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#1
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Electrical advice-30A circuits
Howdy,
Sis had me look at an electrical problem she had - it turned out to be a loose wire. However, when I was poking around, I discovered a couple of odd things and need to know what to tell her what to do. There are two circuits I discovered that appear to have 120V outlets and switches on a 30A breaker. I didn't know enough to tell her whether this was allowed or not - I really suspect not but wanted to ask here first. My first thought was if there was a problem with, say a drill motor on this circuit, any problem with it wouldn't be enough to trip the breaker. This most likely resulted from the previous owner hiring incompetent workers and they did poor work, just to get electrical power to the shed. I found a power cord used as electrical cable so they didn't have to break into the wall - it ran from an (E) outlet (connected by stripping the wires and connected to the screws on the outlet) along the wall to a multiplug on its end so that power could be had at the other side of the shed. I removed this of course. So, poor work in other places wouldn't surprise me. Then, what should she do? I thought getting the circuits tracked down and then replacing the 30A breaker with two 15's or 20s, depending on the wiring and what's on them. I'd like her to have some idea before she has an electrician come out. Also, for me - I used a voltage tester when looking around - it was the kind that chirps and lights up when it's near wiring that has power. It also chirps and lights up if you stick one end into an outlet. However I found that there could also be transient chirps if I moved it quickly past a piece of metal and when I was close to wiring rather than very close to it. In one case, this made it difficult to tell which outlet or switch had the power. Was I using it correctly? Charles |
#2
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Electrical advice-30A circuits
On Mon, 30 Jan 2017 12:43:06 -0800, Charles Bishop
wrote: Howdy, Sis had me look at an electrical problem she had - it turned out to be a loose wire. However, when I was poking around, I discovered a couple of odd things and need to know what to tell her what to do. There are two circuits I discovered that appear to have 120V outlets and switches on a 30A breaker. I didn't know enough to tell her whether this was allowed or not - I really suspect not but wanted to ask here first. My first thought was if there was a problem with, say a drill motor on this circuit, any problem with it wouldn't be enough to trip the breaker. This most likely resulted from the previous owner hiring incompetent workers and they did poor work, just to get electrical power to the shed. I found a power cord used as electrical cable so they didn't have to break into the wall - it ran from an (E) outlet (connected by stripping the wires and connected to the screws on the outlet) along the wall to a multiplug on its end so that power could be had at the other side of the shed. I removed this of course. So, poor work in other places wouldn't surprise me. Then, what should she do? I thought getting the circuits tracked down and then replacing the 30A breaker with two 15's or 20s, depending on the wiring and what's on them. I'd like her to have some idea before she has an electrician come out. Also, for me - I used a voltage tester when looking around - it was the kind that chirps and lights up when it's near wiring that has power. It also chirps and lights up if you stick one end into an outlet. However I found that there could also be transient chirps if I moved it quickly past a piece of metal and when I was close to wiring rather than very close to it. In one case, this made it difficult to tell which outlet or switch had the power. Was I using it correctly? Charles The short answer is if it is 14ga copper, it gets a 15 and if it is 12ga copper it gets a 20. Even if it is 10ga copper, you can't hook a regular 5-15 receptacle to it. |
#3
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Electrical advice-30A circuits
On Monday, January 30, 2017 at 4:27:05 PM UTC-5, wrote:
On Mon, 30 Jan 2017 12:43:06 -0800, Charles Bishop wrote: Howdy, Sis had me look at an electrical problem she had - it turned out to be a loose wire. However, when I was poking around, I discovered a couple of odd things and need to know what to tell her what to do. There are two circuits I discovered that appear to have 120V outlets and switches on a 30A breaker. I didn't know enough to tell her whether this was allowed or not - I really suspect not but wanted to ask here first. My first thought was if there was a problem with, say a drill motor on this circuit, any problem with it wouldn't be enough to trip the breaker. This most likely resulted from the previous owner hiring incompetent workers and they did poor work, just to get electrical power to the shed. I found a power cord used as electrical cable so they didn't have to break into the wall - it ran from an (E) outlet (connected by stripping the wires and connected to the screws on the outlet) along the wall to a multiplug on its end so that power could be had at the other side of the shed. I removed this of course. So, poor work in other places wouldn't surprise me. Then, what should she do? I thought getting the circuits tracked down and then replacing the 30A breaker with two 15's or 20s, depending on the wiring and what's on them. I'd like her to have some idea before she has an electrician come out. Also, for me - I used a voltage tester when looking around - it was the kind that chirps and lights up when it's near wiring that has power. It also chirps and lights up if you stick one end into an outlet. However I found that there could also be transient chirps if I moved it quickly past a piece of metal and when I was close to wiring rather than very close to it. In one case, this made it difficult to tell which outlet or switch had the power. Was I using it correctly? Charles The short answer is if it is 14ga copper, it gets a 15 and if it is 12ga copper it gets a 20. Even if it is 10ga copper, you can't hook a regular 5-15 receptacle to it. Hopefully half the house isn't on that circuit, in which case it could be easily rectified. Sounds like it's time to get a pro in there, find out what all is wrong, before something bad happens. |
#4
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Electrical advice-30A circuits
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#5
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Electrical advice-30A circuits
On Mon, 30 Jan 2017 20:43:06 -0000, Charles Bishop wrote:
