Quote:
how does two 30A breakers on different phases equal 30A?
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A simpler answer than the others:

A single wire is not capable of powering anything in your house. Everything needs two wires, one for the electricity to arrive on, and another to carry it away again, forming a loop. Without this wire loop (or "circle" or "circuit"), nothing flows, and your lights (or dryer) don't do anything.

Putting two (or three, or four, or ..) 30A breakers in series (meaning: "anywhere in the same loop") with each other has no more effect than just a single 30A breaker. A breaker still "breaks" the circuit when 30A of current flow is exceeded.

The reason your dryer circuit has a pair of breakers, rather than just a single one, is to guard against wiring faults, in case the current finds a different way to complete a loop (like, through your body..). They just want to guarantee that the electric current *must* pass through at least one of the 30A breakers regardless. That's why.


Edited by mlord (13/03/2007 12:26)