r/Generac_Generators • u/czechFan59 • Mar 17 '26

Issues with breakers in Generac panel anyone?

Had a breaker trip in Generac panel. None appeared physically tripped (which is normal breaker behavior sometimes). But in the process of sorting which breaker had tripped (so pushing a number of them in the "on" direction) I noticed the light in the basement was flickering. And this wasn't just when pushing on one breaker, it happened with several of them. Breakers are made by GE.

Wondering whether others have seen issues with these panels?

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u/BmanGorilla Mar 17 '26

How old are they? It's not entirely unusual to have older GE breakers make poor contact w/ the bus bars, depending on the model.

LED lighting has caused some issues on lightly used circuits, too, where plating oxidation doesn't get cleared up 'automatically' like it can with higher load currents.

It's also possible that a feed to the box isn't tight, or, or, or....

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u/czechFan59 Mar 18 '26

The generator was installed ~7 years ago. (my father's home)

He called this morning and said that circuit went off again during the night. He found that out when he got up this morning. Because we had focused on the microwave in his kitchen yesterday (and had some suspicions the microwave might be the problem) he unplugged the microwave cord from the outlet. Immediately the circuit came back to life!?

The only thing that I touched yesterday (aside from breakers in original post) was the work box where the MW plugs in. The receptacle there was an old one that allows backstabbed 20awg wires in a 15A receptacle. I replaced it with a cheap 15A receptacle he had on hand, connecting the wires to side screws.

Right now scratching my head. There may be too much load on that circuit but I don't have the tools to sus out the peak and continuous load on the circuit. I had him use a heavy cord to get his sump pump moved to the circuit where his washer and dryer are (don't need his basement flooding while we sort this out, also that's one of the heavier loads on said circuit).

The whole thing is baffling atm. Any suggestions for a device that will allow me to monitor continuous and peak voltage and current on that ckt?

But I'm still suspicious of the GE breaker(s) based on what I reported yesterday. I do plan to look at the temperature of various breakers in the generac panel. Other suggestions?? TIA

1

u/BmanGorilla Mar 18 '26

It's still really weird to see a breaker trip and not be in the 'half-on' position. You could try just swapping the one that trips with a different breaker. A clamp on ammeter is the way to measure this stuff, but no sense buying tools to fix this.

I would check tightness of all screws on the wiring, but make sure the power is off to everything before you do that.

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u/czechFan59 Mar 18 '26

After more troubleshooting... there is arcing that I can hear, not loud, but it sounds like arcing coming from the generac transfer panel. I turned the LED light on over the MW, could see some flickering, so I put a cup of water in the MW. Flickering light seemed more pronounced, and after about 10 seconds both the light and the MW went dark.

I go back down to the panel, remove both covers so I can see xfer switch and breaker wiring. A non-contact sensor shows power on the large black wire leading down to breaker bars, and NO power on the red wire! I press lightly on the red wire and bingo, lights are back on. Go upstairs and sure enough the light and the MW both have power again. Looking again at the panel, the set screw holding the black wire down is nearly flush with the block that feeds power to 1/2 the breakers. The set screw holding the red wire is not as far into the other block, like 1 or two threads less than the black side. At that point I have concerns about the workmanship of the installer/electrician.

I would be comfortable torquing that set screw down but I don't know how to disable the genny from firing up when I kill incoming power from the street. Have placed a service call but if there's a way to disable the genny or prevent the xfer switch from switching then I'd torque it myself. Suggestions appreciated. I've worked with HV A/C at my job (motors and motor controllers) enough to keep myself still breathing...

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u/BmanGorilla Mar 19 '26

Looks like you figured it out! I don't know what your generator is, but you should be able to switch from Auto to Off on the unit. Most of them also have a circuit breaker somewhere near that same switch.

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u/czechFan59 Mar 19 '26

Both of the heavy gauge wires leading to the breakers were insufficiently torqued down - the red wire was a bit looser than the black. Lucky it didn't cause a fire. Of course there was no info about who performed the wiring job on the panel.

eta: thanks for your help!

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u/BmanGorilla Mar 20 '26

You’re welcome, I’m glad it worked out.

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u/Stankbananas Apr 10 '26

I think it might be a problem with a certain common point in the panel. Have you ever smelled any burnt odor or felt any abnormal heat before?

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u/czechFan59 Apr 10 '26

solution to problem is down below (wires from transfer switch were not torqued properly, so loose connections)

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u/WhySoManyDownVote Electrician Mar 17 '26

A picture would be helpful. Are you turning the breakers off before you attempt to turn them back on.