Howdy, Sis had me look at an electrical problem she had - it turned out to be a loose wire. However, when I was poking around, I discovered a couple of odd things and need to know what to tell her what to do. There are two circuits I discovered that appear to have 120V outlets and switches on a 30A breaker. I didn't know enough to tell her whether this was allowed or not - I really suspect not but wanted to ask here first. My first thought was if there was a problem with, say a drill motor on this circuit, any problem with it wouldn't be enough to trip the breaker. This most likely resulted from the previous owner hiring incompetent workers and they did poor work, just to get electrical power to the shed. I found a power cord used as electrical cable so they didn't have to break into the wall - it ran from an (E) outlet (connected by stripping the wires and connected to the screws on the outlet) along the wall to a multiplug on its end so that power could be had at the other side of the shed. I removed this of course. So, poor work in other places wouldn't surprise me. Then, what should she do? I thought getting the circuits tracked down and then replacing the 30A breaker with two 15's or 20s, depending on the wiring and what's on them. I'd like her to have some idea before she has an electrician come out. Also, for me - I used a voltage tester when looking around - it was the kind that chirps and lights up when it's near wiring that has power. It also chirps and lights up if you stick one end into an outlet. However I found that there could also be transient chirps if I moved it quickly past a piece of metal and when I was close to wiring rather than very close to it. In one case, this made it difficult to tell which outlet or switch had the power. Was I using it correctly? Americans make things so complicated. In the UK, we have all our outlets (or half of them, on two circuits) on a 30A breaker. Each appliance has a fuse in the plug, dependant on what that appliance is. -- Before you set out on a journey, ring your local radio station and say there's a terrible congestion on your road. Everybody avoids it and it's clear for you! -- Jack Dee |
#6
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Electrical advice-30A circuits
On Monday, January 30, 2017 at 6:05:09 PM UTC-5, James Wilkinson Sword wrote:
On Mon, 30 Jan 2017 20:43:06 -0000, Charles Bishop wrote: Howdy, Sis had me look at an electrical problem she had - it turned out to be a loose wire. However, when I was poking around, I discovered a couple of odd things and need to know what to tell her what to do. There are two circuits I discovered that appear to have 120V outlets and switches on a 30A breaker. I didn't know enough to tell her whether this was allowed or not - I really suspect not but wanted to ask here first. My first thought was if there was a problem with, say a drill motor on this circuit, any problem with it wouldn't be enough to trip the breaker. This most likely resulted from the previous owner hiring incompetent workers and they did poor work, just to get electrical power to the shed. I found a power cord used as electrical cable so they didn't have to break into the wall - it ran from an (E) outlet (connected by stripping the wires and connected to the screws on the outlet) along the wall to a multiplug on its end so that power could be had at the other side of the shed. I removed this of course. So, poor work in other places wouldn't surprise me. Then, what should she do? I thought getting the circuits tracked down and then replacing the 30A breaker with two 15's or 20s, depending on the wiring and what's on them. I'd like her to have some idea before she has an electrician come out. Also, for me - I used a voltage tester when looking around - it was the kind that chirps and lights up when it's near wiring that has power. It also chirps and lights up if you stick one end into an outlet. However I found that there could also be transient chirps if I moved it quickly past a piece of metal and when I was close to wiring rather than very close to it. In one case, this made it difficult to tell which outlet or switch had the power. Was I using it correctly? Americans make things so complicated. In the UK, we have all our outlets (or half of them, on two circuits) on a 30A breaker. Each appliance has a fuse in the plug, dependant on what that appliance is. As pointed out previously, it took all the Queens horses and all the King's men a week to find the fault in Buckingham palace when one tea pot shorted out. Must be swell screwing around in the dark too, when all the lights go out because they are on one breaker. Why are you so backwards and cheap over there? |
#7
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Electrical advice-30A circuits
On Mon, 30 Jan 2017 23:14:14 -0000, trader_4 wrote:
On Monday, January 30, 2017 at 6:05:09 PM UTC-5, James Wilkinson Sword wrote: On Mon, 30 Jan 2017 20:43:06 -0000, Charles Bishop wrote: Howdy, Sis had me look at an electrical problem she had - it turned out to be a loose wire. However, when I was poking around, I discovered a couple of odd things and need to know what to tell her what to do. There are two circuits I discovered that appear to have 120V outlets and switches on a 30A breaker. I didn't know enough to tell her whether this was allowed or not - I really suspect not but wanted to ask here first. My first thought was if there was a problem with, say a drill motor on this circuit, any problem with it wouldn't be enough to trip the breaker. This most likely resulted from the previous owner hiring incompetent workers and they did poor work, just to get electrical power to the shed. I found a power cord used as electrical cable so they didn't have to break into the wall - it ran from an (E) outlet (connected by stripping the wires and connected to the screws on the outlet) along the wall to a multiplug on its end so that power could be had at the other side of the shed. I removed this of course. So, poor work in other places wouldn't surprise me. Then, what should she do? I thought getting the circuits tracked down and then replacing the 30A breaker with two 15's or 20s, depending on the wiring and what's on them. I'd like her to have some idea before she has an electrician come out. Also, for me - I used a voltage tester when looking around - it was the kind that chirps and lights up when it's near wiring that has power. It also chirps and lights up if you stick one end into an outlet. However I found that there could also be transient chirps if I moved it quickly past a piece of metal and when I was close to wiring rather than very close to it. In one case, this made it difficult to tell which outlet or switch had the power. Was I using it correctly? Americans make things so complicated. In the UK, we have all our outlets (or half of them, on two circuits) on a 30A breaker. Each appliance has a fuse in the plug, dependant on what that appliance is. As pointed out previously, it took all the Queens horses and all the King's men a week to find the fault in Buckingham palace when one tea pot shorted out. Must be swell screwing around in the dark too, when all the lights go out because they are on one breaker. Why are you so backwards and cheap over there? Doesn't happen, as we have a fuse in every plug, rated lower than the main one. If my kettle shorts out, the fuse in the plug blows and everything else keeps on going. -- Das Computer Maschine Ist Nich Fur Gefingerenpoken Und Mittengrabben! Ist Easy Schnappen Der Springenwerken Mit Spitzensparken Und Poppenkorken! Das Rubbernecken Sightseeren Mus Keep Der Handz In Der Pockets, Relax Und Vatch Die Blinkenlights!! |
