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Electrical Wiring
Ask questions here about proper wiring and electrical installation here.
4,935 Questions
How do you test a 240 volt power supply?
Imported electronic multi meters are available in the market app.costing Indian Rupees 130/-. With these the voltage can be tested. <><><>
As always, if you are in doubt about what to do, the best advice anyone should give you is to call a licensed electrician to advise what work is needed.
Before you do any work yourself,
on electrical circuits, equipment or appliances,
always use a test meter to ensure the circuit is, in fact, de-energized.
IF YOU ARE NOT ALREADY SURE YOU CAN DO THIS JOB
SAFELY AND COMPETENTLY
REFER THIS WORK TO QUALIFIED PROFESSIONALS.
What is the resistance of a conductor directly proportional to?
The resistance of a conductor is directly proportional to several different factors.
Here is a list of some of them:
- the cross-sectional area or thickness of the conductor;
- the overall length of the conductor;
- the resistivity of the material from which the conductor has been made - note that this is often dependant on its actual temperature;
- the actual temperature the conductor reaches after a steady electric current has been passing through it for sufficient time for everything to stabilize.
Does your house have 440 volt line?
No houses are wired for 440 volts. In the USA, most houses are wired for 240/120 volts called single or split phase. That means each "leg" of the service is 120 volts to ground, but across the two it sums to 240 volts, since each "leg" is 180 degrees out of phase with respect to each other. When one "leg" of the service is at +120 volts, the other "leg" is its mirror image, at -120 volts. In this way, connecting across the two yields twice the voltage of either leg to ground, allowing the use of 240 volt or 120 volt appliances depending on how connected- to ground or across "legs". Most other countries with 220-240 volt appliances do not use split phase service. There is only the one phase to ground and in those countries the incoming line is 220-240 volts to ground, voltage depending on the country.
How do you select an earth leakage setting?
on smaller stuff its usually 10ma since that is not usually fatal
default for most gfci
on larger stuff if its not connected with RMC even if you pull a ground wire be very careful
pre made cable BX (MC now) comes in large sizes ive used 2/0
the ground is #6 if there isn't a driven ground on the machine the fault could be carried in the little helix of galvanized wrapped around the cable.
now gee ill just put on an ohmmeter and make sure it wont get red hot
remember the word helix. the dc resistance doesnt change no matter what shape the wire is.
so use an LCR bridge not an ohmmeter
a caution sometimes these use 1000hz as a default
sealtite liqitite greenfeild all have this quirk
some have copper with the galvanize steel but the only thing that changes the inductance is the # of turns (well diameter too)
tray cable does not it seems to be always braided but im not positive
some hi voltage cable has the drain wires in a helix and the runs are usually longer .. on the plus side most bigger stuff has any parameter you could name settable in the breaker.
I did once learn the hard way that the suction hose on a 3" water pump is made with the same helix so it wont be pumped flat
takes about 3 amps at 277V
vom says 12 ohms perhaps its stainless wire
pumps merrily away and the hose steams a bit
perhaps the hose is a better ground than the plate at the bottom of the wood pole
plant has 480 277Y pole looked like one leg grounded delta
takes a bit of thought
Why does coax spark when connecting the cable?
That depends on where it is. People assume it won't spark because "it's just a TV signal." However, in these modern days with digital telephone and such, it can happen. Digital phone services provided by a cable provider are a special version of VoIP (voice over internet) technology. In order for the digital phone to work, you need a device to send the voice signal over the broadband cable. This device (inside the network interface box on the side of the house) usually does not have an external power source, because that would be very inconvenient for the customer. (Who wants a plug-in transformer next to the cable box?) This means the power to that device comes from the broadband feed to the house, which can carry around 90 volts on it in addition to the broadband signal. So if the cable sparked outside, or at the feed into the network interface unit, that could explain it. If this was inside, on a cable going into the back of a TV, that 90 volts shouldn't be there anymore, since it was dropped off at the box on the side of the house. But hey, I'm not a cable guy, just an electrician.
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It is best to ask for a wiring diagram from the place you obtained the ceiling fan from.
