Maintenance for MCCBs

Depend on how serious is the fire or flooding. If the fire or flooding does not damage the MCCB, it can be open and services it by using "Contact Cleaner' to remove out all the dirts and put the MCCB to heat up and dry.

Once dry, lubricate back all these moving parts and test it's tripping by manually pressing the tripping button. Then check the MCCB by injecting current to the terminal and test is overcurrent protection tripping.

Don't remove out all the parts from the MCCB or bend some of the metal parts. All these parts is pre calibrated by the factory.

Following a fire, a sprinkler went off and areas of the switchboard got wet but the MCCB's appeared unaffected. We are wanting to open up the MCCB's for inspecion and cleaning if necessary however the manufacturer (Terasaki) is claiming that they are not designed to be opened up and serviced and that we must buy new ones. I am looking for someone that has actually carried out cleaning/service work of this type before.

Please check if the MCCB cover is burnt or carbonise with the burning heat. If it is burnt, it is not advisable to services it.

You have to replace it with a new unit.

I have been there done that... cleaning carbon after a fire in a motor control cabinet is not easy and you PERSONALLY take a dangerous risk of added damage and bodily harm or death. the manufacture and UL won't stand behind the Bus bars, breakers, fuse disconnects, wire insulation etc.

Contact your manufacture rep. to go over the procedure that way you won't be sued or worst. NEC has the rules, it is up to the craftman to follow them and save property and lives.

Quite. They are relatively inexpensive in comparison with potential death and/or destruction of the facility at a later date. The original poster is best advised to change them out.

The old ones must be sent to an approved recycling centre, and not landfilled, under the WEEE Directive that applies in Europe.

I think the correct term for this process is called remediation. Simon is correct, motor controllers come in "buckets" so you can remove them from the frame equipment repair and maintain them. Once you remove the buckets it is absolutely necessary to insure that the frame is complete dry (we used to use hair dryers). Check for rust and corrosion, repaint areas where the old paint is compromised, clean all busses and re-tork all lugs. Remember if the equipment didn't blow itself up, it probably is not that damaged. Check any electronics in the controller buckets. I would get a few replacements for them just in case.

I would shy away from anyone who says the entire equipment needs to be replaced. Seek a second opinion from a neutral source. Also if there is no one on your staff who is familiar with the remediation of electrical systems. There are company's who specialize in this (even the original manufacturer).

I could not disagree more. Assuming you are only referring to flood damage, there are a myriad of potential safety issues not addressed by simplistic visual inspection. All flooding is accompanied by contamination, I have never seen a flood of deionized water. Contaminants in flood water will bear the risk of leaving trace elements on insulating surfaces enabling tracking across insulators, leading to flash over and violent destructive forces. Hidden corrosion may / will compromise the fault bracing, further putting the user at risk for severe damage. Just pulling the bucket out and cleaning them is far from adequate protection. All metal and insulating surfaces must be thoroughly cleaned with clean pure water and/or solvents, depending on what comtaminants were present (i.e. a flood in a facility with petroleum based products cannot be adequately cleaned with water alone).

As far as fire goes, NO insurance company I know of will underwrite a facility that re-uses fire damaged electrical equipment of any kind. Fault bracing is invariably compromised by even moderate amounts of heat in excess of the equpment's maximum stogage temperature (typically 70deg C; 158deg F ), and this applies to the circuit breakers as well.

Mold and corrosion are the enemies. First thing to do is to get them completely dry. Put fans and possibly heat lamps on the equipment until you know for certain that everything is dry inside and out. If allowed to stand while looking for a company to service them you may not have anything to service as mold and corrosion could form and you will then have nothing worth inspecting.

We remediated both MCC's and 5 15KVA Substations in New Orleans after Katrina and had it re-certified. We worked hand in hand with the insurance company and they seem to have no problem with it. It still seems to be working to this day.

The the gear was completely underwater in the basement of Harrah's Jazz Casino. Check out its location on Google Maps. You can verifiy it if you want.

Can you give details of exactly what was done? i.e Assume MCCB's were totally dismantled for cleaning, then tested and put back in operation?

I would like to go on record that one of the reasons I subscribe to this blog to help people with small problems or at least point them in the right direction, usually in a hundred words or less. If you read not only what I have said but what the other bloggers have said, I am sure that you realize that the task ahead of you requires a certain amount of professional skill or you could be in real trouble.

Other than the very small amount of information you have written about, it would be foolish and perhaps even unprofessional of me to think that the "go buy" information I could give you would cure your problems.

Also I believe that most people who subscribe to this blog are working professionals and I am no exception. So I am cautious about handing out detailed information on which people should actually pay for.

You need help and if there are no employees in you company who can help you in what you are trying to do. I suggest you find someone who can represent or consult you on your best action. I would start by trying to find a consultant in your area that specializes in remediation. If you do not know someone contact either your insurance company, the manufacturer of the equipment, consultants in the area, or local trade organizations and see what they could do for you.

The information I have given you should get you pointed in the right direction. I wish you good luck.

The OP by PHC and his/her subsequent posts state that the mfg said "no". To me that all but ends the discussion. Unless a remediation company can get a different answer from the mfg AND some insurance company will underwrite the work, it seems that the game is over. -- JHF