ELECTRICAL SYSTEMS

Compiled By:
Arch. C. A. Laigo
OHMS LAW
According to Ohms Law, At steady-state condition, the voltage across a resistor
is directly proportional to the current flowing through it with the temperature
remaining constant.

Where:
V = applied voltage in volts
I
= current drawn in amperes
R
= resistance in ohms
ELECTRICAL POWER
Electrical Power (P) it is defined as the rate at which electrical energy is expended or
used up. It is the rate electric energy is converted into another form, such as light, heat
or mechanical energy (or converted from another form into electrical energy). Its unit is
the Watt (W) named after the Scottish Engineer James Watt (1736 1819).
Where:
P
= electrical power in watt
V
= voltage in volt
I
= current in amperes
R
= resistance in ohm
BASIC ELECTRICAL MATERIALS
Conductor these are substances that carries or allows the flow of electrical
current through it. A conductor could be bare or insulated.
Wires and Cables
2

Wires are those conductors which are 8 mm (AWG no. 8) or smaller,

while cables are those larger than wires.

DIFFERENT TYPES OF CABLES

Armored Cable
This type of cable is a fabricated assembly of insulated conductors enclosed in
flexible metal sheath.
They are used in both exposed and conceal work.

Metal Clad Cable

This is made up of one or more conductors, each individually insulated and
enclosed in a metallic sheath of interlocking tape, or a smooth corrugated tube.
They are used for services, feeders, branch circuits, either exposed or
concealed and for indoor or outdoor work.
Mineral Insulated Cable
This is made up of one or more conductors insulated with a highly compressed
refractory mineral insulation and enclosed in a liquid tight and gas tight continuous
copper sheath.

They are used in dry, wet or continuously moist location as services,

feeders or branch circuits.
Nonmetallic Sheathed Cable
This is two or more insulated conductors having a moisture resistant outer sheath,
flame retardant and non-metallic material.
These types are used for one or two family dwellings not exceeding 3
storey buildings.

DIFFERENT TYPES OF CABLES

Shielded Nonmetallic Sheathed Cable
This is an assembly of two or more insulated conductors in an extracted core or
moisture-resistant and flame retardant material, covered within an overlapping
spiral tape.
This type is used in hazardous location and in cable trays or in raceways.
Service Entrance Cable
This is a single conductor or a multi-conductor assembly provided with or without
an overall covering.

Primarily used for services.

Underground Feeder and Branch Circuit Cables
This is a moisture resistance cables used for underground, including direct burial in
the ground, as feeders or branch circuits.

Raceways these are any enclosed channel of metal or nonmetallic materials

designed expressly for holding wires, cables, or busbars.
Types of Raceways:
1.
Conduits these
may
be metallic or
nonmetallic.
2.
Connectors

Other Types of Raceways:

1.
Conduits Couplings,
Elbows and Other
fittings
2.
Conduits Supports
3.
Cable Trays, Cablebus
4.
Metal Raceways
5.
Nonmetal Raceways
Other Types of Raceways:
3.
Cable Trays, Cablebus
4.
Metal Raceways
5.
Nonmetal Raceways
Outlet a point on the wiring system at which current is taken to supply
utilization equipment.
Types of Outlets:
1.

Convenience Outlet

2.

Lighting Outlet

3.

Receptacle Outlet

Fuse (electrical)
In electronics and electrical engineering, a fuse (from the French fuse, Italian fuso, "spindle"[1]) is a
type of low resistance resistor that acts as a sacrificial device to provide overcurrent protection, of
either the load or source circuit. Its essential component is a metal wire or strip that melts when too
much current flows, which interrupts the circuit in which it is connected. Short circuit, overloading,
mismatched loads or device failure are the prime reasons for excessive current.
A fuse interrupts excessive current (blows) so that further damage by overheating or fire is prevented.
Wiring regulations often define a maximum fuse current rating for particular circuits. Overcurrent
protection devices are essential in electrical systems to limit threats to human life and property damage.
Fuses are selected to allow passage of normal current plus a marginal percentage and to allow excessive
current only for short periods.

