On Thu, 7 Apr 2011, Wayne wrote:
> Well, the "correct" answer is "hire an electrician" or "shut off the box main
> to the whole house and replace it." Swapping or adding a breaker on a live
> panel is standard practice though -- at least for licensed pros. What they
> do is flip off the breaker; each one hinges in at the center of the panel
> (at least on every modern panel I've seen worked on); pull at the outboard
> edge to swing it out; unscrew hot lead; reconnect to new breaker with it
> TURNED OFF; insert into center hinge; snap down into outer power rail; switch
> on.
My semi-modern panel ( believed to be original to the 40-year-old house
) contains breakers that hinge on the outside. More to the point, when
I've bought breakers for it, I just grabbed whatever off the shelf at
the hardware store. Given that, I think this type of panel must be
relatively common, at least in this area.
--
David Hillman
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