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DIY Message Boards Home Improvement Electrical easy one - how do i ensure power is cut to the smoke detector?Go | New | Find | Notify | Tools | Reply | |
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Hi - I'm trying to replace an old hardwired smoke detector with a new one. The old one chirps despite a new backup battery. Rather than troubleshoot the old one I just want to replace it. The old wire harness doesn't match my new detector, so I want to cut the power and connect a new wire harness with the black, white, and red wires. My question: how do I cut the power to the smoke detectors so I don't electrocute myself? None of the circuit breakers in the basement were labeled specific to the smoke alarms so I shut them ALL off. Even with all the circuit breakers off, power seemingly off in the whole house, the light on the old smoke detector is green as if powered...and if I disconnect the old one the green light promptly turns off. So, how can I turn of the power....and what can I do to be sure its off before I start mucking with the wires? thanks! | |||
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easy answer... if you can't find the breaker, yank the mains off. double-check, always, with a non-contact "chirper" voltage detector. sig: if this is a new economy, how come they still want my old-fashioned money? | ||||
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Wow - thanks for the quick response! Dumb followup - how do I "yank the mains?" Is it in the circuit breaker box in the basement? | ||||
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As you have received the proper advise with your problem I'll steer clear of that. So I will add the reason your old SA chirps even with a new battery is because they are manufactured to do just that after a certain time. And time for an upgrade and that is just what you are doing. Great to hear. PS the SAs may be on a light circuit, as that is common practice. You may not know if your SA breaker would trip, [well @ one time you would not know] if it were on a dedicated circuit. But by placing those SAs say on a light circuit that you would notice being tripped, you would reset that tripped breaker rather quickly, thus also restoring power to your SA system.  "Why isn't everyday Earth Day ?" | |||
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Yes the "main" breaker in your panel box should terminate all your electrical power in your abode. It SHOULD be marked but you never know. Good luck. "Why isn't everyday Earth Day ?" | |||
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in most all cases, the main breaker will be clearly market, way oversized compared to everything else, and separated from the rest. typically in a US installation it will be at the top of the electrical panel with a big square of plain grey deadfront all around it. there ARE circumstances in which an old panel will have what looks like a standard double breaker that connects to the main feed, and jumpers to the bus for all the branch circuit breakers. this has a number of fugly features, not the least of which is it brings the full-power mains down into the regular wiring space. in that case, the master breaker will be larger than anything else by a long shot. for instance, you might have a RANGE breaker of 40 amps on both phases, red and black. one of these older systems might have a 60, 80, or 100 amp breaker in or near any corner of the breaker box. THAT would be the main breaker. they may still be legal, but they're dumber than a fairgrounds full of political candidates eating deep-fried babies. sig: if this is a new economy, how come they still want my old-fashioned money? | ||||
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Swschrad, did not Cutler Hammer make such a load center? Others may have but that brand sticks in my head. Remember reading why they were made but even that escapes me now.  And I also thought they are grandfathered legal, but no longer are, [for new work, that is]. Just don't quote me on that as I would and never did install one, just saw a few along the way.This message has been edited. Last edited by: CommonwealthSparky, "Why isn't everyday Earth Day ?" | |||
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couldn't remember the name, now I do... split-bus panel. a number of manufacturers made 'em, including our all-time fave FPE. advantage: cheap and fast. disadvantage: cheap and fast. the home inspector resource page in NY calls them out as evil in many respects, including too-small boxes for code, live raw AC intermixed with everything else, not clear what is happening there, cheap construction in many, and sliding one out of the cardboard box causes a cute kitten to die. (buy three at a time, you get to choose the kitten.) if for no other reason, failure to isolate the feed from the branches and lack of space for recommend bend radius on the wires doomed these split-bus panels.This message has been edited. Last edited by: swschrad, sig: if this is a new economy, how come they still want my old-fashioned money? | ||||
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Federal Pacific, providing work for electricians that last a lifetime. Also read Cutler_Hammer has had some issues with load centers produced with aluminum buss bars. "Why isn't everyday Earth Day ?" | |||
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lots of stuff has had aluminum busses. some has been reliable if properly plated, like the Bryant line, now CH BR series. I think Square-D Homeline also has aluminum buss. nasty junk like the Zinser/Sylvania panels and the odd even-cheaper FPE are proof that you have to do aluminum carefully and with good inspection and continuing testing to avoid people making nasty remarks about you for several lifetimes. sig: if this is a new economy, how come they still want my old-fashioned money? | ||||
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Google Cutler_Hammer BR recalls.  "Why isn't everyday Earth Day ?" | |||
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OK, I just did. Want to point out which of the many threads that have NOTHING about anything C-H BR being recalled is what you are talking about? I have installed hundreds of BR panels and have NEVER heard of ANY recalls. My main supply house is a large stocking C_H dealer and he has also never mentioned it, and he treats me very well. Posts like your are how rumours get stared. Blatantly false rumours. | ||||
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Sorry, but most of this is bunk. They were not "cheap and fast". They were simply the design of the day. They were modelled on the old fuse panels that had a "lighting main" and a "range main". It was simply what was common in those days. JUST like the size of the panel. Of course a home inspector is going to call it out for being "too small for code". H-I's call out things all the time that were PERFECTLY LEGAL when installed and are STILL perfectly legal today. Are they small and such to work in? Sure, but again, it's what was common back them. That would be like saying my '70 Nova is "illegal" because it doesn't have air bags. And just HOW is "live raw AC intermixed with everything else" ANY different from today's panels in the US? And "cheap construction"??? Have you ever even actually worked on an old panel? I am really trying to figure out what you are basing this statement on. I'm sorry to seem so confrontational here, but you are making assumptions in an apples to oranges situation. | ||||
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