If they say they have not got one, or the fan was not bought new, then maybe you can find out the manufacturer's name from a label on the fan or on the box it came in? If you have the manufacturer's name you may be able to find their web site, phone number or street address so you can ask them to send you a wiring diagram.
The usual 120 Volt household AC wiring colors are:
Black is a "Hot" or "Live" wire which may come direct from the main breaker panel so is always "on". (But sometimes this wire is the one coming from the on/off switch controlling the lighting fixture.)
Red is a "Hot" or "Live" wire which may come from the on/off switch controlling the lighting fixture. (But sometimes this may be the wire which comes direct from the main breaker panel so is always "on".)
White is a "Neutral" wire.
Green (or bare wire with no insulation) is the local "Ground "wire.
What the Blue wire does is not obvious from the question as asked and should be found out from the wiring diagram for the fan.
If you can't get a wiring diagram and you still can't work out what to do then you should ask someone who knows how to handle mains electricity safely to advise you.
Better still, for your own personal safety, have a licensed electrician install the ceiling fan for you.
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It should be a black/white pair from the box in the ceiling: black is normally the "hot" and white is the "neutral". (Maybe in your case the "hot" is the red wire?)
One of the blue and black wires on the fan goes to the fan motor and the other maybe goes to an optional light in the fan housing? Before you connect them, you must check the wiring diagram or ask licensed electrician for his advice.
Only when you know for sure what they do, those blue and black wires should be connected to the the ceiling box. Often the black wire is the main "hot" wire on a fan unit.
The white wire on the fan connects to the white "neutral" wire in the box.
The bare (ground) wire on the fan must be connected to the ground wire in the ceiling box. Some wiring codes allow you to connect it to the white wire if there is no separate ground wire, but it is an unsafe method and it may be illegal to do this if your local wiring code does not allow it.
YOU MUST CHECK WITH THE LOCAL ELECTRICAL SAFETY OFFICER FOR YOUR LOCALITY BEFORE YOU DO THAT.
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As always, if you are in doubt about what to do, the best advice anyone should give you is to call a licensed electrician to advise what work is needed.
If you do this work yourself, always turn off the power
at the breaker box/fuse panel BEFORE you attempt to do any work AND
always use an electrician's test meter having metal-tipped probes
(not a simple proximity voltage indicator)
to insure the circuit is, in fact, de-energized. IF YOU ARE NOT ALREADY SURE YOU CAN DO THIS JOB
SAFELY AND COMPETENTLY
REFER THIS WORK TO QUALIFIED PROFESSIONALS.
Can you get 220 vac 50hz from 380 vac 50hz?
I know that a company named TEMco makes a 380v to 120/208 transformer. You can try contacting them for your specific application I will attach their website for you.
In the UK, a Domestic Electrical Installation certificate along with a schedule of tests and a schedule of inspection signed off by an approved electrician should be issued, as above any upgrade must comply with the current regulations, currently 17th edition.
Test must be done on all cables, this includes (not necessarily limited to):
- continuity of protective conductors
- continuity of final ring circuit
- Insulation Resistance test
- Polarity Dead
then a board could be installed.
- then test polarity live
- earth fault loop impedance
- earth electrode (if any, TT system)
- prospective fault current
- prospective short circuit current
- loop impedance values at end of lines
- RCD tests
Make sure any derivations of the regulations are noted, if any of the above tests fail, cables could need replacing. All cables must have an acceptable current carrying capacity and be suitably fused!
There is more but without writing the whole of the 2391 test and inspection book I think this should put you off from doing it!
Leave it to the professionals.
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Keep in mind that any changes made to an existing electrical system have to bring it up to current code regulations. This means you will need wiring permits and inspections. Your old panel board most likely will have to be disconnected from your supply utility and they will not reconnect until they get approval from the electrical inspector. This type of installation falls under the category of a "Service Upgrade".
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In most cases yes. If the wiring is sloppy, it may be a sign that the wiring should be at least checked pretty carefully.
Get an electrician in to take a look, and give you an estimate.
