Re: [SM] Lightning Strike or More than you ever wanted to

[James Rice]

Speaking AS a semi-retired electrican, who still holds a master's 
ticket; That my be true where you live, but in this area (Texas) the 
meter almost always backs up to the load center with the main leads fed 
through a pipe nipple directly into the load center. So the only means 
of disconnecting the power to the main breaker in the load center is 
pulling the meter.  Laws vary, but anti-tampering laws in Texas may get 
your power cut off permanently if a home owner cuts the seal and pulls 
his/her own meter without holding a valid electrical license.  Not to 
mention I really hate seeing home owners poke around in a live meter 
base.  Flash burns can be really nasty.

There are exceptions for a homeowner who is installing and/or upgrading 
the service to their own home, but the rules also vary from town to 
town. One of my main gripes about electrical licensing in Texas was the 
local codes varied way too much from city to city.  Always check with 
the code enforcement authorities in you home city first.

Speaking NOT as an electrician, if your house is fairly new or has had a
recent service upgrade to higher amperage, there will be a main disconnect
box between your load center (breaker box) and the electric meter.
This main disconnect typically is outside the house next to the meter.
If you have the typical setup, i.e., a load center with a main breaker,
there is an element of danger in tinkering in the panel even if the main
breaker in the box is turned off.
During a fully inspected upgrade to 200-amp at our house, I installed a main
disconnect outside, and although not required, there is also a main breaker
in the load center as well as overkill safety measure.


--
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