The left hand thing? So if it blows open the door won't hit you in the face / chest and you're out of the direct line of fire for the arc flash - it will hit your left shoulder. We tend to use a similar tactic when operating our legacy switchgear - the newer stuff is arc-contained.
Scotty - Can't one operate the switch with right hand by standing to the right side of the switch by facing it sideways fully clear off the front face? Operating with one's left hand seems counter-intuitive.
Probably. I tend to stand with my back to our gear and to the side of the compartment I'm working on so I can operate the isolator with my right hand. That works if the isolator is small enough to allow one-handed operation, unfortunately some of the big 400A ones need both hands so you end up facing them.
Agree it's probably safety-related. Most (older) electricians would tend to stand as far to the right of the switch as possible, operating with left hand. Never seen signage for it like this. The increase in distance also reduces the arc-flash incident energy quite a bit.
Indeed! Thanks all and JG2828 for this sign fact-find. I do believe I'll get a few of those.
Makes sense and is about what I was guessing.
Lately I've been more cautious operating breakers and disconnects at arm's length, looking away, holding up an arm between my beautiful face and the panels, and having the customer(s) stand back.
I think those signs provide an additional impact in that they get people thinking about the seriousness of power systems when it's easy to take it all for safety granted.
