Circuit Breaker and Electrical Panel Basics

I will walk you through the basic information all homeowners and especially DIYers should know about their electrical panel and circuit breakers. The video is broken up into the below chapters:

0:00 Intro
0:39 Cover, Labels, Different Brands, and main Breaker
2:55 120 Volt and 240 Volt Breakers
3:42 Removing the Electrical Panel Cover
4:08 Safety Considerations When Working on Electrical Panels
4:58 Internals of an Electrical Panel
6:15 Example Wiring To Individual Circuit Breaker
7:44 Removing and Installing a New Circuit Breaker
8:46 Circuit Breaker Internals and How a Breaker Works
10:36 Common Electrical Panel Failed Inspection Issues
11:51 Wrap Up

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[PGvisions]

Just a quick note on turning the main breaker off... the main breaker recently went bad in my electrical panel, and we discovered (thankfully before working on anything) that everything still had power when the main breaker was switched off. Always double check before doing work

[mixalis]

There is nobody like you explaining in such detail electrical stuff. Great presentation, great video! Thank You!

[ernestof]

this guy is saving lives with his youtube videos. DIY electrical work is NOT the same as the other trades. mad respect

[chriscastillo]

i love how basic you get, we need that. build from the ground up. talk to us like we are twelve years old. basics, then build. i love this channel. keep them

[jerryberkowitz]

Just had to diagnose a bad breaker. You're video(s) are always the best to watch to for understanding problems like this. Thanks so much.

[robertcotrell]

This was a great video for a complete n00b. Thanks for all the info!

[Arlo-Official]

So far the ONLY DIY content creator who seems to really know what he's doing. Learning a lot with these videos.

[rhoonah]

You're so right about labeling being off. I did some work in my dining room where I took down a non-load bearing wall and installed some wainscoting. The wall had some electrical run through it for a switch so I needed to rewire that and since I was taking the outlet covers off anyway, I figured I would replace the older outlets and switches. Anyway, I had a breaker labeled "dining room" and shut that off. Now my lights didn't have power so I was able to safely rerun the switch to a J-box, etc. Then I checked the outlet on the wall 1, expecting it to be off. Nope, I had power. I ran downstairs and found it on a different breaker. Strange. I then checked the outlet on wall 2, again, expecting it to be off. Nope... power so I shut that breaker off. Rinse and repeat for walls 3 and 4. So I basically have 5 different circuits powering my dining room (one for the lights and then 4 for each outlet on the 4 walls). None of the other breakers were labeled to control part of the dining room. Crazy. Moral of the story... check EVERY receptacle that you will be working on and never assume that the power is off to it.

[edberrios]

I learn a lot from your videos even though I'm an extremely comfortable DIYer with electrical. Here's a safety tip that I use in my home, pertaining to the 200A main panel and 100A subpanel, because I'm always aware the main panel is always live with 200A coming in from the street (100A subpanel has a circuit breaker in the main panel): (1) no storage or debris in front of the panel and area is well lit, including a dedicated flashlight on the side of the panel, so it can easily and safely be accessed; (2) thick 1" safety mat in front of the panel; (3) use insulating safety gloves (e.g., Gorilla gloves); and (4) use insulated electrical tools (e.g., Klein or Knipex). Even with all these safety steps, just as you demonstrated in your video, I did slip when replacing the panel door, which fell into the main panel and turned off the main breaker of the 200A panel (first time it happen in all my years, so I'm thankful for stressing safety).

[cvmagic]

The cold sweats I was getting every time he was pointing to anything close to the main input, I wish there was a way to just turn off the power at the meter without having to call the power company then I would be super chill about working on a panel.

[WatchMeLearnIt]

I'll probably never deal with this kind of work (still too timid to change an outlet lol!) But I enjoy the education as it makes me feel like a more knowledgeable home owner!

[Josejose-bvoj]

Thanks to this video I gained the confidence of installing a 15amp breaker and ran the wire to the panel. Thank you!!

[jeffmykytiuk]

This was an excellent explanation. You are thorough and explained the 'why' which is important. I love how you talk slowly and simply. Thank-you.

[myronp]

You give the best and easiest explanation on you videos.Thank you for taking the time.

[davidwayneprins]

I can definitely agree on how a breaker location listing can be misleading. With the house I recently purchased I have found one breaker is listed as Hannah's Room.

I bought one of those breaker locator units and have been going room by room and creating a spreadsheet in the computer which will eventually be printed out and taped to the panel so I will know every floor, room, and device what breaker it's controlled by. Bedrooms will be named geographically, not who sleeps there.

[MileyonDisney]

When I bought my current house, while it was empty, I made a map of every outlet and light, to show which breaker it was connected to. I am SO GLAD I did that! Thanks for the great info. I hope that panel was not live, as close as you were getting your fingers to everything.

[MileyonDisney]

I'm going to be installing a generator interlock soon, and will need to move a couple circuit breakers, so this comes in very handy. Thanks!

[carle]

Your video is very instructional, yet for a nonelectrical person like myself it is a bit intimidating. I still find it very interesting at least to know. Thank you.

[rontiemens]

Excellent, excellent, excellent. If you EVER do a video on installing a sub-panel, I would think that would fill a real need. Every sub-panel video on youtube that I have seen, and I have seen many, many of them (as I am getting ready to install a sub-panel in my place) has serious holes and even deficiencies, or places where they are vague. I am reading tons of different stuff as well. A good, solid, complete video on installing a sub-panel would be so fantastic; as what youtube presently has is seriously lacking insofar as I have been able to tell. But you, sir, are the KING of clarity. Please, f you can, consider making a video on installing a sub-panel.

[citytonightproductions]

The best instructional/educational video for electrical on YouTube! Well done!