![]() Table 1 provides the current carrying capacity, by gauge of copper and aluminum wires. At some point, the wires that run from the transformer to your home will act as a fuse and burn out because they are carrying more current than specified. ![]() So you might think that you can obtain more power from your utility just by increasing the size of the main fuses or breakers, and you probably can, to a point. In fact, there should be no noticeable heat on the wires at any time. The gauge of the wires that carries the power from the transformer to your home and within your home are chosen in size to ensure that they do not overheat at their rated amperage. Wire is manufactured to a specific group of sizes that are designated by numbers known as gauges. Fuses react much faster to overloads and hence shut down a circuit faster than breakers do. It may be noted that although circuit breakers are more convenient than fuses because they can be reset. As current flows through the breaker, a piece of metal warms and bends, when the bend reaches a point it mechanically trips the breaker to the TRIPPED position, which is between the OFF and ON positions. They work in a similar manner to a thermostat. The thinner the wire, the hotter it gets when a specific amount of amps are flowing through it.Ĭircuit breakers, as shown in Figure 4, perform the same function although they work in a different manner. This is why a toaster, stove or hotplate works, current is sent through the wires and they get hot. Figure 4 - Circuit breakerĪ piece of wire gets hot as it carries the current to your home or throughout your home. The thinner the link between the caps the less amount of current (amps) that the link can handle before it melts, due to the heat. Figure 3 - The fuse element, on the left of the picture, is what is inside the cartridge. The original fuse was a piece of wire sized to melt when a specific amount of amps (current) was going through it, as shown in Figure 3. ![]() To do this we will look at the original fuse. It is important to understand the relationship between wire gauge and amperage. Many older homes still have 60 amp services and in rural locations it is still possible to find 30 amp services. However, there is a difference to the current carrying capability of copper versus aluminum.īecause of our ever increasing demand for electrical power in out homes, most new homes are being built with a minimum of a 150 Amp service and 200 is not uncommon. Utilities can drop power into your home using copper or aluminum wiring. 120 & 240 are nominal numbers and can vary from 110 to 120 and 205 to 240 depending on the utility. The amount of power that the utility provides is governed by the transformer on the pole, as shown in Figure 1, or the transformer that is mounted on the ground, as shown in Figure 2, that services your home and the size of the wires from that transformer to your home.įor explanation purposes we will use 120 and 240 VAC as the voltage. Power is supplied to your home, from the utility, in the form of volts and amps.
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