200A CTs won’t fit in panel

[jeffroper]

I have a Emporia on one of my subpanels and it works fine. I am now trying to install a second Emporia on the main panel. My main panel isn’t fed by conductor wires. The utility company meter is adjacent to the panel and feeds the panel by metal bars, (see pictures below). I there isn’t enough room to clamp the 200A CTs around these metal bars.

Can I omit the 200A CTs and just use the 50A ones? Alternatively, if I attach the 200A CTs to the conductors before the meter will it work? I know the utility company won’t like it, but it shouldn’t mess with their meter in any way, right?

 

[djwakelee]

For the panels with the integrated meter (California and other western states), Emporia recommends the flexible sensors…

https://www.emporiaenergy.com/flexible-current-sensors

That said, they also say these should be installed by an electrician as you have to disconnect the mains (or main breaker) to install these.  So, not as DIY as the other stuff.

Although you may physically be able to install the clamps before the meter at the incoming conductors, you’d have to open that section of the panel – and it has the anti-tamper tag.  You’d also have to get the sense wires out of that partition – which looks somewhat sealed.  I’m sure your utility company would not approve of this, even though the clamps would not disrupt their measurement.

In your case, if you don’t want to use the alternate clamps – yes, you could monitor all the circuits in this panel with the 50A clamps and not look at the mains.  The software won’t sum the loads, but it will work and you can monitor and graph the individual circuits.  There is a balance figure that will sum the total if you put clamps on everything, but you can’t graph that.  You do have some big current breakers (100A and 70A), but you can use the 50A clamps if they physically fit over the wires and those circuits stay under 50A in normal operation.

• This reply was modified 3 years, 4 months ago by djwakelee.

[jeffroper]

Thanks for the response. I have ordered the flexible sensors. I guess these sensors don’t open up like the standard ones, so I will have to unbolt the main conductors to fish the loop around them? If so, the 200A main breaker will probably need to be removed. I draw the line at working on hot conductors. Maybe time to call my neighbor the electrician.

[djwakelee]

Correct – the CT sensors for the bus bars do not flip open like the other CTs, hence Emporia’s recommendation to have an electrician do the work when using those.  I’m sure you could use a quality brand high-voltage rated insulated screw driver to remove the main breaker and then access the now disconnected bus bars, but not something to be done without understanding the safety implications, proper re-torque specs, etc.

[jeffroper]

Good news. I just received this email from Kevin at Emporia. Apparently the flex sensors do come apart for easy install. I may not have to bug my neighbor the electrician after all.

Kevin (Emporia Energy)
Jul 20, 2021, 10:30 MDT

No need to remove the breaker, the Flexible Sensors will “snap” apart (at the base of the ring) so you can attach them similarly as the other sensors (clamping them around the wire).

[djwakelee]

Awesome – great to hear.

[OrrinC]

I have a similar problem with a Sylvania panel at my house.  I’m wondering if the Emporia Utility Connect can be used in lieu of the 200A CT’s?

[Emporia Support]

Hell0,

We do sell flexible sensors that can fit in may busbar configured panels.

Pair of 200A Flexible Sensors for Gen 2 Vue

Emporia Support

Marty

[yyzguy]

Your panel looks very much like my panel and I can tell you the flexible sensors were easy to install.   In your picture  (mine too), the busbars located below the main breaker will be de-energized when you turn off the main breaker. …no electrician needed.     You can purchase an inexpensive contactless voltage sensor from a big box store to verify there’s no power  (I did, it would be crazy to not check first).

https://www.amazon.com/Non-Contact-Detector-Klein-Tools-NCVT1P/dp/B099SJ6469

[Author]

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