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Is there a circuit breaker locator tool that actually works?

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Is there a circuit breaker locator tool that actually works? Frank B Denman 11-04-2007
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Posted by Frank B Denman on November 5, 2007, 8:35 pm
If I'm willing to pull the cover off the breaker panel and probe
individual wires, am I likely to have greater success? The CS-500A that
I've got doesn't seem to get any luckier when it has access to
individual wires......

Frank

On Sun, 04 Nov 2007 20:27:40 -0500, Paul Franklin

>On Sun, 04 Nov 2007 15:44:12 -0800, Frank B Denman
>
>>I've got a Sperry CS-500A that is essentially useless. It is never able
>>to narrow its detection to a single breaker.
>>
>>Would appreciate recommendations for a better tool, if one exists. The
>>budget is ~$100.
>>
>>Thanks!
>>
>>Frank
>>
>>Frank Denman
>>Denman Systems
>>(please remove the x from my email address)
>
>I've used a few different ones. The GB Instruments Get-1200 I have
>now is the best so far, but...
>
>I would say I get the right breaker on the first try about 2/3 of the
>time. Maybe 75%. If you have half inch breakers or duplex breakers,
>it's almost impossible to pick the right one with certainty, because
>they are both connected to the same leg within inches of the breaker.
>
>It's a difficult technical problem. You are trying to identify very
>small differences in signal strength from breakers that are all
>connected together very close to where you are trying to measure. The
>only thing that gives you any chance at all is that every other
>breaker connects to the opposite side of the line.
>
>HTH,
>
>Paul F.
>
>
>
Frank Denman
Denman Systems
(please remove the x from my email address)

AppliancePartsPros.com, Inc.
Posted by Paul Franklin on November 5, 2007, 10:08 pm
On Mon, 05 Nov 2007 17:35:25 -0800, Frank B Denman

>If I'm willing to pull the cover off the breaker panel and probe
>individual wires, am I likely to have greater success? The CS-500A that
>I've got doesn't seem to get any luckier when it has access to
>individual wires......
>
>Frank
>
<snip>

It helps a little..sometimes. If you've got a nice clean panel where
the wires aren't all a rat's nest it can help quite a bit. But those
are usually the panels that are well labeled to start with....

Paul F.

Posted by John Grabowski on November 4, 2007, 9:30 pm

> I've got a Sperry CS-500A that is essentially useless. It is never able
> to narrow its detection to a single breaker.
>
> Would appreciate recommendations for a better tool, if one exists. The
> budget is ~$100.


My old reliable tracer was an analog Amprobe and a pigtail socket with a
flasher button and a 100 watt light bulb. Plug the pigtail socket into the
outlet you are trying to trace and clip the Amprobe over each wire in the
circuit breaker panel until you see the needle jumping up and down. This
works for the neutral conductor as well.


Posted by =?ISO-8859-15?Q?Tekkie=AE?= on November 4, 2007, 10:07 pm
John Grabowski posted for all of us...

>
> > I've got a Sperry CS-500A that is essentially useless. It is never able
> > to narrow its detection to a single breaker.
> >
> > Would appreciate recommendations for a better tool, if one exists. The
> > budget is ~$100.
>
>
> My old reliable tracer was an analog Amprobe and a pigtail socket with a
> flasher button and a 100 watt light bulb. Plug the pigtail socket into the
> outlet you are trying to trace and clip the Amprobe over each wire in the
> circuit breaker panel until you see the needle jumping up and down. This
> works for the neutral conductor as well.
>
>
Ya beat me to it! But then again I stole it from you...
--
Tekkie GRIP = Get Rid of Incumbent Politicians

Posted by Frank B Denman on November 5, 2007, 8:37 pm
This sounds promising. What specs should I look for on the Amprobe? Or
can I likely get probe that runs off my Fluke 77?

Frank

On Sun, 4 Nov 2007 21:30:35 -0500, "John Grabowski"

>
>> I've got a Sperry CS-500A that is essentially useless. It is never able
>> to narrow its detection to a single breaker.
>>
>> Would appreciate recommendations for a better tool, if one exists. The
>> budget is ~$100.
>
>
>My old reliable tracer was an analog Amprobe and a pigtail socket with a
>flasher button and a 100 watt light bulb. Plug the pigtail socket into the
>outlet you are trying to trace and clip the Amprobe over each wire in the
>circuit breaker panel until you see the needle jumping up and down. This
>works for the neutral conductor as well.
Frank Denman
Denman Systems
(please remove the x from my email address)

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