commando]

Meh, rip that b*tch off and have at it. God hates a coward.

All kidding aside, it takes a bit to get used to. I've been barehanding working in live panels for years, but it's not advisable. Just be careful, take your time, and remember it's not that complicated. A lot of electricians can barely pass a mirror test so get educated, get practice, learn best practices, and you'll be fine.

 

[Kirkstone]

Didn't know you could even still get Cutler-Hammer breakers. Hadn't seen one since selling a house with them nearly 50 years ago.

 

[SparkyJJO]

One safety tip I like to share: when operating breakers, put your finger on the handle then turn your face away before switching it. It costs no extra time but avoids hot copper to the face in the very rare case of arc flash. yeah it almost never happens on low voltage home panels. almost never.

I just flip them. Can't think of a reason why I'd ever have arc flash from flipping off a breaker. Like, I'm not turning off breakers while the circuit is loaded down so there should be minimal anything happen aside from the circuit go dead.

Didn't know you could even still get Cutler-Hammer breakers. Hadn't seen one since selling a house with them nearly 50 years ago.

My house was built in 1999 and has Cutler Hammer. I bought a CH sub panel a couple years ago for my critical loads panel (so my OCD would be happy that it all matches lol).

 

[fatjay]

Post pictures.

Not many breakers existed in the 50's, most on fuses. Panel upgrades in the 70's and 80's to breakers were most common in this area.

 

[WorldwideDave]

The load center inside looks very good considering the age and it’s outside a few blocks from the beach and by the pool. The cover has rust though.

 

[SouthernSolar]

Breakers? LoL, my screw in fuses laugh.

 

[WorldwideDave]

Breakers? LoL, my screw in fuses laugh.

Thomas Edison patented a fuse in 1890, a simple device with a wire with a low melting point soldered between two terminals. Those came out in the base of lamps back then. But the chinese created a fuse back in the 10th-12th century, and some british chap created on in the 1800s before Edison. There you go.

 

[bolhuijo]

We had a screw-in fuse panel when I was a kid. Dad invented the 100-Amp Lincoln when he shoved a penny in there. 'Course after 1982 when pennies went 95% zinc they became 80-Amp Lincolns...