Knowing your Circuit Breakers

Electricity comes with many dangers, and the only way to protect yourself is by installing a circuit breaker. There are many circuit breakers with different features and functions. While some are meant to protect from short circuits, others are made to prevent electric shocks. Now imagine you’ve just installed a Miniature Circuit Breaker (MCB) in your electric box. You might be relieved, assuming that you’ve got nothing to worry about anymore. But alas! you couldn’t be any more wrong.

Although the MCB will prevent a short circuit, it certainly won’t save you from an electric shock. You will find that electrical hazards are of different types, arising for various reasons. When you install circuit breakers, you need to know the exact features and capabilities of the one you’re installing.

Thus, to prevent any future mistakes and help you make the right choice, here are four circuit breakers you may install according to your needs.

Miniature Circuit Breaker or MCB

An MCB is a good choice if you’re looking to protect your electricity circuits from potential damage. Excess currents from a short circuit can put your lights out. Fuses are typically used for dealing with short circuits. But in recent times, MCBs are working as alternatives to fuses.

However, MCBs are only capable of handling low voltage circuits. This makes it ideal for households. Keep in mind; the device is useless against electric shocks. So keep those rubber gloves close by because you’ll never know when you might need them.

Residual Current Circuit Breaker or RCCB

Don’t we all wish to have a guardian angel watching over us, protecting us from all the dangers we didn’t even know existed? A silent protector, creating a safe path. Well, the only reason you don’t have one is because you haven’t bought it yet.

The RCCB will protect you from sudden and fatal electric shocks. How? By not letting it happen. That’s right; the RCCB is designed to detect a residual current and to disconnect itself immediately. No current, no electric shock. You probably won’t even notice.

Residual Current Device or RCD

Here’s another silent protector. The RCD, similar to an RCCB, protects you from electric shocks that arise out of over-currents. It is, however, more intelligent than its friend. The RCD monitors the flow of current through the live and neutral wires. Finding any imbalance cuts the supply of electricity. It sounds like the security guard you would want to hire.

Residual Circuit Breaker with Overcurrent protection or RCBO

The utility is the name of the game. A product’s utility is a significant determinant of its success. With the current market demands, consumers are looking for products that can multitask. Schneider RCBO is the primary choice for you. Armed with the features of both MCBs and RCCBs, the RCBO is a convenient device. This, not so silent protector can protect both your life and property as it can handle short circuits, current overloads, and earth leakages as well. It only takes up a small amount of space and can be installed easily. If I were you, this is what I would spend my money on.