Square D QO vs Homeline?

[longez]

It's time to order the electrical gear for our new all-electric home. One Square D i-Line HCN14526 panel board with three QBA222002 thermal magnetic 200A breakers feeding three 225A 40 space load centers. I can have QO load centers/breakers or save some $$ and use Square D Homeline. Any guidance or experience on one over the other?

 

[sublimate]

You'll probably get better responses to this in the electrical section.

 

[longez]

You'll probably get better responses to this in the electrical section.

Thanks; I wonder if a mod could move it for me so I avoid cross-posting?

 

[nine4gmc]

pm one, they'll move it.

 

[zmaxmotorsports]

I was told around 20 years ago when I was opening my shop by a sales rep for sq-d that the qo and home line were identical internally other than the visa trip.
That being said Ive always used the Qo panels on commercial jobs and the Home line stuff for residential jobs.
Ive never had an issue with either style of panel.

 

[Notgrownup]

My wife works for Eaton so I went with Eaton/ Cutler Hammer. I was told the the difference between Homeline and others was minimal...
I don't know if it's true or not. Homeline sells craploads of stuff and we don't hear about the breakers leaking coolant or the drive shaft cracking,,,
I was gonna get Homeline but for 75 bux I got a 24/24 mainlug with 8 20A 2 20a/220, 1 30a/220 & 1 50A/220 delivered.. The Eaton was a no brainer.

 

[nick2010tundra]

Just a little interesting fact about Square D QO breakers. When I built my camp, which is run off solar, the only approved breaker for Dc voltages was Square D. They use a different trip Mechanism than the other brands and it allows them to work on Dc as well.

I Just built and it wasn't a question or an option, SQ D QO or leave my site, I am a lineman and end up at a lot of houses in the middle of the night for bad breakers, never seen a Sq D panel fail

 

[Notgrownup]

Square D is a good brand, no question. When I worked for Crouse Hinds Electrical and we made explosion proof boxes, contractors would spec Square D a lot of the time.

 

[slow]

I would go QO as well.



Ryan

 

[longez]

That makes it simple; QO it is. We'll be fairly remote, and getting an electrician out to solve a potential service issue could take days.

 

[NUTTSGT]

I think you made a smart move going with the QO box. Now in the future if you build a detached garage/shop, use a QO panel in there too. That will allow you to "borrow" a breaker from the garage if one in the home does fail Christmas Eve during a snowstorm.

Even though you've made your decision, I'll still move this for you.

 

[Mustang51js]

I've had both QO and homeline breakers fail, as well as other brands. Only difference is the breakers where the QO has orange tab when tripped where homeline doesnt

 

[Notgrownup]

I will now have Cutler Hammer in the shop, GE in the Main panel at the meter box and G\E in the inside the house panel... No issues yet.

 

[volleyball]

The homeline breakers are wider if memory serves. So if you run a lot of breakers, it takes up more room. Do they make a 40 space homeline?

 

[Thumper68]

I have always liked the QO, and have them everywhere I can, Makes it nice to only have one style of breaker. Unfortounatly at the lake place I have 3 different kinds, Squared D QO in the shop, in my sisters trailer, panel in my parents cabin and in the power station for guests to plug their trailers into. GE on the pole that feeds my cabin and my parents cabin, and some weird off brand in my cabin.

At some point I will get them all the same, if I live long enough.

 

[longez]

This is my last home and am trying to get it "just right" since I'm starting from raw land. The 5,700sf house has a 1,300sf attached garage, but I'm planning for a future 40'x60' shop a couple hundred yards behind us. The i-Line panel box will have (3) 200 amp main breakers for the load centers and a 125 amp main for the future shop. The QO loadcenters and breakers aren't that much more; it may add ~$1K to the house...maybe less. The 600A i-Line panelbox and thermomagnetic breakers are the most expensive electrical gizmos.

I'm having a tough time keeping ahead of the contractor in all the design and equipment decisions, but am sure having fun!

 

[zmaxmotorsports]

The homeline breakers are wider if memory serves. So if you run a lot of breakers, it takes up more room. Do they make a 40 space homeline?

The homeline breakers are no wider than ge full size/ch or any of the other full size breakers on the market,and if its a homeline panel that's what you need to use anyway.
If you have that much stuff to feed will they let you use a 320a meter socket with double taps to feed 2 panels,then feed the 3rd panel as a sub off of one of the others?
Then you could run a 400a service to feed it.

 

[volleyball]

The homeline breakers are no wider than ge full size/ch or any of the other full size breakers on the market,and if its a homeline panel that's what you need to use anyway.
If you have that much stuff to feed will they let you use a 320a meter socket with double taps to feed 2 panels,then feed the 3rd panel as a sub off of one of the others?
Then you could run a 400a service to feed it.

I was talking square d where the QO are 3/4" wide and the homeline are 1" wide.

 

[Mustang51js]

I was talking square d where the QO are 3/4" wide and the homeline are 1" wide.

Yeah the breakers are bigger but won't interconnect with the same panel, QO will only fit QO, homeline won't fit QO but will fit seimans,Bryant,Murray,ge,and ch br series. Not that it is legal but they do fit. Homeline now has a 42 space panel

 

[AlwaysFixingSomething]

Homeline uses aluminum buss bars and QO uses tin plated copper buss bars. Also QO breaker connection to the buss is much better vs the homeline. Also QO has a limited lifetime warranty and homeline has a 10 year residential warranty.

