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Comment on Connecting a Portable Generator to the Home Main Electric Panel

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I chose the Square D Circuit Breaker, 60 Amp, 2-Pole, QO260 instead of the QO230CP QO 30-Amp Two-Pole Circuit Breaker because the price difference was negligible and I always liked the concept of over-sizing specifications.

Big mistake! The breakers in your service panel are to protect your wiring from overheating by drawing too much current. The 10ga wire he used is only rated for 30A, so it should be on a 30A breaker. Having more current than that could melt the cable or damage the generator. Bigger isn't always better when it comes to circuit breakers

The generator has a 2P 30A circuit breaker protecting the L14-30 output, the backfeed breaker isn’t acting as overcurrent protection (it’s just a disconnecting means) so the oversizing is OK in this case.

In general and excluding inductive motors, your advice is correct.

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