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MikeD · September 6th, 2003, 08:39

[ QUOTE ]
It is the MAX AMPS before that breaker will POP, has nothing to do with how much the circuit is drawing, but you can be assured it is less than the number on the breaker.

[/ QUOTE ]

Not necessarily. Most CBs are designed to pop at a load rating of nominal plus about 10% in order to compensate for the higher amperes on the initial current draw; this value varying depending on the particular circuit being protected. Breakers that regularly get pulled and reset, such as overnight shutdown, fueling, etc could actually "weaken" and pop at lower amps than advertised due to the simple fact of the breaker spring weakening from constant use. Can be a pain if you have a highly used breaker (regularly pulled) that seemingly pops for no reason, causing you to troubleshoot the associated system when the breaker itself is the real problem.

September 6th, 2003, 08:39	#10
MikeD Administrator Join Date: Feb 2003 Location: Pinal Airpark Posts: 6,897	Re: Circuit breaker numbers [ QUOTE ] It is the MAX AMPS before that breaker will POP, has nothing to do with how much the circuit is drawing, but you can be assured it is less than the number on the breaker. [/ QUOTE ] Not necessarily. Most CBs are designed to pop at a load rating of nominal plus about 10% in order to compensate for the higher amperes on the initial current draw; this value varying depending on the particular circuit being protected. Breakers that regularly get pulled and reset, such as overnight shutdown, fueling, etc could actually "weaken" and pop at lower amps than advertised due to the simple fact of the breaker spring weakening from constant use. Can be a pain if you have a highly used breaker (regularly pulled) that seemingly pops for no reason, causing you to troubleshoot the associated system when the breaker itself is the real problem.