#8
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Electrical advice-30A circuits
This may be of interest:
http://tinyurl.com/zr6mtrm Jeff James Wilkinson Sword wrote: On Mon, 30 Jan 2017 23:14:14 -0000, trader_4 wrote: On Monday, January 30, 2017 at 6:05:09 PM UTC-5, James Wilkinson Sword wrote: On Mon, 30 Jan 2017 20:43:06 -0000, Charles Bishop wrote: Howdy, Sis had me look at an electrical problem she had - it turned out to be a loose wire. However, when I was poking around, I discovered a couple of odd things and need to know what to tell her what to do. There are two circuits I discovered that appear to have 120V outlets and switches on a 30A breaker. I didn't know enough to tell her whether this was allowed or not - I really suspect not but wanted to ask here first. My first thought was if there was a problem with, say a drill motor on this circuit, any problem with it wouldn't be enough to trip the breaker. This most likely resulted from the previous owner hiring incompetent workers and they did poor work, just to get electrical power to the shed. I found a power cord used as electrical cable so they didn't have to break into the wall - it ran from an (E) outlet (connected by stripping the wires and connected to the screws on the outlet) along the wall to a multiplug on its end so that power could be had at the other side of the shed. I removed this of course. So, poor work in other places wouldn't surprise me. Then, what should she do? I thought getting the circuits tracked down and then replacing the 30A breaker with two 15's or 20s, depending on the wiring and what's on them. I'd like her to have some idea before she has an electrician come out. Also, for me - I used a voltage tester when looking around - it was the kind that chirps and lights up when it's near wiring that has power. It also chirps and lights up if you stick one end into an outlet. However I found that there could also be transient chirps if I moved it quickly past a piece of metal and when I was close to wiring rather than very close to it. In one case, this made it difficult to tell which outlet or switch had the power. Was I using it correctly? Americans make things so complicated. In the UK, we have all our outlets (or half of them, on two circuits) on a 30A breaker. Each appliance has a fuse in the plug, dependant on what that appliance is. As pointed out previously, it took all the Queens horses and all the King's men a week to find the fault in Buckingham palace when one tea pot shorted out. Must be swell screwing around in the dark too, when all the lights go out because they are on one breaker. Why are you so backwards and cheap over there? Doesn't happen, as we have a fuse in every plug, rated lower than the main one. If my kettle shorts out, the fuse in the plug blows and everything else keeps on going. |
#9
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Electrical advice-30A circuits
Looks like there are advantages to all sorts of frequencies, depending what you're doing with it.
On Thu, 02 Feb 2017 18:08:23 -0000, Jeff Wisnia wrote: This may be of interest: http://tinyurl.com/zr6mtrm Jeff James Wilkinson Sword wrote: On Mon, 30 Jan 2017 23:14:14 -0000, trader_4 wrote: On Monday, January 30, 2017 at 6:05:09 PM UTC-5, James Wilkinson Sword wrote: On Mon, 30 Jan 2017 20:43:06 -0000, Charles Bishop wrote: Howdy, Sis had me look at an electrical problem she had - it turned out to be a loose wire. However, when I was poking around, I discovered a couple of odd things and need to know what to tell her what to do. There are two circuits I discovered that appear to have 120V outlets and switches on a 30A breaker. I didn't know enough to tell her whether this was allowed or not - I really suspect not but wanted to ask here first. My first thought was if there was a problem with, say a drill motor on this circuit, any problem with it wouldn't be enough to trip the breaker. This most likely resulted from the previous owner hiring incompetent workers and they did poor work, just to get electrical power to the shed. I found a power cord used as electrical cable so they didn't have to break into the wall - it ran from an (E) outlet (connected by stripping the wires and connected to the screws on the outlet) along the wall to a multiplug on its end so that power could be had at the other side of the shed. I removed this of course. So, poor work in other places wouldn't surprise me. Then, what should she do? I thought getting the circuits tracked down and then replacing the 30A breaker with two 15's or 20s, depending on the wiring and what's on them. I'd like her to have some idea before she has an electrician come out. Also, for me - I used a voltage tester when looking around - it was the kind that chirps and lights up when it's near wiring that has power. It also chirps and lights up if you stick one end into an outlet. However I found that there could also be transient chirps if I moved it quickly past a piece of metal and when I was close to wiring rather than very close to it. In one case, this made it difficult to tell which outlet or switch had the power. Was I using it correctly? Americans make things so complicated. In the UK, we have all our outlets (or half of them, on two circuits) on a 30A breaker. Each appliance has a fuse in the plug, dependant on what that appliance is. As pointed out previously, it took all the Queens horses and all the King's men a week to find the fault in Buckingham palace when one tea pot shorted out. Must be swell screwing around in the dark too, when all the lights go out because they are on one breaker. Why are you so backwards and cheap over there? Doesn't happen, as we have a fuse in every plug, rated lower than the main one. If my kettle shorts out, the fuse in the plug blows and everything else keeps on going. -- "Dear Santa, this year please send clothes for all those poor ladies in Daddy's computer, Amen." |
#10
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Electrical advice-30A circuits
On Mon, 30 Jan 2017 23:04:52 -0000, "James Wilkinson Sword"
