3 phase or single?

[geordie girl]

Hi all, new to this site so please be gentle. We are renovating our house to do a B&B and are going from three bedrooms to five.

We are at the moment on three phase electricity which blows all the time . The three phase is rated at 20amp per phase and I was wondering wether to change to single phase at 45 amp. Any help out there?

[Colonel Mustard]

EDF changed our three-phase to single phase, for free.  Single phase will cost you less on abonnement charges, too.

[Jerac]

Three phase is tricky - the need to balance loads across the three phases, dangerous - touch the wrong bits and there is over 400 volts available to kill you, and expensive to equip - look at the prices for three phase differentials.

The only reasons to keep it are if

1.   EDF are unable/unwilling to change it - unlikely except in the most distant rural locations.

2.    You have, or intend to get equipment requiring three phase energy. In a normal domestic situation this is only likely to apply to the hot water immersion and a cooker. Quite often both can be reconfigured. If you want to run something like heavy woodworking machinery then that could require three phase.

[bejay]

[quote user="Magpie"]

We are at the moment on three phase electricity which blows all the time . The three phase is rated at 20amp per phase and I was wondering wether to change to single phase at 45 amp. Any help out there?

[/quote]

There is no intrinsic reason why three phase should 'blow all the time' Perhaps only one phase is actually in use.

I personally would be deeply reluctant to relinqish a three phase supply but then I do have a liking for stuff containg big electric motors.

bj

[geordie girl]

Thanks very much all who replied with info. As we are basically ripping the old system out as we think its been wired wrongly (unsafe) think we'll go for single phase.

Thanks again , mark

[Gyn_Paul]

If you really are - in effect - starting from scratch, you'd be better

off with single phase unless you are running a h-u-g-e industrial

electric stove, or heavy-duty machinery. As others have said, mono

phase is a safer installation and the bits are a lot cheaper, too.

On a point of info, your 20A 3-phase system is the equivalent of a 60A

mono phase, and last time I looked the abonnements were

(power-for-power) the same.

p

edit ---  I've just wasted an hour on the EDF site trying to find

the comparative abonnement prices for 1-ph and 3-ph. It's got so many

new animations and 'ciel bleu' publicity pages that I defy anyone to

find anyuthing useful like a KVA price list!

It's done me 'ead in [8-)]

[AnOther]

My house is on a 6kv single PH supply and as we are at the end of a lane we do see some fluctuations when bigger electrical items are switched on.

Because my barn has been used commercially in the past it has it's own seperate 3PH supply and is fully wired although currently (ha ha) this is disconnected.

I plan to establish a workshop in there and would ideally like have the 3PH reconnected, like the previous poster bejay I too have fetish for big electrical motors, but the idea of running a cable from the house supply is impractical and effectively a non starter.

I note that Gyn_Paul says he has spent a fruitless hour on the EDF site trying to find out the options and costs so to save me similarly wasting my time I wonder if anyone has got this info to hand.

[SC]

I get the impression from the EDF site that Option Tempo, normally three phase, is no longer on offer. It was a good option for mostly summer-let gites as it had low standing order charge and half price consumption for most of the year. It was usually three phase too.

Thje tarifs offered now are at http://particuliers.edf.fr/141626i/accueil/j-ai-besoin-d-energies/electricite/les-tarifs-electricite.html

You'll see that the standing order charges are very high for bigger power supplies.

Steve

[AnOther]

Tempo is still there http://www.edf.fr/141090i/EDFParticuliers/monenergieauquotidien/loptionTempo.html but I see nothing about 3PH either on your link or this page.

I don't neccessarily need a big supply, I was joking about "big electric motors".

 

[Gluestick]

You may be jesting, Little Ern, however this is useful info, as many of us perceive the move to la belle France as the opportunity to realise a Boy's Dream of many years and use some of that lovely Dependance to set-up a workshop, bristling with wonderful grunty equipment!

Which often needs 3 phase supply, 'cos it's cheaper to run, is power hungry and since secondhand industrial kit is invariably far cheaper to buy and in good supply: whereas big chunky single phase motors are expensive!

Additionally, as big plant starts up, us constantly browning out our neighbours houses is not the best way to make new friends and influence people! [:@]

 

[AnOther]

My jest was in jest Gluestick.

I come from a engineering/tool making background so do very much appreciate both the benefits and opportunities 3PH offers and have to keep my imagination and aspirations in check sometimes [:D]

Convincing 'er indoors of the need to fill my 200sq/m barn with massive industrial machinery is another subject and one I have yet to address....[;-)]

 

[Gluestick]

[quote user="ErnieY"]

 

Convincing 'er indoors of the need to fill my 200sq/m barn with massive industrial machinery is another subject and one I have yet to address....[;-)]

 

[/quote]

As they say in the navy Ern, "I wish you joy of it!"

 

[Framboise]

Gluestick - think you & hubby are on same wavelength.   His face was a picture of pure joy when he discovered that our place had three phase already in situ because it had been an agricultural outbuilding, indeed the electrician who wired the place said that for our intended works on the house it would serve the correct purpose.  And not wipe out the hamlet's power supplies of course!

Did have a few problems at first, ie. the meter made the strangest whirring noises, then last Christmas the tree lights kept tripping it which we later discovered was actually the fosse septique flooding due to lack of a proper soakaway on one side of the house.   Hopefully all these little niggles have now been resolved............  I look forward to having the tree lights ON this year [:D]

[Gluestick]

We don't have three phase, Framboise.

I am still wondering what's going to happen when I take my big arc welder over.....................................................

It has been bad enough recently with the builders opposite; every time their big angle grinder started up when they were cutting roof tiles, our lights dimmed right down!

Still, I'm taking over a relatively small MIG welder next trip. I'll see what happens with that! [Www]

 

[Framboise]

I meant that you are a power tools freak!   This one has every concieveable gadget going, welders, compressors, drills, saws.....the list is endless.

Need to rebuild the barn just to get somewhere big enough to keep it all   [:D]

[Gluestick]

Same with me, old Raspberry.

I am shortly going to double the size of the workshop simply because it's so full of toys, I have no room to do anything!

[Www]

[SC]

[quote user="ErnieY"]

Tempo is still there http://www.edf.fr/141090i/EDFParticuliers/monenergieauquotidien/loptionTempo.html but I see nothing about 3PH either on your link or this page.

I don't neccessarily need a big supply, I was joking about "big electric motors". [/quote]

The Tempo link is the history, forecast, and day price for those who have the system.

I did find the following mention on the EDF site:

"NB : l'option tarifaire Tempo est en extinction, elle n'est plus proposée depuis le 1er aout 2004. "

So ignore everything that I said about it!

Steve