Load Centers

Safely protecting and distributing your electricity.

Load centers, also referred to as fuse boxes or breaker boxes, are used to distribute electricity throughout a building and its different receptacles. They house the main switch (which supplies the electricity to the building) and residual current devices (which trip in overload situations and other emergency conditions). The large majority of load centers are used for residential applications, both small-scale and large-scale, though they can be used in light commercial applications as well.

The two main categories of load centers.

All types of load centers from meter load centers to ground fault load centers to arc fault load centers can be divided into two main categories: main breaker and main lug load centers. Main breaker load centers are always service entrance-rated, while main lug load centers typically are not. Main breaker load centers receive incoming power through the main breaker, which goes through the load center, which then distribute power throughout its various connected circuits. The main breaker also provides overcurrent protection and can halt power flow if necessary by serving as the main disconnect.

Main lug load centers, on the other hand, do not have a main breaker. Incoming power feeds directly into the bus bars or main lugs. Circuit protection is not built into a main lug load center and a circuit breaker located further down the line of the electrical system provides overcurrent protection.