Molded-case and insulated-case breakers
MCCBs and ICCBs in panelboards, switchboards and MCCs: inspection, operation, contact resistance, insulation resistance and trip testing, recorded against the manufacturer's data.
Breaker testing
Circuit breaker testing for low- and medium-voltage equipment
We test and service molded-case, insulated-case, power and medium-voltage circuit breakers, so you know they will trip when they have to. Red Seal electricians and protection technicians, results on field test sheets against manufacturer and NETA limits. Halifax and Calgary crews, serving sites across Canada.
What we test
Low and Medium Voltage Breakers
Low-voltage power circuit breakers
Draw-out air circuit breakers up to 600 V: racked out, cleaned, lubricated and exercised, with the electronic trip unit tested by secondary injection and the settings recorded as found and as left.
Medium-voltage breakers
Vacuum and air-magnetic breakers in metal-clad switchgear: mechanism service, contact and insulation resistance and operation checks to the manufacturer's instructions, with protective relays tested alongside.
Transfer switches and switchboards
Automatic transfer switches, bus and switchboard connections serviced in the same shutdown. See all electrical testing services.
Tests and service
What a breaker test includes
The exact list follows the breaker type and its manufacturer's instructions. A typical program covers:
- Visual and mechanical inspection: nameplate, condition, arc chutes, mechanism and racking
- Cleaning, lubrication and exercising to the manufacturer's instructions
- Contact resistance with a digital low-resistance ohmmeter (10 A on low-voltage breakers), poles compared
- Insulation resistance phase to phase, phase to ground and across the open contacts
- Trip-unit testing by secondary injection: long-time, short-time, instantaneous and ground-fault functions
- Trip times verified against the settings and the manufacturer's time-current data
- Shunt trip, undervoltage release, charging motor and auxiliary contacts operated and checked
- Settings recorded as found and as left, with every deficiency logged
What you receive
A record you can file and act on
Every breaker gets a completed field test sheet: nameplate, as-found condition, measured values against the limits, trip results and settings as found and as left. A deficiency log lists what failed and what to do about it, so your electricians can schedule repairs.
Results are kept in the same format year to year, so a breaker whose contact resistance is creeping up is caught before it fails.
How it works
Planned around your shutdown
- 01
Send the breaker list
Share the single-line, the breaker list or panel schedules and any coordination study. We reply with a test program and quote within one business day.
- 02
Plan the shutdown
Test sheets are prepared from each breaker's manual before we arrive. Draw-out breakers can be tested one at a time; fixed breakers need their section de-energized, so outage windows are agreed in advance.
- 03
Test, service and report
Red Seal electricians and protection technicians test as found, service, then test as left. Urgent deficiencies are reported to your site contact before we leave, and the report comes with the completed test sheets and a deficiency log.
What you receive
See sample breaker & relay test sheets
Every DTI breaker and relay job is documented on field test sheets like these: nameplate and as-found condition, contact resistance, insulation resistance, timing and trip tests against the manufacturer and NETA limits, relay settings captured as-found and as-left, and a deficiency log your electricians can work from. This is a complete sample set with the client fields blank.
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Where we work
Breaker testing across Canada
Crews are based in Halifax and Calgary and travel to industrial, commercial, healthcare and institutional sites across the country, including remote and northern sites. Travel is set out in the quote.
See service coverageSend us these details
- Single-line diagram and breaker list (or panel schedules)
- Breaker make, model and trip unit, if known
- Coordination study or settings sheet, if you have one
- Possible outage windows and site access rules
Circuit breaker testing questions
Does breaker testing need a shutdown?
Yes. Breakers are tested de-energized. Draw-out breakers can usually be racked out and tested one at a time while the rest of the switchboard stays in service; fixed-mounted breakers need their section switched off. We plan the sequence with you so the outage is as short as possible.
How often should circuit breakers be tested?
It depends on condition, criticality and the operating environment. Under a CSA Z463 maintenance program, low-voltage breakers are typically inspected every 1 to 3 years and medium-voltage breakers every 2 to 5 years. Our breaker testing guide explains how to set intervals.
Which standards do you test to?
Results are recorded against the manufacturer's published values and NETA acceptance and maintenance limits, within a maintenance program organized the way CSA Z463 describes.
Can you test the trip unit without removing the breaker?
Electronic trip units on power breakers are tested by secondary injection through the trip unit's test connection or sensor circuit, which proves the pickup and timing of each protective function without high-current test equipment.
Is an infrared scan a substitute for breaker testing?
No, they answer different questions. An infrared inspection finds hot connections while equipment is running under load. Breaker testing proves the breaker will open when it has to. Most maintenance programs use both, and we often schedule the scan before the shutdown so the outage fixes what the scan found.
What does breaker testing cost?
It depends on the number and type of breakers, the outage windows and travel. Send the breaker list and your preferred dates and we reply with a quote within one business day.
Planning a shutdown?
Send us the single-line and the breaker list; we quote the test program within one business day.