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Remember, that depending on your local ordinances, and how your wiring is done a lot of the new breakers must now be arc-fault to be code-conformant. (It may mean some rewiring.)
Electricians know which brands and models work best with the situations currently in the box. THIS IS NOT A PLACE TO SKIMP!
(If you plan on adding on to your house, you should plan for the electrical now)
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As always, if you are in doubt about what to do, the best advice anyone should give you is to call a licensed electrician to advise what work is needed.
Before you do any work yourself,
on electrical circuits, equipment or appliances,
always use a test meter to ensure the circuit is, in fact, de-energized.
IF YOU ARE NOT ALREADY SURE YOU CAN DO THIS
WORK SAFELY AND COMPETENTLY
REFER THIS WORK TO QUALIFIED PROFESSIONALS.
The ground wire is NEVER used to provide a reference to create 110v for the controls of the dryer. That is the job of the neutral wire and why dryers are fed with a three wire cable. With the loss of the neutral the dryer would not start as it needs the 120 volts to bring the heating contactor and the motor contactor into activation.
In many cases, the ground wire is used to provide a reference to create 110v for the controls of the dryer. With the loss of the ground, the dryer's control circuitry 'floated' as high as 220/240 volts.
Usually, the small electric motor that drives the control knob can not handle these voltages, also the control contacts and any additional coils will burn up as well.
There could be extensive damage, and may not be worth repairing the dryer.
For a 120V circuit with 2000 Watts, the current can be calculated using the formula P=IV, where P is power in Watts, I is current in Amperes, and V is voltage in Volts. So, I = 2000W / 120V = 16.67A. To determine the minimum wire size, refer to the American Wire Gauge (AWG) chart to find the closest AWG size that can safely carry 16.67A without exceeding its ampacity. In this case, a 14 AWG wire can handle 15A comfortably, so a 12 AWG wire would be suitable for this application.
Can you use a 240 Volt bulb in a 250 Volt lamp?
Yes if the bulb is an incandescent type of bulb.
Further InformationThe voltage printed on a lamp is its nominal, or named, value. For example, the nominal voltage of the UK's supply (since January 1995) is 230 V. But this does not mean that the actual voltage is necessarily 230 V, as it does vary. In fact, it is allowed to vary from -6% to +10% of its nominal value -in other words, from 216.2 - 253.0 V. So, as you can see, it would be considered quite normal for a 240-V lamp to be subjected to 250 V.How do you ground a mobile home?
for USA, Canada and other countries running a 60 Hz supply service.
The grounding of a mobile home is coverd by the same regulation as used for single family dwellings. Two ten foot, 5/8ths of an inch, ground rods driven into the ground ten foot apart or a ground plate with the same surface area as the rods dug into the earth to a depth of two feet. The wire from the rods or plate, sized by the amperage of the electrical panel, is connected to the same neutral bar that the incoming street neutral connects to in the electrical panel.
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Drive a long rod in the ground and run a wire from the rod to the mobile home
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As always, if you are in doubt about what to do, the best advice anyone should give you is to call a licensed electrician to advise what work is needed.
Before you do any work yourself,
on electrical circuits, equipment or appliances,
always use a test meter to ensure the circuit is, in fact, de-energized.
IF YOU ARE NOT ALREADY SURE YOU CAN DO THIS JOB
SAFELY AND COMPETENTLY
REFER THIS WORK TO QUALIFIED PROFESSIONALS.
A Ground Fault Circuit Interrupter (GFCI) should be installed in areas where water is present, such as kitchens, bathrooms, outdoor outlets, and garages. It is important to have GFCIs near sinks, showers, and other water sources to prevent electric shocks.
How do 480 volt control circuits work?
480 volt control circuits work by using 480 volts of electrical power to control the operation of various electrical devices such as motors, lights, and heaters. The control circuit typically includes a control panel, relay switches, contactors, and push buttons to regulate the flow of electricity and activate or deactivate the connected equipment. These circuits are designed to provide a safe and efficient method of controlling high-power electrical components in industrial applications.
What should you do if your circuit breaker is hot?