FUSE

FUSEHOLDER

FUSE BOX

Circuit breaker
A circuit breaker is an automatically operated electrical switch designed to protect an electrical circuit
from damage caused by overload or short circuit. Its basic function is to detect a fault condition and, by
interrupting continuity, to immediately discontinue electrical flow. Unlike a fuse, which operates once
and then must be replaced, a circuit breaker can be reset (either manually or automatically) to resume
normal operation. Circuit breakers are made in varying sizes, from small devices that protect an
individual household appliance up to large switchgear designed to protect high voltage circuits feeding
an entire city.

Common trip breakers

When supplying a branch circuit with more than one live conductor, each live conductor must be
protected by a breaker pole. To ensure that all live conductors are interrupted when any pole trips, a
"common trip" breaker must be used. These may either contain two or three tripping mechanisms
within one case, or for small breakers, may externally tie the poles together via their operating handles.
Two pole common trip breakers are common on 120/240 volt systems where 240 volt loads (including
major appliances or further distribution boards) span the two live wires. Three-pole common trip

breakers are typically used to supply three-phase electric power to large motors or further distribution
boards.
Two and four pole breakers are used when there is a need to disconnect multiple phase ACor to
disconnect the neutral wire to ensure that no current flows through the neutral wire from other loads
connected to the same network when workers may touch the wires during maintenance. Separate
circuit breakers must never be used for live and neutral, because if the neutral is disconnected while the
live conductor stays connected, a dangerous condition arises: the circuit appears de-energized
(appliances don't work), but wires remain live and RCDs don't trip if someone touches the live wire
(because RCDs need power to trip). This is why only common trip breakers must be used when neutral
wire switching is needed

CIRCUIT BREAKER

Bus bar
In electrical power distribution, a bus bar is a strip of copper or aluminum that conducts electricity
within a switchboard, distribution board, substation or other electrical apparatus.
The size of the bus bar determines the maximum amount of current that can be safely carried. Bus bars
can have a cross-sectional area of as little as 10 mm2 but electrical substations may use metal tubes of
50 mm in diameter (1,963 mm2) or more as bus bars. An aluminum smelter will have very large bus bars
used to carry tens of thousands of amperes to the electrochemical cells that produce aluminum from
molten salts.

Pull box
A pull box is used for long cable wiring, where you have to splice the cables or leave a slacked of cable in
the box for pulling. for easy installation, normally i use the bigger size of boxes like 4-11/16 square 2-1/8
deep. the box is big enough for future additional wiring. if you want to save money, you can use 4"
square or octagon.
A pull box is a type of electrical box used to provide wiring pulling access with conduit enclosed wiring
systems.
A metal box with a blank cover that is installed in an accessible place in a run of conduit to facilitate the
pulling in of wires or cables

This is the final product of the 16 channel box. This box is joined to a 6"x6" PVC pull box which is where
the high voltage wires are connected. This makes things a lot easier for us to wire, and to trouble shoot
if there is a problem with the circuits.

Utility Box
utility box is used for surface mounting of switches and receptacles, typically used in basement wiring.
they come in standard size of 3-3/4 x 1-1/2 and 1-1/2 deep. the size is standard so you can use standard
plastic switch or receptacle cover

Junction box
An electrical junction box is a container for electrical connections, usually intended to conceal them
from sight and meter tampering. A small metal or plastic junction box may form part of an electrical
conduit wiring system in a building, or may be buried in the plaster of a wall, concealed behind an access
panel or cast into concrete with only the lid showing. It sometimes includes terminals for joining wires.

Electrical Switch
In electrical engineering, a switch is an electrical component that can break an electrical circuit,
interrupting the current or diverting it from one conductor to another.
A switch may be directly manipulated by a human as a control signal to a system, such as a computer
keyboard button, or to control power flow in a circuit, such as a light switch.

