ECN Forum Forums General Topics of the Trade General Discussion Area Circuit breaker finders

I'd like to get a couple of circuit breaker finders for our shop. We often go into a building and don't know even what electrical room to start looking in let lone what panel. We work on single and 3 phase from 110V through 480.

I bought a plug in type several years ago and it was junk. Does anybldy make one that really works and on all sorts of voltages.

I'd like to keep the price under a couple of hundred dollars but if there's something out ther that performs spectacularly, I might be willing to go a lot higher.

Greenlee has a few tracers available, we use a greenlee tracer, catalog number 2011. It works for voltages up to 600 volts, they are very accurate in locating breakers, as well as finding other electrical problems. Check out greenlee's website.

Second the greenlee 2011 thats what we have. It can trace hot or dead circuits. Up to 600 volts. Grainger #4WL93 $557. Worth every penny it is very accurate. Thats book price, might be able to get it lower.

One word of advice, it comes with a video. First thing you do is watch the video. It demostrates how to set it up and operate it. Its not hard or anything its just a little different than the cheap ones.

We bought the Amprobe / Pascar model 300 Circuit Tracing kit, back in 1996.
Cost about $85,000,000 back then (actually it cost about $800).

It works excellent!
Usable from 6-600 Volts AC or DC.

Receiver has multiple set points for tracing in a variety of ways.

Cost now is likely to be at least ½ of the 1996 price, which in my opinion is very well worth it.

I have used other types of tracers (except the Greenlee model mentioned previously by others), and found them to be less than useful for accurate Circuit Tracing, but very handy as a Paperweight or Doorstop.

Scott35