Had a 200 amp main breaker go soft on a panel swap in Tacoma last Thursday

I was swapping out an old Zinsco panel for a new Square D one, and when I went to torque the new main breaker lugs to spec (35 inch-pounds), the handle just felt mushy. It wouldn't snap on or off with any real force. I shut everything down and called my supplier, who said they'd seen a small batch with bad internal springs. I had to wait two hours for a replacement to finish the job. Anyone else run into a brand new breaker that just felt dead right out of the box?

3 comments

3 Comments

the_amy3mo ago

Man that's rough, did you check if the breaker was actually carrying a load before you shut it down? I've had a couple feel off straight from the box, so now I always work the handle a few times before I even install it. That mushy feeling is a dead giveaway the internal parts are junk. Your supplier was right to swap it, no way I'd trust that in a panel.

valwest1mo ago

Yeah a 15A Square D I grabbed last month felt totally dead right out of the box, like no resistance at all when I flipped it. I started doing that handle workout thing too after getting burned on a couple CH breakers that felt fine until I put them under a load and they tripped for no reason. The mushy ones always end up being a problem down the road so I just toss them in the scrap pile now. Saves me a service call later when some homeowner calls saying their lights flicker.

loganhart3mo ago

Yeah, that "mushy feeling" is the breaker telling you it's already retired, @the_amy. My supplier just sighs when I walk in now.