Wednesday, December 21, 2011

Electrical wiring for your home


'Electrical wiring' for homes is the use of insulated conductors and associated devices to carry electricity to different parts of your house so as to operate devices that work on electricity. 
Materials for wiring interior electrical systems in buildings vary depending on:
  • Intended use and amount of power demand on the circuit
  • Type of occupancy and size of the building
  • National and local regulations
  • Environment in which the wiring must operate.
Wiring systems in a single family home or apartment, are simple, with relatively low power requirements, infrequent changes to the building structure and layout, usually with dry, moderate temperature, and noncorrosive environmental conditions.
In order to install any electrical wire installation, the proper wire size for the application is needed. But how do you know what size wire to use? The installation of conductors will depend on a few factors like- the gauge of the wire, wire capacity, and what the wire will feed.
The larger the wire gauge, the larger the amperage that the wire can handle. Wire amperage is the safe amount of current that a wire can handle without getting hot or causing a fire. The following examples of devices in your home, the amperage that they are rated for, and the wire gauge, will help you determine the right size wire for the appropriate application.
There are several steps you can take now to minimize the energy used by the electric devices in your home:
Unplug It.
The simplest and most obvious way to eliminate power losses is to unplug products when not in use. Search the wall sockets in your house for hidden un-connected chargers and other devices that don't need to be plugged in. When you detach your cell phone or similar device from its charger, unplug the charger too.
Use a Power Strip.
Plug home electronics and office equipment into a single power strip with an on/off switch. This will allow you to turn off all power to the devices in one easy step. But remember to keep your power strip in an easy-to-reach location! Once the power strip is turned off, no power will be delivered to the outlets, thereby eliminating power wasted by power supplies.
Use a Power Meter.
Use a power meter to find your leading sources of energy consumption to help you to prioritize which products to unplug or to replace. Plug these devices in between a given appliance and the wall socket to see how much electricity it is using.