"Rod Speed" wrote in message
...
Tough Guy no. 1265 wrote

My father has said he has a 415V sticker on the feed into his meter box.
From what he's told me there is the normal arrangement of master fuse,
meter, then into the house to the consumer unit. The house was built in
1985ish and is detached. I've never seen inside the meterbox myself,
only the consumer unit, which looked like a normal run of the mill row of
circuit breakers with one master at the end, 100A. If there were three
phases in the meterbox I'd expect his description to include a lot more.

No reason why a 3 phase installation needs to have a lot more breakers.

Now the previous owner did have an ironwork hobby with "high powered
equipment",

So he may well have a 3 phase system for the welder alone.

but he was a very frugal sort and I doubt he would have got three phases
installed if he didn't absolutely have to

While he didn't have to, it does allow more choice
with what he can use. Everyone I know who has a
3 phase system has it for that reason.

- mind you I believe he was the first owner of the house and designed it
himself, so maybe it's just as cheap to get three phases when building
the property?

It does cost a little more but not that much more.

The reason this has come up is they've just had a 10kW electric shower
fitted (used to run from the hot water tank, but that one was old and
leaky) and are considering replacing their ageing oil boiler with an
electric one, which the electrician fitting the shower warned would
require a relay to switch off the boiler so it didn't run at the same
time as the shower as he'd run out of juice. When he saw 415V he was
wondering if he infact had more phases available.

There must be, it's the only way to get 415V in a normal house.

Go go Wod, tell us about your 6 phase supply.
LMFAO.
Wods house complete with breadmaker, duck pond coming soon -
http://thumbs.dreamstime.com/z/derel...a-34470305.jpg