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The last 20 years of Home Power Have Been Amazing

In the late 1990s I installed my first electric panels. Mostly for the sake of running a safe woodworking workshop but also to enable the multiple window units and my partner and my offices, plus the TV and stereo, of course.

At that time whole house surge protectors were available but not required. Being an IT guy in a storm prone area of course I went for it. Otherwise however breakers were rather similar to those from the original mid 1960s versions. I mean, I’m sure there were improvements in panel technology and how breakers were manufactured but for the home there were really only two aspects you needed to care about:

  • Current capacity
  • Poles (1 or 2)

And for the home owner that’s were things stood for almost 40 years. In the last 20 years though much has changed. Arc fault (AFCI or CAFCI) first required in 2002 for bedrooms. Now (since 2017) they are required practically everywhere in a home. Whole house SPDs (surge protectors) are required from 2020.

Most recently, the 2023 NEC greatly expanded the use of Ground Fault (GFCI) protection. GFCI’s which were limited to kitchen and bath outlets are now required for your washer and dryer, microwave, range, dishwasher and (in my case) garbage disposal. Take a look at any modern panel. You’ll see 4 different types of breakers:

  • Old fashioned
  • GFCI (white test button)
  • CAFCI (dark blue test button)
  • Combined GFCI + CAFCI (pale blue test button)

And outlets? Have you noticed weather resistant (WR, 2008) or tamper resistant (TR, 2008) requirements? In addition to GFCI requirements. Sheesh. It’s a marvel any electrician can keep them all straight, let alone a home owner.

Of all these improvements though the only one I'd suggest you rush out and get is the whole house surge suppressor unless your breaker panel is running 40 years old in which case a replacement may be a good idea soon.

erik_squires
jea48
4,471 posts
 

@bigtwin said:

Forgot the picture. 🤣

 

 
@bigtwin
The Siemens Type 2 SPD is too far from the panel. It should be mounted close to the panel enclosure using a close nipple, or chase nipple.
Here is a great video that shows why the Type 2 SPD should be installed next to the panel enclosure near the 2 pole 20A breaker that's best installed close as possible to the panel main breaker or main lug only feed lugs. Factory lead wires from SPD should be cut to keep leads as short as possible without creating any sharp bends.
Eaton- Surge Protection
I attended a power Quality Seminar where this actual test was demonstrated. (No smoke and mirrors used in the demonstration.)
.
 
Siemens First Surge SPD Installation guide.
Mount SPD as close to panel or equipment as possible to keep leads short.
(long leads hurt performance).
▪ Ensure leads are as short and straight as possible, including neutral and ground. Use a breaker position that is close to the SPD and the
panel’s neutral and ground.
Above video verifies the case...
.
 
erik_squires OP
16,212 posts
 

I’m in Missouri and have never heard of needing whole house anything and I can use a 29cent receptacle anywhere except for within 6’ of water.

@curiousjim In terms of outlets, that’s pretty much still true but where some kitchen appliances were previously excluded (diswhasher, range, microwave) they are now very much included in GFCI requirements. The clothes washer and dryer are also now on team GFCI required as well.  The code does not require you to go retrofit all these appliances but if building new after 2023 you should.

So a big change is the 240V GFCI breakers which need to be used in the case of an electric dryer and/or range.

The only thing I noticed that was different was that the buttons on the 110 outlets were both white instead of (red and black)in the new laundry room. I also had to rebuild a bathroom ( no fun at all!) and I was required to use the same 110 plug with the white buttons.

GFCI outlets can come with pure white buttons. It’s purely a cosmetic difference though. I find pure white GFCI outlets to be prettier in the kitchen and bathroom. I also have a pure brown GFCI outlet under a counter which matches the brown panelling better. Again, no difference in terms of code or safety.

 

forgot to ask, why do I want a whole house surge protector when everything important is either on a power conditioner, with a magnetic surge protector or a UPS for the computers, NAS, Router etc?

I’m in kind of the same boat. Besides my expensive and difficult to fix audio/video gear I have a bunch of computer and networking gear running around the house. All of it on separate surge protectors. Furman on A/V and Tripp Lite or APC for the rest of it.

I still put in a whole house panel because none of that keeps my other 50 or so devices protected. You may not think your furnace, washing machine, fire alarms or home automation switches are important, but I do. :)

Would I need one for the sub panel?

Not required. I’d consider one if 50’ or more from the main panel mostly to help in case of an induced surge. Also good idea if you have a separate building such as a workshop or detached garage.

And what is involved in installing one or maybe two whole house surge protectors?

I like to use in-panel protectors like Siemens Bolt Shield or Square D SurgeBreaker. They have 1 neutral wire and plug right into the panel. The hard part is getting the two slots as close to the main switch as possible. In my case I had to move all the breakers on one side down 2 slots.

The more common surge protectors are separate units with wires and a 2 pole breaker just for them. My least favorite option mostly because the length of the leads can increase the clamping voltage on a fast rise time surge due to increased inductance and resistance.

erik_squires OP
16,212 posts
 

@61falcon

Do they still have exceptions e.g. single receptacle, non GFCI for sump pump or freezer to reduce possibility of ghost trip?

Refrigerators can still trip a GFCI outlet, but are not excluded.  In other words the outlets need to be 6' away from a sink.  If you must install a freezer near a sink the solution is to have it directly connected and avoid the outlet and plug altogether.

Things get a little weird with dishwashers now though.  They require GFCI regardless of how they are wired.

Sump pumps are still required when plug/cord connected in dwelling areas AFAIK but do not need it when direct wired.

The same is true for disposals.  Direct wired don't need GFCI but cord/plug connected do.  The latter is most likely when your sink is in an island and you must use an air switch to turn it on/off instead of a wall switch.

erik_squires OP
16,212 posts
 

The Siemens Type 2 SPD is too far from the panel. It should be mounted close to the panel enclosure using a close nipple, or chase nipple.

I’m afraid I agree with @jea48 ’s assessment. I wasn’t going to say anything. An alternative of course is to use an in-panel version like the BoltShield, but the recommendation to mount it as close to the main breaker still applies.

jea48
4,471 posts
 

@erik_squires 

Per NEC 2023 all outlets in a kitchen shall be GFCI protected.

With that said not all States have adopted the 2023 NEC. My state is still working under the 2020 NEC. (The AHJ has the final say.)

https://www.nfpa.org/education-and-research/electrical/nec-enforcement-maps

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