Convenience outlet
A receptacle in a wall or baseboard for connection to lamps or other electrical appliances.
An electrical outlet - receptacle providing a place in a wiring system where current can be taken to run
electrical devices
A convenience outlet is any outlet that is in a convenient location for its use. An example would be
kitchen counter receptacles. Receptacles that are located behind appliances or equipment are not
classed as a convenience outlet.

ELECTRICAL SWITCH & LIGHTING

CONVENIENCE OUTLET SECTION

CONVENIENCE OUTLET CIRCUIT DIAGARAM

DEFINITION OF TERMS
110
An older term for the nominal voltage for lights and portable appliances in homes. "120" would be a
more accurate and up-to-date identification of this voltage.
220
An older term for the nominal voltage in a home for running some major appliances. "240" would be a
more accurate and up-to-date identification of this voltage. To understand the dual voltage available to
homes (120/240), see Your system and Double circuit.

Appliance
A non-lighting item that, by its resistance, consumes electricity rather than just passing it on. So an
appliance is not a fixture (for lighting) nor a device (for passing on). Examples: fax machine, garbage
disposal, even a wired-in smoke alarm perhaps.
Arcing
Current passing (through air) across a gap, that is, using the air itself like a wire.
Arc-fault interrupter
A circuit breaker that can also trip for line-to-neutral arcing (which would not soon trip a standard
breaker). Required for new bedroom circuits since 2002 and most rooms since 2008. See AFCI.
Breaker
An automatic switching device that disconnects power to a circuit when current or heat exceeds a
certain level for a certain amount of time. It clips on to one or two live busbars in a panel box and passes
this liveness through itself to the circuit wire attached to it, normally by means of a screw. Its handle is
generally in one of three positions: on, tripped (the middle position), and off.
Busbar
A piece of rigid metal within a panel or fusebox which distributes electricity to the various circuits by
means of their connection to it.
Cable
Compare "Wire". A cable is a set of wires, usually encased in an outer protective sheath. A "cord" would
be a cable by this definition so far, but a cable is part of a permanent installation; a cord is more flexible
and often has a plug end for a portable appliance or lamp. "2-wire cable," such as 14-2 and 12-2 (which

indicate wire size) refers to a cable with two insulated wires, not counting any ground wire. Likewise 3wire cable has three insulated wires, with any ground being additional.
Circuit
The actual or intended path of current between points of differing voltage. In the case of a household
120 volt circuit, the path is between a hot wire at the breaker and a neutral wire connected to the
grounded neutral bar in the panel. In a sense each loop that current makes (through a single light, for
instance) is a circuit, but the most common meaning is the "branch circuit", defined as everything fed (or
interrupted) by a given breaker or fuse.
Common
The terminal of a three-way switch (or the wire attached to it) which makes internal contact with one or
the other of the traveler terminals, depending on the position the switch is moved to.
Current
The flow of electrons in a wire (or other conductor). This is measured in amps (amperes). Because a
house is provided with alternating current, the terms "positive" and "negative" do not apply as they do
to direct current in batteries, cars, and such. Instead, in the case of 120-volt power, we tend to say that
the power company is providing electricity that will flow "to" their neutral wire "from" hot wire. This
directional talk can be misleading, since the actual electrons are moving back and forth sixty times per
second. It is a way of speaking that is needed, however, in order to trace the paths of this kind of current
in a wiring system. It is similar to how I may say that a highway goes "from" my hometown to the next
town, even though the highway simply goes between them and doesn't really start at one or the other.
Device
As distinct from a fixture or appliance, an item which does not itself consume significant electricity, but
interrupts or passes it on in a particular fashion. For example, a switch, a receptacle, a thermostat, a
breaker, a fuse.
Dimmer
Also rheostat. A switch able to dim its lights by altering the voltage it passes on. A dimmer normally gets
warm when operating but will overheat if running more wattage than it is designed for.
Electricity
(That is, "tame" electricity, not The big stuff.) A force generated onto loops of conductive material,
transferred through their electrons, and applied as useful energy at parts of these loops.
Fixture
Or "luminaire". A non-portable electrically-produced-light assembly. Distinguished from appliance or
device.
Fuse
A device that interrupts current to its circuit by melting apart. It must then be replaced.