wrote: On Mon, 30 Jan 2017 20:43:06 -0000, Charles Bishop wrote: Howdy, Sis had me look at an electrical problem she had - it turned out to be a loose wire. However, when I was poking around, I discovered a couple of odd things and need to know what to tell her what to do. There are two circuits I discovered that appear to have 120V outlets and switches on a 30A breaker. I didn't know enough to tell her whether this was allowed or not - I really suspect not but wanted to ask here first. My first thought was if there was a problem with, say a drill motor on this circuit, any problem with it wouldn't be enough to trip the breaker. This most likely resulted from the previous owner hiring incompetent workers and they did poor work, just to get electrical power to the shed. I found a power cord used as electrical cable so they didn't have to break into the wall - it ran from an (E) outlet (connected by stripping the wires and connected to the screws on the outlet) along the wall to a multiplug on its end so that power could be had at the other side of the shed. I removed this of course. So, poor work in other places wouldn't surprise me. Then, what should she do? I thought getting the circuits tracked down and then replacing the 30A breaker with two 15's or 20s, depending on the wiring and what's on them. I'd like her to have some idea before she has an electrician come out. Also, for me - I used a voltage tester when looking around - it was the kind that chirps and lights up when it's near wiring that has power. It also chirps and lights up if you stick one end into an outlet. However I found that there could also be transient chirps if I moved it quickly past a piece of metal and when I was close to wiring rather than very close to it. In one case, this made it difficult to tell which outlet or switch had the power. Was I using it correctly? Americans make things so complicated. In the UK, we have all our outlets (or half of them, on two circuits) on a 30A breaker. Each appliance has a fuse in the plug, dependant on what that appliance is. I bet you don't have 4.8 KVA homes as the defacto standard with some double that. We also have more required circuits. (2 in the kitchen, one in the laundry and one in the bathroom as a minimum plus the general lighting and appliance circuits. What is your typical main breaker? |
#11
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Electrical advice-30A circuits
On Mon, 30 Jan 2017 23:19:50 -0000, wrote:
On Mon, 30 Jan 2017 23:04:52 -0000, "James Wilkinson Sword" wrote: On Mon, 30 Jan 2017 20:43:06 -0000, Charles Bishop wrote: Howdy, Sis had me look at an electrical problem she had - it turned out to be a loose wire. However, when I was poking around, I discovered a couple of odd things and need to know what to tell her what to do. There are two circuits I discovered that appear to have 120V outlets and switches on a 30A breaker. I didn't know enough to tell her whether this was allowed or not - I really suspect not but wanted to ask here first. My first thought was if there was a problem with, say a drill motor on this circuit, any problem with it wouldn't be enough to trip the breaker. This most likely resulted from the previous owner hiring incompetent workers and they did poor work, just to get electrical power to the shed. I found a power cord used as electrical cable so they didn't have to break into the wall - it ran from an (E) outlet (connected by stripping the wires and connected to the screws on the outlet) along the wall to a multiplug on its end so that power could be had at the other side of the shed. I removed this of course. So, poor work in other places wouldn't surprise me. Then, what should she do? I thought getting the circuits tracked down and then replacing the 30A breaker with two 15's or 20s, depending on the wiring and what's on them. I'd like her to have some idea before she has an electrician come out. Also, for me - I used a voltage tester when looking around - it was the kind that chirps and lights up when it's near wiring that has power. It also chirps and lights up if you stick one end into an outlet. However I found that there could also be transient chirps if I moved it quickly past a piece of metal and when I was close to wiring rather than very close to it. In one case, this made it difficult to tell which outlet or switch had the power. Was I using it correctly? Americans make things so complicated. In the UK, we have all our outlets (or half of them, on two circuits) on a 30A breaker. Each appliance has a fuse in the plug, dependant on what that appliance is. I bet you don't have 4.8 KVA homes as the defacto standard with some double that. We also have more required circuits. (2 in the kitchen, one in the laundry and one in the bathroom as a minimum plus the general lighting and appliance circuits. No need for so many circuits. We typically have one (or two in larger homes) 30A 240V circuit(s) for outlets, one 30A 240V circuit for the cooker, one 15A 240V circuit for the water heater, and two 5A 240V circuits for lighting. What is your typical main breaker? 100A = 24KVA. You really run your whole home on just 4.8KVA?! I can exceed that by a factor of 2.5 with my cooker alone. The shower another factor of 2 over that. -- It hurt the way your tongue hurts after you accidentally staple it to the wall. |
#12
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Electrical advice-30A circuits
On Mon, 30 Jan 2017 23:51:09 -0000, "James Wilkinson Sword"
wrote: On Mon, 30 Jan 2017 23:19:50 -0000, wrote: On Mon, 30 Jan 2017 23:04:52 -0000, "James Wilkinson Sword" wrote: On Mon, 30 Jan 2017 20:43:06 -0000, Charles Bishop wrote: Howdy, Sis had me look at an electrical problem she had - it turned out to be a loose wire. However, when I was poking around, I discovered a couple of odd things and need to know what to tell her what to do. There are two circuits I discovered that appear to have 120V outlets and switches on a 30A breaker. I didn't know enough to tell her whether this was allowed or not - I really suspect not but wanted to ask here first. My first thought was if there was a problem with, say a drill motor on this circuit, any problem with it wouldn't be enough to trip the breaker. This most likely resulted from the previous owner hiring incompetent workers and they did poor work, just to get electrical power to the shed. I found a power cord used as electrical cable so they didn't have to break into the wall - it ran from an (E) outlet (connected by stripping the wires and connected to the screws on the outlet) along the wall to a multiplug on its end so that power could be had at the other side of the shed. I removed this of course. So, poor work in other places wouldn't surprise me. Then, what should she do? I thought getting the circuits tracked down and then replacing the 30A breaker with two 15's or 20s, depending on the wiring and what's on them. I'd like her to have some idea before she has an electrician come out. Also, for me - I used a voltage tester when looking around - it was the kind that chirps and lights up when it's near wiring that has power. It also chirps and lights up if you stick one end into an outlet. However I found that there could also be transient chirps if I moved it quickly past a piece of metal and when I was close to wiring rather than very close