Sub panel question from a DIYer

[Maureen]

New/old house. There's some indication that the electrician was drunk, or the owner just had his/her own way of doing things and knew the inspector.
Every time we try to turn off a circuit, my hub goes through every breaker in the main box. None turn off that circuit. Next stop, the sub- panel. That always turns off the circuit. What is going on here?

I'm always on the dumb end of this process, so I don't know if it is the same breaker in the sub.

 

[Megawatt]

New/old house. There's some indication that the electrician was drunk, or the owner just had his/her own way of doing things and knew the inspector.
Every time we try to turn off a circuit, my hub goes through every breaker in the main box. None turn off that circuit. Next stop, the sub- panel. That always turns off the circuit. What is going on here?

I'm always on the dumb end of this process, so I don't know if it is the same breaker in the sub.

First off what do you mean by your HUB. you have a main panel and 1 sub panel and the particular circuit is being fed from the sub panel not the main panel. The reason for sub panels is you probably don’t have enough space in your main panel and the electrician added a sub panel to provide more circuitry where power is needed.

 

[Maureen]

Hub is husband.
And what you said is completely logical, and what we expected. But we've done 6 or seven repairs/replacements and each and every circuit required shutting a breaker on the sub-panel, even though the circuit was marked on the main panel. We ----u-med that eventually at LEAST one circuit would be from the main panel in its marked slot. But so far that has not happened a single time. In different zones of an 1,800 square foot house.

 

[Megawatt]

Hub is husband.
And what you said is completely logical, and what we expected. But we've done 6 or seven repairs/replacements and each and every circuit required shutting a breaker on the sub-panel, even though the circuit was marked on the main panel. We ----u-med that eventually at LEAST one circuit would be from the main panel in its marked slot. But so far that has not happened a single time. In different zones of an 1,800 square foot house.

It sounds like the electrician didn’t have a clue on labeling the correct breakers to the correct breakers. I’m going to assume that your main panel has your big loads in it. Your HVAC unit, range or stove, dryer, water heater etc. Good luck

 

[Maureen]

It sounds like the electrician didn’t have a clue on labeling the correct breakers to the correct breakers. I’m going to assume that your main panel has your big loads in it. Your HVAC unit, range or stove, dryer, water heater etc. Good luck

That has been our assumption all along. But when trying to find the correct breaker for an outlet or light, we have flipped every one of the main breakers, to no avail. 100% seems mighty purposeful to me. And there are one 60, one 50 and one 40 Amp on the main. The rest 20 and below. And every one on the sub is 15 Amp + one double 15 amp.

 

[Megawatt]

That has been our assumption all along. But when trying to find the correct breaker for an outlet or light, we have flipped every one of the main breakers, to no avail. 100% seems mighty purposeful to me. And there are one 60, one 50 and one 40 Amp on the main. The rest 20 and below. And every one on the sub is 15 Amp + one double 15 amp.

 

[Megawatt]

That has been our assumption all along. But when trying to find the correct breaker for an outlet or light, we have flipped every one of the main breakers, to no avail. 100% seems mighty purposeful to me. And there are one 60, one 50 and one 40 Amp on the main. The rest 20 and below. And every one on the sub is 15 Amp + one double 15 amp.

I don’t know how old your house is but the panel outside beside your meter should have a main disconnect either being a 100 amp or 200 amp to kill all power to your house. Years ago electricians would double tap the meter and then each panel operates independently. By code the sub panel should be fed from the main panel with a main breaker, the reason for that is for the fire department so they can turn off 1 breaker to kill all power to your house.