can someone please help

Forums: Electrical, Unintelligible, Home Improvement, Home Repair, Wiring
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ok so i got a main breaker box that is full and i cant add there but i do have a sub panel that has open spots i need to run a 20a breaker to run a waterfall pump some out side lights and a outlet to do thing by the pool so the sub has opening but the problem is that the the breaker type is z and the cost alot 65$ for the breaker justt by its self i also looked up changeing the sub to a new type of breaker and it would cost me about 55$ to put in a new sub and buy new breakers for the new box the 10$ saving does not matter to me and i dont care about the work to change out the sub but what would you do in my case im leaning twords replaceing the box because if say a breaker goes out then im looking at higher cost to fix it some day the sub has one 20a breaker one 2pole 20a breaker and one 2pole 15a breaker in it now all i need to add is the 20a breaker and run the line but would it be better to just change the sub now or just wait itell later also the only thing the sub runs is pool stuff light and stuff

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@mtchvanbeek,

Quote:

what would you do in my case ...

If it were me, I'd hire a licensed electrician. My safety and my property are far too valuable to me to get it wrong.

Then I'd find out where the punctuation marks are on the keyboard.

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@Ragman,

thanks for your imput but i dont need a licensed electrician i know how to run it myself just wanted some input from others on what the would do in my case that is the reson people post stuff on site like this as for punctuations ya your right i should but i dont realy care thanks for you woundful help buddy.....

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@mtchvanbeek,

Can I bring some marshmallow to the campfire?

Let me ask you whether or not you're going to get it inspected and a building permit?

Oh .. I see! you're not. So if and when there's a fire, and your insurance doesn't cover you...at all, that's acceptable?

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@Ragman,

well if i do change the box i would have it inspected if im just adding the breaker no i would not i have been doing this kinda work work for many years and do know what im doing im not just some dumb ass trying to save money the thing im asking has nothing to do with how to do the job its asking other people what they would do replace the box or just put the 65$ breaker in i do know is i put the box in there is all kinda upgrade the i would need to now bring up to code and were not code back when the box was frist installed like adding gfi breakers rather then your everyday breaker thats why i would go down and get the permit if i change out the box but just running the line to the old box there is no need for that

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@mtchvanbeek,

If it were my house, given the additional information you've posted, I would not keep putting bandaids on a known already bad situation. If money was not the issue, I would bring it all up to code and, if needed, replace the box. Not doing so just passes the buck to the next person to occupy the house and puts your house and family at unnecessary risk.

It will also increase the resale value of your house since you won't have to take a lower offer when the wiring doesn't pass the buyer's inspection.

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@mtchvanbeek,

How many spaces you have left in that additional box?

I ask, because if you are running a new circuit, then you may need to run lights separate from outlets. So you might need "two breakers" instead of one.

If you have existing lights outside, you should just add the new ones to the same circuit. I say this, because in case of a short circuit with the outlets, you will still have lights at night.

Anyway, chances for a circuit breaker to go bad are rare, unless it is expose to lots of overloads, a bad connection, and so forth.

You can find circuit breakers type Z online starting at $30.00. Right now on eBay there is a 20 amp single pole double breaker for 29 bucks. You can use it to run two circuits using one space.

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can someone please help

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