3 phase on a domestic property

[zodiacspain]

I have recently bought a property with 3 phase electric supply, 3 phases and a neutral, we are turning the house into 2 apartments, so would it be possible to put 1 phase to each appartment and then the last phase to the garage? i know that when each phase is connected to the neutral it is 240v.
I'm not an electrician but i have alot of common sense, i have read that you should load each phase as evenly as possible, but this not be possible with the way i would like to use it.
Can anyone answer my question and help?
Gary

 

[telectrix]

you would have to calculate the load on each phase. taking diversity into account, and balance as best you can. but bear in mind that this work needs to be done by a qualified electrician.

 

[zodiacspain]

thank you telectrix for your help, the only thing that i'm concerned with is that if one apartment is not in use all the time, so that phase would not be used as much.

 

[onions1066]

You will never be able to balance all the phases equally at all times it will always fluctuate anyway.

 

[Deleted member 26818]

There are many properties with 3phase supplies, that only use one or two of the phases.
Is the garage intended to be metered separately to the two apartments, or is it intended for the garage to be metered with one of them?

 

[zodiacspain]

There are many properties with 3phase supplies, that only use one or two of the phases.
Is the garage intended to be metered separately to the two apartments, or is it intended for the garage to be metered with one of them?

I'm in Spain and electric company in Spain is Iberdrola, they have fitted a 3 phase meter, so coming out of the meter is 3 phases and a neutral ... the apartments will be one for me and the other for a friend so all we've decided to have whatever the bill is, so each apartment does not need to be metered separately

 

[jackthom]

None of my business of course but it's just possible your friendship will last longer with seperate metering. :cool3:

 

[rover v8]

we have 3 phase over here in corfu as well as the single phase supply is only 10kw. now what we do is put in a type of henley block or fuse bd by the meter and take a seperate 3 phase supply to each place when it does not need to be metered. this trying to keep the balance. however greek sparks don't seem to see the potential of 3 phase and will put put it all over the p[lace rather than seperate rooms etc.

 

[Engineer54]

we have 3 phase over here in corfu as well as the single phase supply is only 10kw. now what we do is put in a type of henley block or fuse bd by the meter and take a seperate 3 phase supply to each place when it does not need to be metered. this trying to keep the balance. however greek sparks don't seem to see the potential of 3 phase and will put put it all over the place rather than seperate rooms etc.

What's the problem with that?? A simple solution would be to use the phase colours for the live conductors, same as i insisted on for my house in Cyprus. I certainly wouldn't be arsing around having different phases for separate rooms, the circuitry alone (and conduit runs) would be a nightmare, let alone trying to maintain any form of load balancing!!

 

[Robert Turnbull]

The potential could be 415v frying your ---

 

[Engineer54]

The potential could be 415v frying your ---

So how do you think say a large open office or a commercial floor would be distributed using a 3 phase supply??

 

[Knobhead]

The potential could be 415v frying your ---

It's NOT going to fry anyones ---. You've prooved you know nothing about real life already. Please don't dig a bigger hole for yourself.

 

[zodiacspain]

when i bought this house, the previous owner worked for the electric company in Spain, all I can say is the house has been wired with wire that could run Blackpool illuminations LOL ... each phase has a big 40amp 400v fuse, thank you everyone for your comments, i will also be asking an electrician to come and have a look, thank for those who answered some of my questions

 

[Knobhead]

Oh god, I can imagine what the wiring is like! The meter cupboard in my first house looked like an extension to Battersea power station mg_smile:

 

[zodiacspain]

Oh god, I can imagine what the wiring is like! The meter cupboard in my first house looked like an extension to Battersea power station mg_smile:

LOL .... the main power board was full of fuses and spaghetti wiring, looked like something from Einstein with bakelite switches and sockets, and this was last week :/

 

[rover v8]

i have been to a house here were the kitchen was all stainless steel, work top, appliaences,splash backs, sinks all with in touching distances and all including sockets no cross bonding no main bonding and all on 3 differant phases with the earth stake into rock. Potential !

 

[Engineer54]

i have been to a house here were the kitchen was all stainless steel, work top, appliaences,splash backs, sinks all with in touching distances and all including sockets no cross bonding no main bonding and all on 3 differant phases with the earth stake into rock. Potential !

Again, what would be so different in say a commercial kitchen, again using a 3 phase distribution to single phase wall accessories. obviously with main bonding in place!!

In highly rocky terrain, you don't use earth rods (unless you have access to a bore drilling machine), here you would go the more expensive route, of laying a series of copper tape lengths surrounded by a conductive material, such as Bentonite in shallow trenches.... Even so, an up-front S Type RCD is a prudent addition to any 30mA RCD protection in the DB.

 

[Robert Turnbull]

The potential could be 415v frying your ---

It's NOT going to fry anyones ---. You've prooved you know nothing about real life already. Please don't dig a bigger hole for yourself.

In any situation where 3 phase is used
Caution should always be taken to 2 phases are not in close proximity. Items like switch boxes should be labeled in these instances. In a domestic situation it's not so obvious especially when you get DIY bods messing around.

The pun was in potential!

I was just pointing out the danger in a domestic situation.

I must have imagined going to work for the last 10 years!

 

[kingeri]

I got what you meant Robert!

 

[GLENNSPARK]

The potential could be 415v frying your ---

does this mean that if its 230V...its allrite eh?....LOL...

 

[Rockingit]

In any situation where 3 phase is used
Caution should always be taken to 2 phases are not in close proximity. Items like switch boxes should be labeled in these instances. In a domestic situation it's not so obvious especially when you get DIY bods messing around.

The pun was in potential!

I was just pointing out the danger in a domestic situation.

I must have imagined going to work for the last 10 years!

Sorry, I'm with Tony on this; and besides, as I've said any number of times on here before - if DIY Dave is going to fiddle with stuff he shouldn't, it doesn't make the slightest difference whether it's 415V or a couple of AA batteries - he's still going to fiddle. Consequently, Mr Darwin has much to say on the matter.

 

[Engineer54]

In any situation where 3 phase is used
Caution should always be taken to 2 phases are not in close proximity. Items like switch boxes should be labeled in these instances. In a domestic situation it's not so obvious especially when you get DIY bods messing around.

The pun was in potential!

I was just pointing out the danger in a domestic situation.

I must have imagined going to work for the last 10 years!

Caution yes, as you would any other electrical installation. Trying to cover every unknown possibility that's out of your control, ....NO!!

The easiest way to indicate that different phases are present, is to use the phase colours throughout the installation... Which when i was a lad, often the case, certainly in large commercial and industrial installations. With these daft new phase colours, things are not so obvious as they were with the bright Red, Yellow, Blue.... And they call that Progress, ...Stupidity more like!! lol!!

 

[Des 56]

Caution yes, as you would any other electrical installation. Trying to cover every unknown possibility that's out of your control, ....NO!!

The easiest way to indicate that different phases are present, is to use the phase colours throughout the installation... Which when i was a lad, often the case, certainly in large commercial and industrial installations. With these daft new phase colours, things are not so obvious as they were with the bright Red, Yellow, Blue.... And they call that Progress, ...Stupidity more like!! lol!!

This has got to be the most stupid change I have ever known of in this industry

 

[Engineer54]

This has got to be the most stupid change I have ever known of in this industry

Agree, even more so, given the fact that many European countries don't and still don't use these harmonised phase colours!! We should have stuck to our guns and told the powers that be, to shove these dull tonal phase colours and keep to our Bright and easily distinguishable colours!! Even better, would have been for Europe to adopt our old colours!! ...lol!!