On Jun 17, 5:49*pm, josephkk wrote:
On Thu, 14 Jun 2012 16:01:03 -0400, Phil Hobbs



wrote:
On 06/14/2012 02:31 PM, Laurav wrote:
On Jun 14, 2:26 pm, Phil Hobbs
*wrote:
Could uneven load cause the voltage at the outlet to
change more than voltage at the weatherhead?

Laura

Do any of your lights become _brighter_ when the dryer turns on? *If so,
you may have a problem with the neutral.

Could a problem with the neutral cause voltage fluctuations at an
outlet, that don't appear on the weatherhead?
I have fluorescent lights. *Occasionally they flicker off. *This
happened on May 27, and it didn't seem to show up on the utility co's
record of my voltage.

If I have a problem with the neutral, would it be inside my house, or
a utility co. problem?

I'm not an electrician, but I believe that most houses in the US have
two-phase service, and that the neutral is bonded to the ground rod near
the service entrance. *Voltage drops in the neutral make one side go
down in voltage and one side *go up.



That is still single phase service.

As Winston said. Here's how Phil H. is correct:

Household electricity 101: Residences get single phase 240, split into
two 120 leads and neutral. Stoves and dryers get the full 240, other
appliances get 120 VAC. If the load on each 120 VAC lead is the same,
no current will flow on the neutral.

If, the loads on the two leads are different, and current flows on the
neutral, AND the neutral is resistive, then the voltage on the more
heavily loaded leg will be less by the amount of the voltage drop on
the neutral. Which means the voltage on the more lightly loaded leg
will be more, by the amount of the voltage drop on the neutral.