Warning: nearly lost a finger on a 3 year old panel in Phoenix

Last Tuesday I was swapping out a breaker in a house built back in 2020. The panel was a cheap brand, I won't name it, but the bus bar had corrosion I didn't see at first. I went to snap the new breaker in and there was a short that blew the end off my screwdriver. My hand was about 2 inches from the arc. I've been doing this for 12 years and that was the closest call I've had. The homeowner said the panel had been acting up for months but nobody wanted to replace it because of cost. Now I'm telling every guy I work with to check those bus bars before touching anything in a panel over 2 years old. Has anyone else seen corrosion this bad in newer panels?

3 comments

3 Comments

the_hayden14d ago

Dude that's terrifying. I had almost the exact same thing happen with a panel from 2019 in Florida, the bus bar looked fine until I took a closer look and it was all eaten up. Told the homeowner right there it was getting replaced or I was walking, no way I'm risking my face for that.

evan_grant7013d ago

Wait, 2019? That panel was practically brand new, there's no way it should have been that corroded already. I've seen plenty of bus bars get eaten up after 10-15 years, but four years in Florida weather is insane. That's a serious manufacturing defect or some kind of moisture issue in the box itself.

the_lucas13d ago

...and honestly I don't blame you one bit, I've got a bad habit of touching stuff I shouldn't and my track record with electricity is basically a series of small lessons learned the hard way. Every time I open a panel I'm half expecting to find a surprise waiting for me, like a nest of angry hornets or a bus bar that's been munching on itself. I've gotten real good at squinting real hard and taking a deep breath before I commit to sticking my nose in there. It's like the panel knows I'm scared and keeps trying to humble me.