to it. In one case, this made it difficult to tell which outlet or switch had the power. Was I using it correctly? Americans make things so complicated. In the UK, we have all our outlets (or half of them, on two circuits) on a 30A breaker. Each appliance has a fuse in the plug, dependant on what that appliance is. I bet you don't have 4.8 KVA homes as the defacto standard with some double that. We also have more required circuits. (2 in the kitchen, one in the laundry and one in the bathroom as a minimum plus the general lighting and appliance circuits. No need for so many circuits. We typically have one (or two in larger homes) 30A 240V circuit(s) for outlets, one 30A 240V circuit for the cooker, one 15A 240V circuit for the water heater, and two 5A 240V circuits for lighting. You folks just do not have as many electrical appliances I guess. To start with I doubt air conditioning is that prevalent. In most of the US it is standard equipment. Our "cookers" (ranges) are typically 40a or maybe 50a. If you can't get natural gas, you will have electric water heaters and maybe even electric heat. Add a swimming pool, electric dryer, spa and perhaps a shop, then the loads add up fast. What is your typical main breaker? 100A = 24KVA. You really run your whole home on just 4.8KVA?! I can exceed that by a factor of 2.5 with my cooker alone. The shower another factor of 2 over that. Sorry I dropped a decimal place 48KVA. 24KVA is the minimum service you can have for anything, most are 48KVA (200a) and a large home will have 400a (96KVA) In US terms we would call your ring circuit a feeder and the branch circuit is the cord beyond the plug. (last overcurrent device in the circuit) |
#13
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Electrical advice-30A circuits
On Monday, January 30, 2017 at 7:35:29 PM UTC-6, wrote:
On Mon, 30 Jan 2017 23:51:09 -0000, "James Wilkinson Sword" wrote: On Mon, 30 Jan 2017 23:19:50 -0000, wrote: On Mon, 30 Jan 2017 23:04:52 -0000, "James Wilkinson Sword" wrote: On Mon, 30 Jan 2017 20:43:06 -0000, Charles Bishop wrote: Howdy, Sis had me look at an electrical problem she had - it turned out to be a loose wire. However, when I was poking around, I discovered a couple of odd things and need to know what to tell her what to do. There are two circuits I discovered that appear to have 120V outlets and switches on a 30A breaker. I didn't know enough to tell her whether this was allowed or not - I really suspect not but wanted to ask here first. My first thought was if there was a problem with, say a drill motor on this circuit, any problem with it wouldn't be enough to trip the breaker. This most likely resulted from the previous owner hiring incompetent workers and they did poor work, just to get electrical power to the shed. I found a power cord used as electrical cable so they didn't have to break into the wall - it ran from an (E) outlet (connected by stripping the wires and connected to the screws on the outlet) along the wall to a multiplug on its end so that power could be had at the other side of the shed. I removed this of course. So, poor work in other places wouldn't surprise me. Then, what should she do? I thought getting the circuits tracked down and then replacing the 30A breaker with two 15's or 20s, depending on the wiring and what's on them. I'd like her to have some idea before she has an electrician come out. Also, for me - I used a voltage tester when looking around - it was the kind that chirps and lights up when it's near wiring that has power. It also chirps and lights up if you stick one end into an outlet. However I found that there could also be transient chirps if I moved it quickly past a piece of metal and when I was close to wiring rather than very close to it. In one case, this made it difficult to tell which outlet or switch had the power. Was I using it correctly? Americans make things so complicated. In the UK, we have all our outlets (or half of them, on two circuits) on a 30A breaker. Each appliance has a fuse in the plug, dependant on what that appliance is. I bet you don't have 4.8 KVA homes as the defacto standard with some double that. We also have more required circuits. (2 in the kitchen, one in the laundry and one in the bathroom as a minimum plus the general lighting and appliance circuits. No need for so many circuits. We typically have one (or two in larger homes) 30A 240V circuit(s) for outlets, one 30A 240V circuit for the cooker, one 15A 240V circuit for the water heater, and two 5A 240V circuits for lighting. You folks just do not have as many electrical appliances I guess. To start with I doubt air conditioning is that prevalent. In most of the US it is standard equipment. Our "cookers" (ranges) are typically 40a or maybe 50a. If you can't get natural gas, you will have electric water heaters and maybe even electric heat. Add a swimming pool, electric dryer, spa and perhaps a shop, then the loads add up fast. What is your typical main breaker? 100A = 24KVA. You really run your whole home on just 4.8KVA?! I can exceed that by a factor of 2.5 with my cooker alone. The shower another factor of 2 over that. Sorry I dropped a decimal place 48KVA. 24KVA is the minimum service you can have for anything, most are 48KVA (200a) and a large home will have 400a (96KVA) In US terms we would call your ring circuit a feeder and the branch circuit is the cord beyond the plug. (last overcurrent device in the circuit) Would you guess it's less expensive to wire a home in the UK since they're using smaller wire(less copper) to get the same wattage at twice the voltage. I find it interesting that their transformers must be heavier because of the lower frequency of their power systems. Which make me wonder why Europe settled on a 50hz standard? Off I go to do some research. ヽ(ヅ)ノ [8~{} Uncle Shocked Monster |
#14
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Electrical advice-30A circuits
On Monday, January 30, 2017 at 8:35:29 PM UTC-5, wrote:
