Placement of backfeed breaker

[truav8r]

I have a GE 200A panel. This is capable of using either the "regular" GE breakers, or the "thin" GE breakers. So for a double pole breaker, they come in either 2" wide regular size, or 1" wide thin size. Other than the thickness, there is no functional difference between the 2 sizes AFAIK.

My question is... Knowing that the backfeed breaker has to go at the opposite end of the panel from the main feed (which means at the bottom, in my case), can I use a thin double pole breaker in the spot circled in red (see attached pic) or do I have to use the thicker double pole style and place it in the spot circled in yellow?

The spot circled in red is the lowest usable space for a thin-style double pole breaker in this panel. So if I put the breaker in the red circle, are you allowed to have a single-pole breaker right below it?? Technically, the red space is the bottom-most 240V space, it's just not the absolute bottom space in the panel.

Surely you guys have used these GE panels before... Can I use the spot circled in red for my backfeed, or do I need to hog up 4 spaces and go with the yellow space on the left? Just trying to conserve space in the panel. Thanks for the help.

[foo1bar]

Surely you guys have used these GE panels before... Can I use the spot circled in red for my backfeed, or do I need to hog up 4 spaces and go with the yellow space on the left? Just trying to conserve space in the panel. Thanks for the help.

IMO there's no real safety issue with using the spot in red.
But whether the inspector will be OK with it - that's something for you to find out from him/her.

[skipro3]

Never heard that the solar feed breaker has to go at the far end. I have a Murry panel. My200 amp main is in the middle AND my solar feeds it from a sub panel that is right next to the main.

[sensij]

Never heard that the solar feed breaker has to go at the far end. I have a Murry panel. My200 amp main is in the middle AND my solar feeds it from a sub panel that is right next to the main.

Sounds like you have some kind of line side tap. For the op, if there is a breaker below the pv breaker, there would be grounds for rejecting it. If you clearly illustrate it in the permit package and it gets approved, your chances of passing an inspection will be higher.

[inetdog]

Is the breaker in the 2,4.6,8 location your main breaker? If so that gives an inspector an even greater latitude to reject either the red or the yellow positions if he is feeling bad that day.

Technically, you need to have the backfed breaker all the way at the other end of the bus, with nothing beyond it, to qualify to use the 120% rule.
The 120% rule allows the sum of the main breaker rating and the PV backfeed (output rating or breaker size depending on code year) to be as much as 120% of the rating of the bus bar in the panel.

If you do not meet that location requirement you have two remaining choices:
1. The sum of the main and the backfeed must not exceed the bus rating at all, or
2. The sum of all of the load breakers must not exceed the bus rating. (That is only if you are under the 2014 NEC, and requires a prominent label not to add load breakers or increase the size of existing ones. It is very unlikely that a normal residential panel will meed the load breaker requirement in the first place.

[truav8r]

Is the breaker in the 2,4.6,8 location your main breaker? If so that gives an inspector an even greater latitude to reject either the red or the yellow positions if he is feeling bad that day.

No sorry, I didn't get the main 200A breaker in the photo. It is located in a separate space just above the pic. The large breaker at the top right is a 100A feeding my 100A garage subpanel.

I'll run it by my installer today (they are finally hanging the modules today!!) but I'll be fully prepared to get rejected. Not a big deal really.

Thanks for the input everyone.

[SunEagle]

No sorry, I didn't get the main 200A breaker in the photo. It is located in a separate space just above the pic. The large breaker at the top right is a 100A feeding my 100A garage subpanel.

I'll run it by my installer today (they are finally hanging the modules today!!) but I'll be fully prepared to get rejected. Not a big deal really.

Thanks for the input everyone.

When you check with your electrician ask if you might be able to use the bottom two "spaces" on the right side for your pv breaker if you can move that single pole breaker at the very bottom up 2 places.

Or use the bottom two spaces on the left (yellow area) and change out the blanks as needed.