It is impossible to imagine our homes without the presence of electronic appliances, devices and components – they make our lives much more convenient and relaxing. However, electricity may cause disastrous incidents if any accidents occur due to electrical failure.
That is why breakers are such a cornerstone in our home’s electrical safety. This article describes the compatibility of breakers such as Eaton with other variants.
Eaton compatible breakers
Eaton breakers are known to be compatible with any breakers manufactured by GE, Siemens, Murray, Square D, Thomas & Betts as well as Crouse-Hind. Eaton breakers are also compatible with Cutler-Hammer too. Thus Eaton breakers are compatible mechanically and physically with all breakers.
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Breakers are a protective electrical component that prevents damages done to electrical circuits and devices due to current overload or short circuit. They function by cutting off the current flow if the current supply crosses the safe limit.
Eaton is a well known company that is known for manufacturing high quality electrical components such as circuit breakers and are commonly used throughout the US.
One key factor in compatibility of circuit breakers is UL-certification which determines the breakers being compatible with each other. Eaton has the upper hand when it comes to UL-certified circuits breakers and thus they are compatible with most other circuit breakers.
Another reason many breakers are compatible with Eaton is because the company that owns production rights of Eaton owns the production rights for many other companies as well.
Therefore, due to ownership of production rights – the breakers are almost the same just with different names.
Westinghouse:
Westinghouse was one of the most popular and common circuit breakers back in the days and that is why you will find millions of Westinghouse panel boxes in old homes scattered all across the US.
However, their popularity has gone down in recent times and therefore it could be a bit of a struggle to find a replacement if the old one goes bad.
Besides that, Westinghouse has also discontinued production of many models of its circuit breakers – making an exact replacement much difficult.
But the good news is, the company that owns the production rights to Westinghouse also owns the production rights to Eaton – which means you can replace your old Westinghouse breakers with an Eaton breaker.
Square D:
If the model numbers of Square D breakers match up with Eaton breakers, they are compatible without any issues. You should also take note of the Square D panel box because the replacement Eaton breaker should be compatible with the Square D panel box.
Cutler-Hammer:
Eaton bought Cutler-Hammer’s product rights, which makes all Eaton and Cutler-Hammer products and breakers be compatible and interchangeable with each other.
Since Cutler-Hammer is an old brand, you may not find a replacement breaker easily – in such cases, you can use Eaton breakers in its place and it would function without any issues.
What breakers are compatible with eaton br?
Circuit breakers are an essential electrical component that is necessary to protect your electrical circuitry and delicate devices around your house from current overloads.
Therefore it is important that you get a good quality circuit breaker such as Eaton breakers, which are widely known for their high quality electrical components.
Of many of those breakers manufactured by Eaton, there is a classification of breakers called Eaton BR which was previously Westinghouse Bryant but now is rebranded to Eaton BR. They are compatible with many breakers of different manufacturers such as Siemens.
Since many manufactures have been bought by Eaton and Siemens, Eaton BR are compatible with the breakers of those groups.
What breakers are compatible with eaton ch?
CH in Eaton CH stands for Cutler-Hammer and after Eaton bought Cutler-Hammer, those breakers were rebranded to be Eaton CH.
A wide range of breakers are thus compatible with Eaton CH, such as Low Voltage breakers which are common in residential and commercial buildings.
Eaton CH can also be compatible with Thermal breakers – which trip when the current flow causes the temperature to cross a certain limit. Eaton CH breakers have compatibility with Magnetic breakers as well which are quite new to the market.
3 factors that affect the compatibility with Eaton breaker
If your old breaker has worn out or is faulty, you should replace it with an identical breaker. But often that exact model of the same brand isn’t available – in that case, you should buy an interchangeable breaker.
If you feel confused, you should consult with a professional electrician before making the change to make sure you get the correct replacement breaker.
However, there are a few key points that determine whether two breakers are compatible or not – and those factors have been listed below:
Breaker Manufacturer:
Over time, many manufacturers have bought the production rights to other manufacturers or have been bought by a company that owns the rights to both or more companies.
In such cases, the breakers manufactured by them would be nearly identical but under different names. Therefore, if the original breaker is owned by a company that also owns Eaton, then that breaker is compatible with Eaton breakers.
Breaker Model Number:
Model number is also another critical factor in deciding whether a breaker would be compatible with another. You can find the model number of a breaker on the breaker’s body or in the panel box.
If you cannot find the replacement breaker of that model number of the same manufacturer, you can check whether any of Eaton’s breakers have the same model number – in most cases, that breaker can be used as a replacement breaker.
Load Capacity of the Breaker:
The most important thing of the breaker you mustn’t overlook is the load capacity. If you are getting a replacement breaker – it has to be of the same capacity, if you get the breaker of the wrong capacity then it could risk your circuitry to fire hazards.
Are eaton and ge breakers interchangeable?
General Electric is one of the iconic electrical companies who are known for their high quality electrical appliances and devices. Besides those devices, GE also manufactures circuit breakers and panel boxes.
Due to their popularity, you can easily find a replacement of a GE breaker if your old one is broken or damaged.
However, if a situation arises that you cannot get a GE breaker immediately and you are in a time constraint – then you should look for a replacement breaker of another manufacturer.
Siemens breakers are the most compatible and interchangeable with GE breakers of the same model number. They are the best fit as a replacement breaker for GE breakers, but there are other manufacturers such as Eaton who make breakers compatible with GE breakers.
In case you cannot get either GE or Siemens breakers, Eaton breakers are interchangeable with GE breakers of the same model number but you should also consider consulting with a professional electrician before making the final decision.
What breakers are interchangeable with eaton?
Eaton is known to be one of the biggest companies of electrical devices and components, which has acquired many of its rivaling companies and grown even larger.
For example, they have bought our rights to Cutler-Hammer and thus both electrical products have almost identical composition and are interchangeable.
Besides that, Eaton’s breakers are UL-certified, which means they follow an industry standard which are maintained by breakers of many other companies as well – making those breakers compatible and interchangeable with Eaton breakers.
So far, the breaker brands that are known to be interchangeable with Eaton breakers are Westinghouse, Square D, Cutler-Hammer, GE, Thomas & Betts, Siemens, Murray and Crouse-Hinds.
Although all these brands have breakers interchangeable with Eaton breakers, you need to make sure the model numbers of both the breakers match when you are replacing your old breaker with a new Eaton breaker.
Installing breakers with mismatched model numbers could put your house and circuitry at a risk of fire hazard.
Are eaton breakers universal?
Universality is one of the most appealing features of Eaton breakers because all Eaton breakers are UL-classified.
Circuit breakers with UL-classification means they are mechanically and electrically interchangeable and compatible with breakers of other companies which are also UL-classified.
Since Eaton’s breakers are UL-classified, they are universal to all the circuit breakers following the UL-classification such as GE, Thomas & Betts, Square D, Siemens etc.
Final Thoughts
Breakers made by GE, Siemens, Murray, Square D, Thomas & Betts, and Crouse-Hind are known to work with Eaton breakers. Regardless, Eaton breakers are physically and mechanically compatible with all breakers. This includes Cutler-Hammer breakers as well.