On Mon, 30 Jan 2017 23:51:09 -0000, "James Wilkinson Sword" wrote: On Mon, 30 Jan 2017 23:19:50 -0000, wrote: On Mon, 30 Jan 2017 23:04:52 -0000, "James Wilkinson Sword" wrote: On Mon, 30 Jan 2017 20:43:06 -0000, Charles Bishop wrote: Howdy, Sis had me look at an electrical problem she had - it turned out to be a loose wire. However, when I was poking around, I discovered a couple of odd things and need to know what to tell her what to do. There are two circuits I discovered that appear to have 120V outlets and switches on a 30A breaker. I didn't know enough to tell her whether this was allowed or not - I really suspect not but wanted to ask here first. My first thought was if there was a problem with, say a drill motor on this circuit, any problem with it wouldn't be enough to trip the breaker. This most likely resulted from the previous owner hiring incompetent workers and they did poor work, just to get electrical power to the shed. I found a power cord used as electrical cable so they didn't have to break into the wall - it ran from an (E) outlet (connected by stripping the wires and connected to the screws on the outlet) along the wall to a multiplug on its end so that power could be had at the other side of the shed. I removed this of course. So, poor work in other places wouldn't surprise me. Then, what should she do? I thought getting the circuits tracked down and then replacing the 30A breaker with two 15's or 20s, depending on the wiring and what's on them. I'd like her to have some idea before she has an electrician come out. Also, for me - I used a voltage tester when looking around - it was the kind that chirps and lights up when it's near wiring that has power. It also chirps and lights up if you stick one end into an outlet. However I found that there could also be transient chirps if I moved it quickly past a piece of metal and when I was close to wiring rather than very close to it. In one case, this made it difficult to tell which outlet or switch had the power. Was I using it correctly? Americans make things so complicated. In the UK, we have all our outlets (or half of them, on two circuits) on a 30A breaker. Each appliance has a fuse in the plug, dependant on what that appliance is. I bet you don't have 4.8 KVA homes as the defacto standard with some double that. We also have more required circuits. (2 in the kitchen, one in the laundry and one in the bathroom as a minimum plus the general lighting and appliance circuits. No need for so many circuits. We typically have one (or two in larger homes) 30A 240V circuit(s) for outlets, one 30A 240V circuit for the cooker, one 15A 240V circuit for the water heater, and two 5A 240V circuits for lighting. You folks just do not have as many electrical appliances I guess. To start with I doubt air conditioning is that prevalent. In most of the US it is standard equipment. Our "cookers" (ranges) are typically 40a or maybe 50a. If you can't get natural gas, you will have electric water heaters and maybe even electric heat. Add a swimming pool, electric dryer, spa and perhaps a shop, then the loads add up fast. My double electric oven is 40A, IDK what the electric cooktop is, but probably 30A? AC breaker is 50A, probably only pulls half that when it up and running. Hot tub is on a 40A. Electric dryer is 30A. What is your typical main breaker? 100A = 24KVA. You really run your whole home on just 4.8KVA?! I can exceed that by a factor of 2.5 with my cooker alone. The shower another factor of 2 over that. Sorry I dropped a decimal place 48KVA. 24KVA is the minimum service you can have for anything, most are 48KVA (200a) and a large home will have 400a (96KVA) Like you say, mine is 48KVA, I have friends who have larger homes with 72KVA. |
#15
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Electrical advice-30A circuits
On Tue, 31 Jan 2017 01:34:57 -0000, wrote:
On Mon, 30 Jan 2017 23:51:09 -0000, "James Wilkinson Sword" wrote: On Mon, 30 Jan 2017 23:19:50 -0000, wrote: On Mon, 30 Jan 2017 23:04:52 -0000, "James Wilkinson Sword" wrote: On Mon, 30 Jan 2017 20:43:06 -0000, Charles Bishop wrote: Howdy, Sis had me look at an electrical problem she had - it turned out to be a loose wire. However, when I was poking around, I discovered a couple of odd things and need to know what to tell her what to do. There are two circuits I discovered that appear to have 120V outlets and switches on a 30A breaker. I didn't know enough to tell her whether this was allowed or not - I really suspect not but wanted to ask here first. My first thought was if there was a problem with, say a drill motor on this circuit, any problem with it wouldn't be enough to trip the breaker. This most likely resulted from the previous owner hiring incompetent workers and they did poor work, just to get electrical power to the shed. I found a power cord used as electrical cable so they didn't have to break into the wall - it ran from an (E) outlet (connected by stripping the wires and connected to the screws on the outlet) along the wall to a multiplug on its end so that power could be had at the other side of the shed. I removed this of course. So, poor work in other places wouldn't surprise me. Then, what should she do? I thought getting the circuits tracked down and then replacing the 30A breaker with two 15's or 20s, depending on the wiring and what's on them. I'd like her to have some idea before she has an electrician come out. Also, for me - I used a voltage tester when looking around - it was the kind that chirps and lights up when it's near wiring that has power. It also chirps and lights up if you stick one end into an outlet. However I found that there could also be transient chirps if I moved it quickly past a piece of metal and when I was close to wiring rather than very close to it. In one case, this made it difficult to tell which outlet or switch had the power. Was I using it correctly? Americans make things so complicated. In the UK, we have all our outlets (or half of them, on two circuits) on a 30A breaker. Each appliance has a fuse in the plug, dependant on what that appliance is. I bet you don't have 4.8 KVA homes as the defacto standard with some double that. We also have more required circuits. (2 in the kitchen, one in the laundry and one in the bathroom as a minimum plus the general lighting and appliance circuits. No need for so many circuits. We typically have one (or two in larger homes) 30A 240V circuit(s) for outlets, one 30A 240V circuit for the cooker, one 15A 240V circuit for the water heater, and two 5A 240V circuits for lighting. You folks just do not have as many electrical appliances I guess. To start with I doubt air conditioning is that prevalent. In most of the US it is standard equipment. That only uses about a kW? Our "cookers" (ranges) are typically 40a or maybe 50a. At 240V presumably. Not much higher than our 30A. And there are a fair number with double width cookers (two ovens, six hobs). If you can't get natural gas, you will have electric water heaters We do too. Gas isn't everywhere. and maybe even electric heat. Same here. Add a swimming pool, electric dryer, spa and perhaps a shop, then the loads add up fast. Some have those aswell. What is your typical main breaker? 100A = 24KVA. You really run your whole home on just 4.8KVA?! I can exceed that by a factor of 2.5 with my cooker alone. The shower another factor of 2 over that. Sorry I dropped a decimal place 48KVA. 24KVA is the minimum service you can have for anything, most are 48KVA (200a) and a large home will have 400a (96KVA) I see. Although I can ask for more if I want it. I believe I can even get three phase. In US terms we would call your ring circuit a feeder and the branch circuit is the cord beyond the plug. (last overcurrent device in the circuit) -- A drunk was in front of a judge. The judge says, "You've been brought here for drinking." The drunk says, "Okay, let's get started." |
#16