You should check that you are not running too many appliances on the circuit that is protected by the circuit breaker.
If you are absolutely sure that the circuit is not being overloaded, you should replace the breaker with a new identical breaker. Breakers get hot when they supply power at near peak amperage over a long period of time and begin to break down internally.
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As always, if you are in doubt about what to do, the best advice anyone should give you is to call a licensed electrician to advise what work is needed.
Before you do any work yourself,
on electrical circuits, equipment or appliances,
always use a test meter to ensure the circuit is, in fact, de-energized.
IF YOU ARE NOT ALREADY SURE YOU CAN DO THIS JOB
SAFELY AND COMPETENTLY
REFER THIS WORK TO QUALIFIED PROFESSIONALS.
Working principle of 3 phase alternator?
A three-phase alternator has three sets of windings that produce three currents. The three currents make up the three phases. Together these produce the total AC output of the stator. An alternator is made up of a stator and a magnet rotor which is also known as the flywheel.
How do you convert 120v ac wall plug to battery power?
You don't. For battery power you have to install its own separate and isolated system. <><><>
As always, if you are in doubt about what to do, the best advice anyone should give you is to call a licensed electrician to advise what work is needed.
Before you do any work yourself,
on electrical circuits, equipment or appliances,
always use a test meter to ensure the circuit is, in fact, de-energized.
IF YOU ARE NOT ALREADY SURE YOU CAN DO THIS JOB
SAFELY AND COMPETENTLY
REFER THIS WORK TO QUALIFIED PROFESSIONALS.
Should armoured cable be buried a certain depth?
Armoured cable is not rated for direct burial. Use a cable that is rated for direct burial or use a PVC conduit to pull the cable through. PVC burial is two feet, three feet if vehicular traffic will pass over the conduit.
For more information please click the middle buttonbelow.
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If the site is in the UK, to comply with the latest Wiring Regulations it is essential to install an RCD to protect the buried armoured cable and the associated external light fittings.
For more information please read the Related link shown below the Related questions for this answer.
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As always, if you are in doubt about what to do, the best advice anyone should give you is to call a licensed electrician to advise what work is needed.
Before you do any work yourself,
on electrical circuits, equipment or appliances,
always use a test meter to ensure the circuit is, in fact, de-energized.
IF YOU ARE NOT ALREADY SURE YOU CAN DO THIS JOB
SAFELY AND COMPETENTLY
REFER THIS WORK TO QUALIFIED PROFESSIONALS.
If the question is asking about an appliance plugged into a normal wall-mounted switched socket outlet, if the switch is in the Off position no live electricity should be fed to any appliance that is plugged-in, but it is always possible that the wall outlet has been wired wrongly so that its switch is in the Neutral wire instead of where it should be, in the Live or Hot wire. Then, if there is a fault as is described in the second answer (see below), it would cause the circuit breaker to trip Off to break the supply of power even if the wall socket outlet's switch is in the Off position. Another possibility, which is by no means unusual but can tricky to diagnose, is if there is a short between a Neutral and a Ground wire anywhere in the building and the main breaker panel contains an RCD protective device (also known as a GFCI) as is required nowadays for all new installations or full building rewires in a 50Hz area such as the UK or Eire. With an RCD in the main breaker panel to protect all power circuits, if there is a short between a Neutral and Ground wire anywhere in the wiring then the protective device will trip even if no power is being taken by any appliance. For instance if the Neutral and Earth wires were carelessly stripped of insulation to connect them to the terminals of a socket outlet and the Earth wire was not properly sleeved with yellow and green sleeving, the Neutral and Earth wires can easily touch and this would cause an RCD to trip.
Such faults typically show up when a main consumer fuse box has been upgraded to a modern consumer panel containing an RCD and miniature circuit breakers but the old wiring and socket outlets were simply left in place without beuing thoroughly checked. When the old consumer fuse box was in place - before the RCD was installed - any Neutral and Ground wires which were touching behind a socket outlet would not have caused the circuit' fuse or circuit breaker to shut off the power! For more information see the answers to the Related Questions shown below. <><><>
It apparently has a short between the hot power lead and the casing of the appliance. Since the casing is grounded, as it should be, this presents a direct short across the incomming power leads and trips the circuit protector. That keeps you from being shocked or electrocuted. This is a good thing. Replace the appliance. <><><>
As always, if you are in doubt about what to do, the best advice anyone should give you is to call a licensed electrician to advise what work is needed.
