ECN Forum Forums General Topics of the Trade Non-US Electrical Systems & Trades Ring circuits?Spur unit? RCD Device?

Wow!,
Since I last saw this thread, it's gone from Ring circuits to Leaded Petrol.
Amazing.

Yup! From ring circuits to radial spurs to to LH versus RH drive to washing machines, to detergents to mites and bugs to enzymes to 3 phase to breaker sizes to car-tax to fuel prices to house heating to woodburning to leaded fuel to aviation spirit to EU directives to ranges and back to radial spurs.

Who said; "Oh No! Not ring circuits again!"
The trouble is they finish up where they started!

Second lap.....

Alan

Sorry Aussie,
I missed that question.
The BS1363 plug and socket arrangement was mentioned in all the releases of the NZ Electrical Wiring Regulations, from 1932 to 1976, as was the BS 546 configuration.
However, that doesn't mean that either was really ever used here.
You can still get them here though, PDL still make the BS 1363 plates and plugs, although I have no idea why.
I've only ever seen them used here and by golly, I can't for the life of me remember where it was.
{Edit:I know where it was, it was underneath Timaru Hospital, there were long strings of them, I remember now looking at them during a BA course (before I was ever an Electrician) and thinking "what a strange looking plug!", they were the metal bodied type with a plastic(??) socket insert fitted into the lid}
Kiwi,
Yup, I agree mate, the majority of our caravan parks are wired in this fashion, but instead of a 13A fused plug, we have a 16A (Blue) IEC 309 connector and a 16A MCB and the usual cord-line RCD.
Oh and BTW Aussie, our telecommunications system was originally based upon the BT 3-Wire system, I may be grossly erronous in saying that, but I was under the impression that that was how we got the connector spec as well.
Them older Aussie phone plugs were pretty large little beasts, I remember seeing one of them for the first time and wondering what voltage the Austel system ran on.



[This message has been edited by Trumpy (edited 01-18-2006).]

I heard from a kiwi techie that BS1363 is an acceptable alternative and is occasionally used where an incompatable plug / socket system is required. E.g. specialist applications such as UPS systems.

Djk,
With respect to the non-compatibility angle.
We do have plug/socket configurations here that use either, 2 round (Phase+Neutral) pins or a single round Earth pin to complement the standard flat pins.
But I agree Dave, we didn't always have them configurations either, but that's another thread in itself!.

There are several variants to BS1363 here as well for applications where it's necessary to restrict connections ("clean" supplies, etc.).

There is no standardization between manufacturers on these BS1363-based-but-not-BS1363 plugs. MK did a version with a kind of T-shaped earth pin. Crabtree did one with the rectangular earth pin replaced with a round one with a flat on one side.

Yes -- Those documents you've shown me before are definitely the BT standard, introduced here around 1982.


Edited for typos:

Do you ever get one of those days when your fingers just don't seem to be able to get the letters in the right order?


[This message has been edited by pauluk (edited 01-19-2006).]

[This message has been edited by pauluk (edited 01-19-2006).]

Hi, regarding the BS ring mains used in New Zealand.

Aussie240 was correct in reading about this for NZ.

In the old regs 1987 under reg 50 a ring mains was explained and a schematic drawn with the BS 1363 plug sockets.
Under (e) details re fusing for the latter.

Under reg 163 Test of ring circuitsA test shall be made to verify the continuity of all conductors of every ring circuit installed in accordance with reg. 50 thereoff.

Under reg 100. Plugs, sockets different plugs were described with their respective polarity markings.

I have never seen a ring mains in NZ probably because people more prefer the standard NZS 198. 10 Amp plug. instead of the BS 13 amp plugs and sockets.