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Electrical advice-30A circuits
On Tue, 31 Jan 2017 01:34:57 -0000, wrote:
On Mon, 30 Jan 2017 23:51:09 -0000, "James Wilkinson Sword" wrote: On Mon, 30 Jan 2017 23:19:50 -0000, wrote: On Mon, 30 Jan 2017 23:04:52 -0000, "James Wilkinson Sword" wrote: On Mon, 30 Jan 2017 20:43:06 -0000, Charles Bishop wrote: Howdy, Sis had me look at an electrical problem she had - it turned out to be a loose wire. However, when I was poking around, I discovered a couple of odd things and need to know what to tell her what to do. There are two circuits I discovered that appear to have 120V outlets and switches on a 30A breaker. I didn't know enough to tell her whether this was allowed or not - I really suspect not but wanted to ask here first. My first thought was if there was a problem with, say a drill motor on this circuit, any problem with it wouldn't be enough to trip the breaker. This most likely resulted from the previous owner hiring incompetent workers and they did poor work, just to get electrical power to the shed. I found a power cord used as electrical cable so they didn't have to break into the wall - it ran from an (E) outlet (connected by stripping the wires and connected to the screws on the outlet) along the wall to a multiplug on its end so that power could be had at the other side of the shed. I removed this of course. So, poor work in other places wouldn't surprise me. Then, what should she do? I thought getting the circuits tracked down and then replacing the 30A breaker with two 15's or 20s, depending on the wiring and what's on them. I'd like her to have some idea before she has an electrician come out. Also, for me - I used a voltage tester when looking around - it was the kind that chirps and lights up when it's near wiring that has power. It also chirps and lights up if you stick one end into an outlet. However I found that there could also be transient chirps if I moved it quickly past a piece of metal and when I was close to wiring rather than very close to it. In one case, this made it difficult to tell which outlet or switch had the power. Was I using it correctly? Americans make things so complicated. In the UK, we have all our outlets (or half of them, on two circuits) on a 30A breaker. Each appliance has a fuse in the plug, dependant on what that appliance is. I bet you don't have 4.8 KVA homes as the defacto standard with some double that. We also have more required circuits. (2 in the kitchen, one in the laundry and one in the bathroom as a minimum plus the general lighting and appliance circuits. No need for so many circuits. We typically have one (or two in larger homes) 30A 240V circuit(s) for outlets, one 30A 240V circuit for the cooker, one 15A 240V circuit for the water heater, and two 5A 240V circuits for lighting. You folks just do not have as many electrical appliances I guess. To start with I doubt air conditioning is that prevalent. In most of the US it is standard equipment. That only uses about a kW? Our "cookers" (ranges) are typically 40a or maybe 50a. At 240V presumably. Not much higher than our 30A. And there are a fair number with double width cookers (two ovens, six hobs). If you can't get natural gas, you will have electric water heaters We do too. Gas isn't everywhere. and maybe even electric heat. Same here. Add a swimming pool, electric dryer, spa and perhaps a shop, then the loads add up fast. Some have those aswell. What is your typical main breaker? 100A = 24KVA. You really run your whole home on just 4.8KVA?! I can exceed that by a factor of 2.5 with my cooker alone. The shower another factor of 2 over that. Sorry I dropped a decimal place 48KVA. 24KVA is the minimum service you can have for anything, most are 48KVA (200a) and a large home will have 400a (96KVA) I see. Although I can ask for more if I want it. I believe I can even get three phase. In US terms we would call your ring circuit a feeder and the branch circuit is the cord beyond the plug. (last overcurrent device in the circuit) -- A drunk was in front of a judge. The judge says, "You've been brought here for drinking." The drunk says, "Okay, let's get started." |
#17
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Birdbrain Macaw (now "James Wilkinson" LOL), the Sociopathic Attention Whore
The wrote: On Mon, 30 Jan 2017 23:04:52 -0000, Birdbrain Macaw (now "James Wilkinson"), the pathological attention whore of all the uk ngs, blathered again: Americans make things so complicated. In the UK, we have all our outlets (or half of them, on two circuits) on a 30A breaker. Each appliance has a fuse in the plug, dependant on what that appliance is. The fuse in your "brain" blew obviously a long time ago, Birdbrain! -- More from Birdbrain Macaw's (now "James Wilkinson" LOL) strange sociopathic world: "My head feels like it's stuffed with cotton wool. Sleep, chocolate, and alcohol help for a short while." MID: Mr Peeler, you obviously have a hard on for James Wilkinson's sword. You two need to get together and do whatever you need to do for this bull**** exchange you're having to end. Your infatuation with his sword needs to end. You obviously don't perceive how annoying it is to read your repressed love rants for him. Is this your first homosexual infatuation? Get over it. |
#18
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Electrical advice-30A circuits
On Monday, January 30, 2017 at 3:43:11 PM UTC-5, Charles Bishop wrote:
Howdy, Sis had me look at an electrical problem she had - it turned out to be a loose wire. However, when I was poking around, I discovered a couple of odd things and need to know what to tell her what to do. There are two circuits I discovered that appear to have 120V outlets and switches on a 30A breaker. I didn't know enough to tell her whether this was allowed or not - I really suspect not but wanted to ask here first. My first thought was if there was a problem with, say a drill motor on this circuit, any problem with it wouldn't be enough to trip the breaker. This most likely resulted from the previous owner hiring incompetent workers and they did poor work, just to get electrical power to the shed. I found a power cord used as electrical cable so they didn't have to break into the wall - it ran from an (E) outlet (connected by stripping the wires and connected to the screws on the outlet) along the wall to a multiplug on its end so that power could be had at the other side of the shed. I removed this of course. So, poor work in other places wouldn't surprise me. Then, what should she do? I thought getting the circuits tracked down and then replacing the 30A breaker with two 15's or 20s, depending on the wiring and what's on them. I'd like her to have some idea before she has an electrician come out. Also, for me - I used a voltage tester when looking around - it was the kind that chirps and lights up when it's near wiring that has power. It also chirps and lights up if you stick one end into an outlet. However I found that there could also be transient chirps if I moved it quickly past a piece of metal and when I was close to wiring rather than very close to it. In one case, this made it difficult to tell which outlet or switch had the power. Was I using it correctly? Charles just for fun somone hangs a big picture and causes a short on a 30 amp circuit with 30 amp breaker....... sounds like a excellent way to start a fire |