Before you do any work yourself,
on electrical circuits, equipment or appliances,
always use a test meter to ensure the circuit is, in fact, de-energized.
IF YOU ARE NOT ALREADY SURE YOU CAN DO THIS JOB
SAFELY AND COMPETENTLY
REFER THIS WORK TO QUALIFIED PROFESSIONALS.
240 volt what is loop is it neutral?
A 240-volt circuit typically consists of two hot wires and a ground wire, with no neutral wire. The hot wires each carry 120 volts, while the ground wire is used for safety purposes. In a 240-volt circuit, the hot wires complete a loop by connecting to a load or device that requires the higher voltage to operate.
How do you run a 120V outlet off a 240V water well breaker?
You will need to have a three wire feeding your well pump motor to do this. It will be connected like a sub panel breaker box. A new breaker for the pump out of the new panel and a 15 amp breaker for the new receptacle. Both of these circuits must be protected by their own breaker. <><><> As always, if you are in doubt about what to do, the best advice anyone should give you is to call a licensed electrician to advise what work is needed. Before you do any work yourself,
on electrical circuits, equipment or appliances,
always use a test meter to ensure the circuit is, in fact, de-energized. IF YOU ARE NOT ALREADY SURE YOU CAN DO THIS JOB
SAFELY AND COMPETENTLY
REFER THIS WORK TO QUALIFIED PROFESSIONALS.
The L6-20 is a 20 amp 250 volt (two pole, three wire grounding) receptacle There would be no neutral connected to this device. The L14-20 is a 125/250 volt (three pole, four wire grounding) receptacle If you can find a neutral in the junction box of the generator you can connect the L14 in place of the L6. Existing hot wires to the X and Y terminals, ground to the G terminal, and the newly found neutral to the W terminal.
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As always, if you are in doubt about what to do, the best advice anyone should give you is to call a licensed electrician to advise what work is needed.
Before you do any work yourself,
on electrical circuits, equipment or appliances,
always use a test meter to ensure the circuit is, in fact, de-energized.
IF YOU ARE NOT ALREADY SURE YOU CAN DO THIS JOB
SAFELY AND COMPETENTLY
REFER THIS WORK TO QUALIFIED PROFESSIONALS.
When 120 volts is applied to a rated 240 volt motor can it ruin the motor?
Yes, if you try to continuously run the motor at 120 volts. It may run, but at a slower speed. The slower speed will not provide enough cooling for the windings, and thus it will eventually be destroyed. No, if you incorrectly wired it at 120 volts, and then rewired it correctly, for the HIGHER 240 volts. Keep in mind that there are many different types of motors out there and this answer only applies to this specific application.
Can you wire a 220 volt appliance on a 220 volt circuit using 110 romex?
First understand rolmex is not rated by voltage, there is no 110 V only rolmex. You might be referring to rolmex that has only two conductors (black & white) and a bare ground wire. Most 220 V "appliances" require two hot wires, a neutral and a ground. Check the hook up on your appliance. If it does require a neutral, then you need three conductor with ground wire. The important thing here is that you use the right size or gauge wire. The wire must be able to carry the appliances required amperage.
Again, check the wiring hook up on your appliance and then check the amperage required. Then go to the hardware store, etc. and buy the correct size (gauge), and number of conductors in the wire. Tell the clerk in the electrical dept. exactly what your supplying power to and they'll likely get you the right wire.
A three phase load taking a full load of X Amps means it is sum of three phase?
In a three-phase system, the total load is the sum of the currents in each of the three phases. This is due to the balanced nature of three-phase systems, where the currents in each phase are equal in magnitude but shifted by 120 degrees. The full load of X Amps is the total current drawn by the load across all three phases.
