Low voltage damage?

[sauerkraut]

Some houses built during certain years were wired with aluminum wiring and that is dangerous. I believe some of the homes of the early 1970's had the aluminum wiring.

[patric]

quote:Originally posted by Steve

Just some thoughts here...

My neighborhood, Lortondale, was built in the early 1950s as the first U.S. subdivision with all centrally air-conditioned homes.  Our houses were originally wired with standard current for 110 volt supply, and "3-phase" supply for the air conditioning.  I have a standard circuit breaker box for normal supply, and an additional 3-fuse box which powers my central A/C compressor.  My house is still wired this way.  There have been 2-3 times in the past 22 years when the "3-phase" portion of my power supply has gone out; I still have lights, but no A/C, and in every case it has been a tripped fuse on the power pole that supplies my house.

3-phase power in a residential area is really rare, yet there were a number of subdivisions in Tulsa built that way.  Sort of nostalgic to hear Lortondale is one, but im not surprised.

Our original air conditioner was built inside a shed, with buried pipes going to a corner of the yard where there was a cooling tower the size of  a refrigerator.  The motor was 3-phase, and the wire coming from the PSO pole to our gigantic meter box was 4 conductors.

Whe a pole fuse would blow, it would sound like artillery and shower the yard with sparks (its what people today mistakenly refer to as a "transformer blowing").  We would still have power on one of the other "legs" but no compressor or other 240-volt appliances.
After the ice storm repairs there's no trace of the old 3-phase system anymore, except for the extra unused wire going to each home.

Nowadays if you have a leg out (some 120-volt appliances work but no 240-volt), it's an issue with either the transformer or the secondary wiring leading to your home -- still PSO's responsibility.  You may have 4-5 neighbors with the same problem, too.

[waterboy]

We were among the last to get full power back last night. They had to replace a pole and strung some new wire while they were there. No damage apparent to any appliances.

[RecycleMichael]

I don't see what the big deal is. I have been running on low voltage for years.

Oh, you were talking about my house...

Never mind.

[Red Arrow]

3 Phase power to residential areas?  Sounds like areas ripe for light industrial mixed use to me. Tear down your neighbors' houses and put up a small factory of some sort. []

[patric]

quote:Originally posted by Red Arrow

3 Phase power to residential areas?  Sounds like areas ripe for light industrial mixed use to me. Tear down your neighbors' houses and put up a small factory of some sort. []

Believe it or not, there was a time when you had to have 3-phase power to have central air.
It's also an indication of how old some overhead power systems are around here.

[Red Arrow]

quote:Originally posted by patric

quote:Originally posted by Red Arrow

3 Phase power to residential areas?  Sounds like areas ripe for light industrial mixed use to me. Tear down your neighbors' houses and put up a small factory of some sort. []

Believe it or not, there was a time when you had to have 3-phase power to have central air.
It's also an indication of how old some overhead power systems are around here.

I believe it. An friend told me there was 3 phase in his neighborhood, at least at one time.  Made it convenient for some types of power tools.

[Steve]

quote:Originally posted by patric

quote:Originally posted by Steve

Just some thoughts here...

My neighborhood, Lortondale, was built in the early 1950s as the first U.S. subdivision with all centrally air-conditioned homes.  Our houses were originally wired with standard current for 110 volt supply, and "3-phase" supply for the air conditioning.  I have a standard circuit breaker box for normal supply, and an additional 3-fuse box which powers my central A/C compressor.  My house is still wired this way.  There have been 2-3 times in the past 22 years when the "3-phase" portion of my power supply has gone out; I still have lights, but no A/C, and in every case it has been a tripped fuse on the power pole that supplies my house.

3-phase power in a residential area is really rare, yet there were a number of subdivisions in Tulsa built that way.  Sort of nostalgic to hear Lortondale is one, but im not surprised.

Lortondale was the first truly modern post-war development in Tulsa, and the first spec tract home development in the U.S. with central waterless A/C as a standard feature, featuring Chrysler AirTemp Waterless Air Conditioning. When I bought my house back in 1986, it still had the original Chrysler AirTemp furnace and indoor coil and thermostat.  I have since replaced these, but they were still working properly, if not noisly and inefficient, when I replaced them.  I still have 3-phase at my home in Lortondale at 26th & S. Yale.  Being no electrician, I really don't understand what it means, but I have a normal circuit breaker box for house wiring, and a seperate 3-fuse circuit box that powers only the outside A/C compressor.

A few years ago, a man that bought the house next door to me was having problems with the A/C.  I was talking to him and just happened to mention "3-phase" and a light went off in his head!  Once he realized his house was wired this way, he soon fixed his A/C problems.

An electrician once told me many years ago that the 3-phase aspect of my wiring would actually save me a few $ on my electric bill.  Don't know how true that is, but as of today, my AMP PSO bill is only $56.  Expected to go up this month by about $20 due to the recent rate hikes.

[patric]

quote:Originally posted by Steve

I have a normal circuit breaker box for house wiring, and a seperate 3-fuse circuit box that powers only the outside A/C compressor.

The 3-phase wiring and the 3-fuse box would have only gone to your compressor house (the shed that housed your compressor) and the rest of your house would have been normal 240-Volt 2-leg wiring.  3-phase motors are more efficient compared to 240-volt motors (as 240-volt motors are more efficient than 120-volt motors) so if you needed that big a motor it would have saved electricity having it 3-phase.

That's one reason if you install a window unit, pick a 240-volt model instead of a 120-volt.

I remember when ours would come on it was really loud, and reminded me of the compressors they use in refrigerated trucks (reffers).
I can imagine what the electric bill would be now if we still had it.

[Steve]

quote:Originally posted by patric

quote:Originally posted by Steve

I have a normal circuit breaker box for house wiring, and a seperate 3-fuse circuit box that powers only the outside A/C compressor.

The 3-phase wiring and the 3-fuse box would have only gone to your compressor house (the shed that housed your compressor) and the rest of your house would have been normal 240-Volt 2-leg wiring.

All this electric discussion is way over my head, but I do know this.  My house built in 1954 has a standard circuit breaker box that serves all electric circuits in the house.  I spent nearly 2 days awhile back checking all circuts, turning on and off all breakers, to identify all switches and outlets and how they were crontrolled from the breaker box, and wrote it all down for reference.

My outside A/C compressor is controlled from a separate fuse box right next to the circuit breaker panel.  It has 3 cartridge fuses, and is controlled with an "arm" engager switch.  I assume this is the "3-phase" component of my house wiring.  I have replaced the 3 cartridge fuses in this box only once over the past 22 years.  All is working just great this year, god willing.

On a similar note, I bought my midtown Tulsa home in 1986, and still have the same outside A/C Freidrich compressor unit that was with my home in 1986.  I have a concrete slab house with ducts and A/C in the slab. The unit was at least 5 years old when I bought my home, so it is at least 28 years old now.  Still works flawlessly, and I have never had to have my A/C system recharged in 25 years.

Preventative maintenance is the key.  I snake out my A/C condensation line at least twice a season, and always make sure the outside compressor unit cooling fins are free and clear of debris.  It helps too that my outside A/C unit is under a wide overhang on the east side of my house, never exposed to direct hot summer sun.  I guess I have been lucky, but an ounce of prevention....

Forget about these HVAC companies and their seasonal "tune up" hype.  They do the same things you can do for free, and charge you $100 or more in the process.