I promised you guys a description of our typical domestic service entrance. Pity I'm not able to post some pics, but nevermind.....
Meters are usually located outside on all new homes now, but until quite recently standard practice was for all meters to be inside the property. Just thought I'd explain that first.
The meter and associated equipment is usually mounted on a wooden board about 18 inches square.
On older property in urban areas, the service was generally from an armored underground cable and the board mounted close to the entrance point on the ground floor, often in a cupboard. (Basements are much rarer here than in the U.S., but some old Victorian houses with a coal cellar had the service fitted down in the cellar.)
Most rural property was served with overhead lines. A bracket with two porcelain insulators is used to terinate the pair of supply lines (the neutral often being bare up to this point). From there, two cables with a double layer of PVC insulation run down and through the wall to the board, in this case normally mounted at high level on the ground floor.
The newest system, now used in all areas, has a PVC sheathed cable with center "live" wire and a concentric neutral. Even where overhead distribution is employed, these new feeders are run underground to the nearest pole.
The armored cable, concentric cable, or two single cables terminate at a service block containing the main fuse and a neutral link. (On overhead systems with separate line/neutral cables, these were often separate.) Most new services are 100A, but a lot of older 80, 60, and even some 40A services are still in use.
On installations using PME (see my other posts), this neutral link is also the point at which the main grounding lead is connected to the neutral.
From here, two double PVC insulated cables link to the meter, which has large screw terminals instead of being a plug-in type. Two more similar cables exit. Everything up to this point is the property of, is installed by, and is maintained by the utility co. The meter case, terminal cover, and main fuse are all sealed. Note that none of this wiring is in conduit or raceway.
On the simplest installations, the cables then continue to a "consumer unit" which contains a main switch and the individual fuses or breakers. In cases where an ELCB is fitted, this is wired between the meter and the consumer unit. On new installations needing a whole-house ELCB/GFCI, this is more usually fitted in the consumer unit where it takes the place of the main switch.
Where outside meters are used, a white plastic (ABS) box with a door is fitted on or set into an exterior wall to hold the board for the meter and service block/fuse. The remaining equipment is still fitted inside the building.
This is all for a basic service; many homes have dual-tariff meters and PoCo-owned timers etc. to provide low-rate night service.
