All posts by Cody Whisenhunt, President, BCS Switchgear

BCS Switchgear is an industry leader in new and obsolete electrical control and distribution equipment. Since 1997, BCS has been servicing customers to extend electrical life of low and medium voltage electrical power equipment. Cody can be reached by email: [email protected]

GE Power Break I Circuit Breaker Considerations

GE Power Break I

by Jim Hardy

We’ve provided this GE Power Break I resource with hard-to-find technical information. The problem is that since this is an obsolete product, there is limited information available about GE Power Break I breakers.  End users like options. PB 1 breakers were obsoleted about 20 years ago! Parts are hard to find. GE has designs that modify their current production Power Break II to fit into the same space as the Power Break 1 —  with minor switchgear modifications. There’s a GE kit to do this.  GE also has a facility that specializes in these projects.  Schneider Electric has  designs using their current-production MasterPact breaker.  However the MasterPact product can only be installed by Square D Field Service.

GE Power Break I Options

Years Manufactured
1965 – 2008
Electrical info
600 volts AC
Amp range      100 – 4000 amp

OEM Support
Discontinued in 2008. (GEA18416)
Parts availability – No new parts available from GE?
Power Break II replacement option (DEA-520)

 

Interrupting Capacity
240V ac 480V ac 600V ac
envelope/frame size
Standard 800A 65 65 42
1600A 85 65 50
2000A 85 65 50
3000A 100 100 85
4000A 100 100 85
240V ac 480V ac 600V ac
High Break 800A 100 100 65
1600A 125 100 65
2000A 125 100 65
3000A 200 150 100
4000A 200 150 100

Frame Sizes

800 amp           manual           12” X 13.5” X  11.09”

                         electric           12‘ X 13” X  13.97”

1600 amp                               17.5” X 13.5” X  11.09”

2000 amp                               20.06” X 13.5” X  11.09”

3000 amp        manual            20.06” X 15” X  12.38”

electric            20.06” X 15” X  16.88”

4000 amp                               33.15” X 18.25” X 14.25”

Frame              THP

Type                PowerBreak 1

Type Trip         MicroVersatrip

SelecTrip

VersaTrip

MagneTrip

Connection      Draw-out/Bolt-in – Front connected & rear connected

Amp Range      200 – 4000 amp

Aftermarket Options

Parts: only from equipment dealers like BCS switchgear.

Repairs: Limited repairs possible with insulated case breakers, but can be done by most NETA and factory owned circuit breaker shops.

Replacement: Replacement by used breaker from a variety of sources, including BCS Switchgear

New Direct replacement: No switchgear modifications: There does not appear to be one available.

New Retrofill/Retrofit – switchgear modifications required.

ABB

GE – Kits for fixed mount breakers only

Square D

Power Break I Frames

TP, THP, TC, THC, TPMM, THPMM, TUPMM, TPYY, THPYY, TCMM, THCMM, TCYY, THCYY

BCS Switchgear can help you choose the right switchgear or breaker solution for your application. Our product experts are standing by to help.

GE Power Break I

by Jim Hardy

We’ve provided this GE Power Break I resource with hard-to-find technical information. The problem is that since this is an obsolete product, there is limited information available about GE Power Break I breakers.  End users like options. PB 1 breakers were obsoleted about 20 years ago! Parts are hard to find. GE has designs that modify their current production Power Break II to fit into the same space as the Power Break 1 —  with minor switchgear modifications. There’s a GE kit to do this.  GE also has a facility that specializes in these projects.  Schneider Electric has  designs using their current-production MasterPact breaker.  However the MasterPact product can only be installed by Square D Field Service.

GE Power Break I Options

Years Manufactured
1965 – 2008
Electrical info
600 volts AC
Amp range      100 – 4000 amp

OEM Support
Discontinued in 2008. (GEA18416)
Parts availability – No new parts available from GE?
Power Break II replacement option (DEA-520)

 

Interrupting Capacity
240V ac 480V ac 600V ac
envelope/frame size
Standard 800A 65 65 42
1600A 85 65 50
2000A 85 65 50
3000A 100 100 85
4000A 100 100 85
240V ac 480V ac 600V ac
High Break 800A 100 100 65
1600A 125 100 65
2000A 125 100 65
3000A 200 150 100
4000A 200 150 100

Frame Sizes

800 amp           manual           12” X 13.5” X  11.09”

