bobber

heres the question, when you are in an MCC and youre going to close a breaker in a can in a lineup.doo you stand to the hinged side or the handle side?I work as a mainenance electrician/instrument tech in a alcohol plant
during our monthly training this subject came up.which way is better?

william1978

Huh.

bobber

we are talking about the safest way to open or close a breaker to protect from arc flash.one school is to stand on hinge side to use door as a shield.the other line of thought is to stand on the opening side to avoid scrappnel from blast in case the breaker should fault and explode?did I make myself clearer?

william1978

Are you taking a NFPA70E class?

MDShunk

Stand in another room and have the least senior man operate the breaker.

I tend to operate larger breakers with my left hand, standing at arm's length to the right of the cabinet, no matter what side the hinge is on. Just my personal funny thing. I really don't think that any special measures are required, to tell you the truth. If the breaker tripped or you're commissioning new equipment, you darned well better megger stuff first. If that passes, you're in good shape to set up the breaker.

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paul d.

i've seen lots of guys use broom handles for 1st time energizing. not a bad idea me thinks.

bobber

First. no william it isnt a 70e class we dont do that til fall.heres the deal we are short of junior electricans and the boss said we cant sacrifice any more of them.I work for a major corn processor/alcohol producer.whom shall we say is osha shy and ppe crazy.i.e. we wear 11cal uniforms plastic framed safety glasses.electricaly rated boots.and so on.most of our plant is class 1 div 1,and all of our meters and test equipment is intrinsacally safe. 2.3 Kv to 13.8 Kv and we suit up to 18 cal.I'm not saying there is a standard anywhere as far as posture for this action.we just had a high spirited discussion on this subject.both corparate and plant safety people say hinge side is better.I was taught the opposite.they say its safer to reach across door to energize breaker.that those little #6 screws and the latch will contain blast and arc.my thought is to stay on handle side to avoid blast and most of the arc. the hinges wont hold and that door will become a projectile as well as molten parts flying out.Any thoughts here???

MDShunk

My thought is that if you think this is a real risk, ramp up your pre-switch closing testing to eliminate the risk.

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william1978

Hey try this saw it in EC&M magazine www.chickenswitch.com

redbeard43

Using the door? You should be wearing a full face shield with flame retardent suit and hot gloves..am i right according to osha and NEC? Why are you worried about arc flash if the job is done correctly? If really that worried, grab the oldest guy there thats about to kik the bucket and let him turn it on..

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You have the ring, and I see that your schwarz is as big as mine.May the schwartz be with you!

TheRick

I have seen this argument/discussion a few times, the hinged side makes the most sense to me. The door can deflect some of a potentail Arc Flash, if you are on the side of the opening it is all coming out at you.

Now obviously you should test everything before hand, and suit up to the appropriate level of PPE.....but what fun is going to work if you can't debate questions like this?

__________________
Rick Boudreau
TASK FORCE SAFE INSPECTION TEAM LEADER
Tal Afar, Iraq
"fool-proof systems do not take into account the ingenuity of fools"

Zog

Problem with the chicken switch is it only works on breakers with pistol grip remote operators. This one work on everything, yes everything.

http://www.remoterackingsolutions.co...-operators.htm

william1978

That is a nice one. Thanks for the link.

iaov

Always stand on the hinged side. If things blow up and the door blows open it will still provide you with some protection.

Zog

Let me know if you ever want to see a demo on one, I see we are both in NC.

nick

Well never had one blow up yet i just turn it on or trip it on which ever . Never heard of a rule yet been turning on breakers for years 480v ,4160v, and med voltage switch & equipment now we only do new work so its better than old gear or equipment .
To me new is safer !!

I guess old stuff maybe a problem sometimes we had one that our service dept did that blew it was a old breaker after they worked on the gear not related to the main breaker it blew when they turned power back on . Doesnt matter were your standing your going to get the blast . thats why they make ppe take care be safe

william1978

Who do you work for?