Ring vs Radial

[alarm man]

Offence taken. That was a very stupid remark. This is a perfectly valid topic. If you don't wish to contribute then either don't read it or bugger off.

you can be banned for that sort of lingo king,ah just noticed your a new member,carry on..

 

[highspark]

Radials.Rings can have broken circuits without every relising and essentially having 2 radials on a 32 amp breaker

 

[Engineer54]

Makes little difference to an effectively designed radial system.

If they are stupid enough to remove the ring circuit, it will be to introduce the European standard 16A radial circuit (so-called harmonisation). So all wall outlets and accessories will be based on that system. Ever tried getting more than two 2.5mm into a German or French socket outlet (among the many others)?? You can't as they are designed not to allow a third conductor, (and that will probably also be in the Reg's too) so any branching or spurring (if allowed) will need to be by means of connectors in the wall back box.

As i said previously, you all need to think outside the box on this one, because you'll end up getting far more than anyone bargained for...

 

[kingeri]

you can be banned for that sort of lingo king,ah just noticed your a new member,carry on..

I'm not that new a member. And if I get banned for that, then so be it. Just looking at the volume of replies and responses to this thread tells me it's of interest......so hence probably not a 'stupid topic'. Bless you for your concern. And note the smiley faces!

 

[Chr!s]

Radials.Rings can have broken circuits without every relising and essentially having 2 radials on a 32 amp breaker

One loose CPC on a Radial, no earth to all the others. 2 CPC's on a Ring

 

[1shortcircuit]

Ring or radial? let me see???

Well I am a Electrical Trainee wonder so I guess it would all depend on how much of what size cable I had remaining in the van

*** Clearly posted in jest *** lol


Without knowing where the circuit is to be installed and knowing what demand it requires is impossible to know for certain which would be more appropriate. It's all in the design and I do not favour one over the other:thumbsup

 

[Les Macaulay]

Those of us sparks old enough would not mind rings if it wasn't for the phasing out years ago of 7/.029 and the intro of single strand 2.5sqmm conductors.

 

[garyjtroy]

here in ireland the last time i met an ecssa inspector he advised me to stay away from using ring circuits as it was going to be changed down the line in the near future so i always go with radials from then on

 

[Chr!s]

Well i prefer the Lollipop, best of both worlds then:smart:

 

[Jonny66]

Another thing to take into account in the Ring vs Radial debate is the circuits maximum length of run in relation to volt drop and Zs etc....
To get an idea, have a look at the standard circuits in OSG with maximum Ze design figures for TN systems....

Ring final 32amp, 2.5/1.5mm (type B)......106m
Radial 20amp, 2.5/1.5mm (type B).......31m
Radial 32amp, 4.0/1.5mm (type B).......33m (installation method C only)

 

[kingeri]

I wish they'd make 4mm T&E with a 2.5mm CPC. It would then become much more useful!

 

[MarkieSparkie]

here in ireland the last time i met an ecssa inspector he advised me to stay away from using ring circuits as it was going to be changed down the line in the near future so i always go with radials from then on

Don't hold your breath mate or limit yourself to just radials. I was told similar when I was an impressionable apprentice 35+ years ago! :wheelchair:

 

[bigspark17]

i have to agree with chris... joe bloggs comes along to put a chrome socket on the 1st socket on a radial, messes up the earths and you loose your cpc to the rest of the sockets.. they still work but no cpc protection to all his appliances.!! untill he gets his house periodically checks next (which he obviously will).!!! If you can plan your route out well before starting your ring final usually you wouldnt have to use that much more cable..

 

[imago]

I agree with all the posters who have shown up the potential faults for both rings and radials, they are all possible as are the resulting issues.

However, I don't think anyone should design an installation (or part of one) based on how someone could mess it up by fiddling around with it either in ignorance or when incompetent. The only considerations in that vein should be given to potential users and uses, not some idiot with a screwdriver. It's part of the human condition that some people will mess about where they shouldn't, some will be lucky, some won't. As long as all the professionals involved have done their job properly then all is well IMHO.

Design and planning is about selecting the correct methods and materials for the intended purpose. Radials, rings, and combinations of the two are all available to use. It's up to the designer and installer to select what he or she thinks is best suited to the situation in front of them, then use that.

 

[Guitarist]

Design and planning is about selecting the correct methods and materials for the intended purpose. Radials, rings, and combinations of the two are all available to use. It's up to the designer and installer to select what he or she thinks is best suited to the situation in front of them, then use that.

You've hit the nail on the head there. So many people are coming into the profession now with very little training that although they know how to connect a radial or RFC, many won't actually understand the maths behind it all, let alone have the experience to tailor each install to individual design criteria. Not necessarily having a correct or incorrect way to do something is both a strength and a weakness.