What is a "stab"

is there an 800 # on your panel or instructions for your panel?

i'd suggest using it, or use google to find the contact information for the maker of your panel.

What he said +

The breakers connect to one of two busbars, one for each hot side/ line. Don't add a total of 150+ amps to one side, e.g., not more than

10 x 15 Amp breakers on one side of the line. Also, try to intelligently balance things out as much as you can. Don't put all of the kitchen breakers on one side, for example, since they aren't split any more.

So for 220 breakers do you just split the voltage since it is in contact with both?

It's the piece of metal that sticks out perpendicular to the back of the panel that you press the breaker into.

Little Quibble, the bars are interleaved comb-like and each bar serves every other slot on each side, otherwise a two pole breaker wouldn't tap both feeds.

They might use the same basic buss in a 200A panel, with a 200A bolt-on main breaker or line lug set. When you use it as a 100A sub, it is never a problem - the feed breaker wiill trip first.

See how you can put two 1" thick breakers (or four 1/2" thin) back-to-back on one buss stab?

The total ampacity of all the breakers plugged into that one stab can't add up to more than 150A, like two 90A thick breakers back to back, or four 50A thin breakers in a square sharing that one stab.

If you overload it the metal of the stab will get all warm and melty, and or the thermoplastic insulation holding the busbars in place against the back panel will get all crispy and brittle and smoky, and that is bad. Or worse, it will get all red and flamey - and that is real bad.

This is one of those things that is obvious if you work with electricity a lot, you just know to put all the heavy stuff on one side and balance it off with a lot of light stuff on the other side.

But for the people who don't work with it everyday and therefore don't see the problem, GE has to spell it out. They have to reduce the chances you'll discover the problem on your own.

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If you can balance your loads so half of the typical average is on either side of neutral ( center tapped transformer ), your neutral currents sum to zero lowering your resistance losses.

WES Wes

Yes and no depending on what you mean.

A two pole breaker will supply a 220 V load, but relative to the stab issue, you would not cut the current in half. A 50A load is still a

50 A load. 50A at 240 V is just twice as much power as 50A at 120V.

jk