There are other benefits of QO but more geared to the commercial and industrial environment.

As an electrician Cutler Hammer CH series panels are my top choice, SquareD QO series second then Siemens.

 

[TheGunCollector]

Does the Homeline accept tandem breakers?

 

[Gokart]

The new homeline plug on load centers accept tandem breakers anywhere on the bus. The old style only allows you to install tandems in certain locations, however it varies based on the part number

 

[zmaxmotorsports]

Use a big enough panel and you wont need tandem breakers.

 

[Norcal]

In a new installation, nothing says cheap & sloppy like a bunch of twin breakers.

 

[redmondjp]

In a new installation, nothing says cheap & sloppy like a bunch of twin breakers.

I believe that you are referring to half-thickness circuit breakers.

When you say twin breaker, that could be interpreted as a double-pole breaker which of course is necessary for any 240V loads.

Oh, I vote for the QO as well - we go one better where I work - we use the QOB, where the 'B' stands for bolt-on. Very reliable. Keeps the airplanes safely flying up in the sky (I do the electrical design for the ground-based facilities)!

 

[zmaxmotorsports]

In a new installation, nothing says cheap & sloppy like a bunch of twin breakers.

I swapped out one of those 6/12 homeline sub panels last year .I told the guy those 6 tandem breakers cost almost as much as the 20 sp homeline panel I replaced it with!

 

[volleyball]

Yeah the breakers are bigger but won't interconnect with the same panel, QO will only fit QO, homeline won't fit QO but will fit seimans,Bryant,Murray,ge,and ch br series. Not that it is legal but they do fit. Homeline now has a 42 space panel

You can get QO in larger than 40 spaces also now that the restriction has been lifted.
No discussion of interchange. It was that a larger panel isn't so big with QO breakers. May not be much different with a 20 space. More so with 40

 

[Petey156]

Those of you suggesting eaton. Or homeline. You should take your new panel and short out a receptacle with a paper clip, see if it burns one in two, only 2 breakers that won't burn it in half is Qo and pushmatic.

 

[alfredeneuman]

Those of you suggesting eaton. Or homeline. You should take your new panel and short out a receptacle with a paper clip, see if it burns one in two, only 2 breakers that won't burn it in half is Qo and pushmatic.

I think you're ragging on the wrong type of circuit breakers.

Did you mean Federal Pacific Stabloks and Pushmatic by any chance?

Both are well known to make better welders than circuit breakers.

 

[ishiboo]

Those of you suggesting eaton. Or homeline. You should take your new panel and short out a receptacle with a paper clip, see if it burns one in two, only 2 breakers that won't burn it in half is Qo and pushmatic.

Homeline and QO have the EXACT same internals.

Take your ignorance elsewhere.

 

[foolishpride]

Hmm. I thought the difference was Homeline had aluminum bus and QO had copper bus? Or it was that way many years ago.

 

[zmaxmotorsports]

Homeline and QO have the EXACT same internals.

Take your ignorance elsewhere.

Only difference is the visa trip,identical otherwise.

 

[zmaxmotorsports]

Hmm. I thought the difference was Homeline had aluminum bus and QO had copper bus? Or it was that way many years ago.

We're talking about breaker differences.

 

[zmaxmotorsports]

Those of you suggesting eaton. Or homeline. You should take your new panel and short out a receptacle with a paper clip, see if it burns one in two, only 2 breakers that won't burn it in half is Qo and pushmatic.

So ,did you eat a lot of lead paint chips as a kid?Just wondering why anybody would want to try that stunt?

 

[alfredeneuman]

Homeline uses aluminum buss bars and QO uses tin plated copper buss bars.

As an electrician Cutler Hammer CH series panels are my top choice, SquareD QO series second then Siemens.

Homeline just uses aluminum buss bars but the QOs have either tin plated copper or aluminum buss bars, depending on what you order.

I agree that the QO breakers are second only to Cutler-Hammer CH.

Longez, the I-line panels are the top of the SqD line not only in residential, but in commercial work too

 

[saskscout]

The new homeline plug on load centers accept tandem breakers anywhere on the bus. The old style only allows you to install tandems in certain locations, however it varies based on the part number

Yes, be careful of this. They can be a real pain to use.

We always use Square D, never any issues.

 

[rexer]

Changed my panel last year after having several issues from the original 1989 Crouse-Hinds.
(junk & a fire hazard).

It's a Square D QO 200AMP 30/40 .

Home-line breakers are 1" & QO's are 3/4". I also had a space issue, so I went with the QO's, panel is 30" tall . The price difference between the panel box & 23 breakers was about $90.

Worked out great..

 

[AlwaysFixingSomething]

Homeline and QO have the EXACT same internals.

Take your ignorance elsewhere.

Wrong. Reread the whole thread and you will learn the differences.

 

[Petey156]

What I suggested earlier , Would test the internals on the breaker.

 

[AntonLargiader]

Old thread I know, but this is the newest one of many on this topic.

I was surprised to find a 200A Homeline panel in my new commercial space. I don't object to saving money on breakers but I'm wondering how the aluminum bus bars can show up as a weakness. I will occasionally be using a welder or plasma cutter, and there will be a compressor (not sure of the size, but now on a 30A or larger breaker that trips in the cold). Otherwise, nothing that deviates much from residential use.

New service is being run to the building so it may be moved or replaced without much drama, considering there are few breakers in it right now.