Circuit breakers are an important part of a home’s electrical system and protect electrical circuits from overcurrent or short circuits. Electrical panel manufacturer’s design and install different varieties of circuit breakers for different panel systems and can vary depending on the manufacturer and year. Circuit breakers, like many systems in a home, may need to be replaced if they are defective or no longer operate properly. However, which circuit breakers can be installed in what electrical panels can be a controversial topic with several differing opinions.
When replacing a circuit breaker, there are several different options:
• Replaced the breaker with a specified breaker made by the manufacturer of the panel, or
• Replaced it with an interchangeable or “UL Classified” circuit breaker
Specified breakers are breakers that have been tested and listed for a panel by the manufacturer. Interchangeable breakers are breakers that have been tested in the panels that they are approved for and are similar to specified breakers, typically by a third party such as Underwriter’s Laboratory (UL). While this may sound like name-brand versus generic-brand similar to other products, there is some controversy around whether interchangeable breakers are acceptable replacements for manufacturer specified breakers.
Some manufacturer’s accept interchangeable breakers and do not take issue with these breakers being installed in their panels as acceptable replacements. However, other manufacturer’s caution against installing interchangeable breakers in their panels and some state that using these breakers will even void their warranty.
While some manufacturer’s state that these types of breakers should not be used with their panels, the Underwriter’s Laboratory (UL) lists manufacturer replacement breakers that meet UL and National Electric Code (NEC) code ordinances. UL insists that these breakers should be properly installed by a qualified person and that all directions given by the manufacturer should be followed for a safe installation. Below is a chart of interchangeable Eaton UL Classified breakers:
Ultimately, this remains a controversial topic and different manufacturers, third party organizations, and electricians will have differing opinions on whether classified breakers should be used in different panels. A licensed electrical contractor should make the final determination when considering between specified or interchangeable / UL classified circuit breakers. Determining whether specific breakers are compatible with a panel is outside the scope of a home inspection and further evaluation by a licensed electrician is the best course of action to properly assess circuit breakers.