#19
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Electrical advice-30A circuits
On Monday, January 30, 2017 at 8:19:50 PM UTC-5, bob haller wrote:
On Monday, January 30, 2017 at 3:43:11 PM UTC-5, Charles Bishop wrote: Howdy, Sis had me look at an electrical problem she had - it turned out to be a loose wire. However, when I was poking around, I discovered a couple of odd things and need to know what to tell her what to do. There are two circuits I discovered that appear to have 120V outlets and switches on a 30A breaker. I didn't know enough to tell her whether this was allowed or not - I really suspect not but wanted to ask here first. My first thought was if there was a problem with, say a drill motor on this circuit, any problem with it wouldn't be enough to trip the breaker. This most likely resulted from the previous owner hiring incompetent workers and they did poor work, just to get electrical power to the shed. I found a power cord used as electrical cable so they didn't have to break into the wall - it ran from an (E) outlet (connected by stripping the wires and connected to the screws on the outlet) along the wall to a multiplug on its end so that power could be had at the other side of the shed. I removed this of course. So, poor work in other places wouldn't surprise me. Then, what should she do? I thought getting the circuits tracked down and then replacing the 30A breaker with two 15's or 20s, depending on the wiring and what's on them. I'd like her to have some idea before she has an electrician come out. Also, for me - I used a voltage tester when looking around - it was the kind that chirps and lights up when it's near wiring that has power. It also chirps and lights up if you stick one end into an outlet. However I found that there could also be transient chirps if I moved it quickly past a piece of metal and when I was close to wiring rather than very close to it. In one case, this made it difficult to tell which outlet or switch had the power. Was I using it correctly? Charles just for fun somone hangs a big picture and causes a short on a 30 amp circuit with 30 amp breaker....... sounds like a excellent way to start a fire IDK that it's much different than doing the same thing with a 20A circuit. You'd get a bit more arc for milliseconds, but it doesn't seem that much worse at 30A. |
#20
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Electrical advice-30A circuits
On Tuesday, January 31, 2017 at 10:14:05 AM UTC-5, trader_4 wrote:
just for fun somone hangs a big picture and causes a short on a 30 amp circuit with 30 amp breaker....... sounds like a excellent way to start a fire IDK that it's much different than doing the same thing with a 20A circuit. You'd get a bit more arc for milliseconds, but it doesn't seem that much worse at 30A. Forgot that it's also 220V, instead of 120V, so I guess the available energy for arcing is 3X what it is here with a 120V, 20A circuit, so I agree, you have a point. How much more likely that is to start a fire in the milliseconds before the breaker trips, IDK. It would depend on what's around to ignite. |
#21
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Electrical advice-30A circuits
On 01/30/2017 07:19 PM, bob haller wrote:
[snip] just for fun somone hangs a big picture and causes a short on a 30 amp circuit with 30 amp breaker....... sounds like a excellent way to start a fire If you have one of those non-trip breakers. |
#22
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Electrical advice-30A circuits
On Mon, 30 Jan 2017 12:43:06 -0800, Charles Bishop
wrote: Howdy, Sis had me look at an electrical problem she had - it turned out to be a loose wire. However, when I was poking around, I discovered a couple of odd things and need to know what to tell her what to do. There are two circuits I discovered that appear to have 120V outlets and switches on a 30A breaker. I didn't know enough to tell her whether this was allowed or not - I really suspect not but wanted to ask here first. My first thought was if there was a problem with, say a drill motor on this circuit, any problem with it wouldn't be enough to trip the breaker. This most likely resulted from the previous owner hiring incompetent workers and they did poor work, just to get electrical power to the shed. I found a power cord used as electrical cable so they didn't have to break into the wall - it ran from an (E) outlet (connected by stripping the wires and connected to the screws on the outlet) along the wall to a multiplug on its end so that power could be had at the other side of the shed. I removed this of course. So, poor work in other places wouldn't surprise me. Then, what should she do? I thought getting the circuits tracked down and then replacing the 30A breaker with two 15's or 20s, depending on the wiring and what's on them. I'd like her to have some idea before she has an electrician come out. Also, for me - I used a voltage tester when looking around - it was the kind that chirps and lights up when it's near wiring that has power. It also chirps and lights up if you stick one end into an outlet. However I found that there could also be transient chirps if I moved it quickly past a piece of metal and when I was close to wiring rather than very close to it. In one case, this made it difficult to tell which outlet or switch had the power. Was I using it correctly? Charles Having any standard outlets on a 30A breaker is both dangerous and a code violation. There should be two 15A or 20A (single) breakers. Wire gauge determines if it should be 15A or 20A. #12 wire is 20A #14 wire is 15A (15A breakers can be used on *either* wire gauge) From what you said, I agree you need to have an electrician check out that wiring. It sounds like there are other violations and dangers, and they should be taken care of soon. I like to advocate DIY repairs, but unless you're experienced with wiring, call an expert. It's a lot cheaper to hire an electrician than to replace a house and it's contents after a fire. (not to mention possibly loss of life). |
#23
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Sister is like a 30A circuit
On 1/30/2017 12:43 PM, Charles Bishop wrote:
Howdy, Sis and me were poking around an'.... it turned out to be a loose wire. However, when I was poking her, I discovered a couple of odd things and need to know what to tell her what to do. WELCOME TO UTAH THE FAMILY THAT PLAYS TOGETHER STAYS TOGETHER |
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