Re: EIB installation

["David Buckley" <db@xxxxxxx>]

--- In ukha_d@yahoogroups.com, "Paul Gordon"
<paul_gordon@h...>
wrote:
> I Was thinking this too....
>
> Correct me if I'm wrong, but I was always of the belief
> that the *only* reason that a ring circuit was/is the
> "standard" in this country was/is because it uses the
> least amount of cable, and housebuilders are
> tight-arses?....

For all I know, this may be true :-)

However, having done some living in countries with radial sockets as
standard, I much prefer the ring main.  For what I think are some
good reasons.

a) Safety.  Many radial countries do not fuse their plugs.  Thus
your 3A lamp flex is protected by a 20A MCB.  Not good.

b) Usability.  The ring main assumes that you are distributing up to
32A of juice to an area, and some sockets may be heavily loaded,
some are not, and its all swings and roundabouts.

Most radial circuit countries place a number of sockets on a single
radial circuit, breakered at 20A.  Which means that (if your house
is wired that way, and I've rented one that was) you cant for
example have the telly, dishwasher and tumble drier on
simultaneously.  The total load may be well within the houses
capability, but not on a single 20A circuit.

> Isn't it true to say that a star wiring topology
> would be "superior" to a ring topology in just about
> every practical way?

If done "properly", for the reasons you outline, yes, but it
would
be expensive.  And we get back to your very first point about tight-
arsed builders.......






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