                         electric           12‘ X 13” X  13.97”

1600 amp                               17.5” X 13.5” X  11.09”

2000 amp                               20.06” X 13.5” X  11.09”

3000 amp        manual            20.06” X 15” X  12.38”

electric            20.06” X 15” X  16.88”

4000 amp                               33.15” X 18.25” X 14.25”

Frame              THP

Type                PowerBreak 1

Type Trip         MicroVersatrip

SelecTrip

VersaTrip

MagneTrip

Connection      Draw-out/Bolt-in – Front connected & rear connected

Amp Range      200 – 4000 amp

Aftermarket Options

Parts: only from equipment dealers like BCS switchgear.

Repairs: Limited repairs possible with insulated case breakers, but can be done by most NETA and factory owned circuit breaker shops.

Replacement: Replacement by used breaker from a variety of sources, including BCS Switchgear

New Direct replacement: No switchgear modifications: There does not appear to be one available.

New Retrofill/Retrofit – switchgear modifications required.

ABB

GE – Kits for fixed mount breakers only

Square D

Power Break I Frames

TP, THP, TC, THC, TPMM, THPMM, TUPMM, TPYY, THPYY, TCMM, THCMM, TCYY, THCYY

BCS Switchgear can help you choose the right switchgear or breaker solution for your application. Our product experts are standing by to help.

GE Powerbreak I – Pros and Cons

GE Power Break I

4 things to consider when selecting PB1 Breakers

by Jim Hardy

We recently sold a reconditioned General Electric Power Break I (PB1) circuit breaker. During the sales process, our customer asked us to quote a new breaker, as well. As it turned out, GE discontinued manufacturing the PB1 in 2008 (GE publication GEA18416).

There are still new surplus breakers available, but that number is decreasing over time. You might be interested in what we found, so we’re sharing our research. Our research was based on a facility replacing existing circuit breakers. 

There was no emergency, but they had an outage scheduled 3 weeks in the future when they’d be planning to install the breaker. Facilities undergoing major renovation or upgrades have different considerations.

GE Power Break I - Pros and Cons

1. Replace GE PB Switchgear

Available from all of the major equipment manufacturers (ABB/GE, Eaton, Siemens, Square D).  There are also a number of OEM’s that specialize in specific markets, such as data centers or oil & gas.

PRO
Equipment up to current standards
Reduced maintenance costs
Increased safety

CON
Expense
Lead time
Environmental impact

2. Retrofill PB1

Power Break II into a PB1 retrofill kit available from ABB/GE for fixed mount frames only. Drawout breakers are retrofit and installed by GE Engineering Services. (GE publication DEA-520) According to GE, minor switchgear modifications are required. Schneider (Square D) offers a Masterpact retrofill that is available through Square D Field Services. Switchgear modifications required.

PRO
Equipment up to current standards
Reduced maintenance costs
Increased safety
Usually an operating expense 

CON
Expense (significantly less than replacing switchgear)
Lead time (significantly less than replacing switchgear)

3. Retrofit GE PB1

ABB/GE Entelliguard TU Trip unit is available for trip unit conversion. Utility Relay Company has the AC Pro and AC Pro II retrofit kits available. This is what the customer actually ended up ordering. Retrofit kit installed and tested by BCS Switchgear.

PRO
Modern features, such as communication, available
Increased safety available
Minimal to no downtime
Usually classified as operating expense

CON
Increasing maintenance costs

4. Reconditioned PB1 Switchgear

Available through BCS Switchgear. Reconditioned and tested to NETA standards. In this case, the end user decided to purchase a reconditioned circuit breaker with an AC Pro II retrofit kit installed. That option best fit their schedule.

PRO
Reduced maintenance costs
Increased safety
Minimal to no lead time

CON
Equipment might not be up to most current standards
Increasing maintenance costs

Years Manufactured
1965 – 2008
Electrical info
600 volts AC
Amp range      100 – 4000 amp

GE Power Break 1 OEM Support
Discontinued in 2008. (GEA18416)
Parts availability – No new parts available from GE?
Power Break II replacement option (DEA-520)

 

Comments about other pros and cons are welcome. We would also appreciate comments from those who have been involved in retrofits and refills.
BCS Switchgear can help you choose the right switchgear or breaker solution for your application. Our product experts are standing by to help.