Abstract: A hood is for preventing moisture from penetrating an outdoor electrical enclosure. The outdoor electrical enclosure includes a housing having a panel member, two sidewalls and a bottom wall extending from the panel member to define an opening. A telescoping door covers the opening when closed. The hood includes a unitary top portion with two sides and a panel tab for engaging the housing, and an integral gutter member which overlaps and extends beyond the sidewalls of the housing, in order to divert moisture from the hood to exterior portions of the sidewalls of the outdoor electrical enclosure housing. The integral gutter member has an s-shaped cross-section with an upper portion and a lower portion. When the telescoping door is closed, a door flange overlaps a gutter flange formed by the lower portion. Pin-slide hinges permit the door flange to rest flushly upon the gutter flange.

Abstract: A hood is for preventing moisture from penetrating an outdoor electrical enclosure. The outdoor electrical enclosure includes a housing having a panel member, two sidewalls and a bottom wall extending from the panel member to define an opening. A telescoping door covers the opening when closed. The hood includes a unitary top portion with two sides and a panel tab for engaging the housing, and an integral gutter member which overlaps and extends beyond the sidewalls of the housing, in order to divert moisture from the hood to exterior portions of the sidewalls of the outdoor electrical enclosure housing. The integral gutter member has an s-shaped cross-section with an upper portion and a lower portion. When the telescoping door is closed, a door flange overlaps a gutter flange formed by the lower portion. Pin-slide hinges permit the door flange to rest flushly upon the gutter flange.

Abstract: A clamp-jaw contact assembly includes a stationary contact adapted to engage a meter socket cavity. A moveable contact is adapted to engage a meter bayonet. A unitary spring/pivot wire-formed U-shaped member pivotally mounts the moveable contact to the stationary contact and is adapted to bias the moveable contact toward the stationary contact upon insertion of the meter bayonet therebetween.

Abstract: An enclosure for an electrical distribution panel includes a box having a front opening covered by a front panel having a cut-out portion. An insert is seated in the cut-out portion and includes removable knockout panels for access to circuit breakers mounted in the enclosure. The insert may be provided with a c over which enhances the appearance of the enclosure and provides a waterproof seal. The size of the insert is selected based on the type of circuit breaker to be mounted in the enclosure. By changing the size of the insert, the enclosure can be used with different types of circuit breakers. The enclosure can also be adapted for indoor or outdoor use. The enclosure avoids the disadvantages of conventional enclosures which are designed differently for different types of circuit breakers, and include entirely different components for indoor and outdoor use.

Abstract: An electrical distribution panel interior base assembly includes a base member, brackets secured to the base member and bus bars mounted on the base member. The same type of base member is used to mount different types of conventional circuit breakers. Depending on the type of circuit breaker to be installed in the electrical distribution panel, different types of brackets and bus bars are used in the base assembly. The modular base assembly permits the same distribution panel enclosure to be used for various types of circuit breakers.

Abstract: A sliding, door latch has a latch member and a spring member integrally molded in one-piece. The latch member, which can be secured in a latch opening in a thin door panel without the use of tools, includes a planar base member which covers and slides reciprocally in the opening. An integral actuator extends traversely from the back of the base member through the opening and has integral bosses on its sides which form grooves engaging tangs in the sides of the latch opening. An integrally molded latch finger projects from the actuator toward the door panel edge. The spring member includes a first pair of spaced apart elongated elements integrally hinged to the actuator, a second pair of elongated elements integrally hinged at one end to the first pair, a beam integrally hinged to and connecting the other ends of the second pair of elongated elements, and a hook integrally molded to the center of the beam and engaging the rear edge of latch opening.

Abstract: A polymeric electrical enclosure has an electrical access knockout having a plurality of concentric grooves integrally molded into a wall section of reduced thickness. A plurality of angularly spaced, frangible flow leaders all bridge the outermost groove, with a lesser number bridging the remaining concentric grooves to facilitate the flow of material during molding to the knockout segments defined by the grooves. The concentric grooves are progressively deeper from the outermost to the innermost to aid in selective removal of inner segments without fracture of the outer segments. A flow leader which bridges all the grooves becomes narrower at the inner grooves, as less material need flow through that section of the flow leader, and the narrower section fractures sooner, thus aiding in selective removal of the inner segments of the knockout.

Abstract: A non-metallic enclosure for electrical apparatus has a housing and cover with a door pivotably mounted on the cover. A hood is attached to the housing such that when the door is attached to the cover and the cover is attached to the housing at least one pivotable connector will be behind the hood so that the door can only be nondestructively removed by removing the cover from the housing. Electrically conductive connectors and resilient snap-in members are preferably molded into the housing to secure bus bars and neutral bars to the housing.