Fusebox
Like a panel, a usual main source of the circuits in a home. It contains fuses rather than breakers.
Gang
A combining of more than one device side-by-side, as, a "three-gang" switch box.
GFI or GFCI
A ground-fault interrupter. A device to prevent electrocution, which serves also as a receptacle or (less
commonly) as a breaker. I consider the letters "GFCI" confusing because they stand for "ground-fault
circuit interrupter" and the word "circuit" is vague and distracting. "GFI" clearly states the function it
performs: "ground-fault interrupter". Since 1973 Code has required GFI protection for more and more
receptacle locations in homes. If connected to properly, a GFI receptacle is also able to sense and
disrupt ground-faults at any standard receptacles wired on from it. Learn More about GFIs.

Ground
The common reference point for the voltage of a homes electrical system. It refers to an intended or
unintended connectedness to the earth. The neutral wires of circuits and of the system are grounded,
but a "ground wire" means a separate "grounding" wire keeping metal parts of devices, fixtures, or
appliances from staying accidentally energized and endangering people or equipment. Installed in
homes since the 1960s, these wires are to be either bare or green-covered. The ground wire is not
connected so as to be part of the normal path of the circuit, as a neutral is. When a ground wire does
carry current, it is taking care of an otherwise dangerous situation; in fact, it is supposed to carry so
much flow suddenly, that it causes the breaker of the circuit to trip, thereby also alerting us that a
problem needs attention. If things were not grounded, peoples bodies would more often be a path for
current from a hot wire touching the metal to get to ground (without our having enough conductivity to
trip a normal breaker!).
Ground-fault
Any short circuit finding at least some of its path to the earth by way of something other than the
neutral wire. It is a "leaking" of current off of the intended path. Most shocks are an example.
Hot
Or "live." (As an adjective:) Having electrical force (voltage) in relation to ground/earth, especially 120
volts. "Hot" is the termed used because anything even slightly connected to ground (like us!) could get
agitated as a path this force uses toward ground. (As a noun:) The wire/terminal/contact that is to be
hot, especially the wire from a breaker to lights/appliances.
Hotness
Having voltage in relation to ground, especially 120 volts.
Jumper

A short piece of wire within a box, going between two wirenuts or between two devices' terminals. It
passes a function (hot, switched, neutral) from the one place to the other. A pigtail does this too, but
only goes from a wirenut to a device or fixture wire.
Junction box
As distinguished from any electrical box, a box used only for making connections, not for also supporting
a switch, receptacle, or light. The boxes for these others usually also have connections and splices in
them in addition.
Line and Load
These are relative terms. In relation to a given switch or device, line refers to wires or voltage being
"supplied" to it from "upstream" or from the direction of the main service panel. With regard to the
same device, load refers to wires (or terminals) that are "downstream" from or controlled by it. So wires
from a switch or GFI might be load wires with respect to that switch but line wires with respect to
another switch downstream from it.
Another use of the term "load" is to refer to the energy "user(s)" along the circuit's path, such as a light
or appliance. By providing resistance, these items limit current and, in the process, do useful things with
that current.
Neutral
The wires of a circuit connected ultimately to the earth to receive flow "back" from a light or appliance.
They are always supposed to be white. Contact with them should not normally shock you because they
are normally connected to ground much better than you can be.
Open
(noun:) A physical discontinuity at some point along the path of some part of a circuit. Unlike an
overload or short, an open involves current no longer being able to flow. This might be intentional, as
when we turn a switch off, but in regard to troubleshooting an open is typically a break, gap, or
deterioration. For instance, a wire has become too loose at the terminals on a receptacle or at a wire
connector. It is hard to think of a gap like this as "opening" the circuit, since it seems like it has the effect
of closing it down. I agree that the technical term "open," and its opposite "close" are a poor choice of
words. They seem to come from the original use of "knife" switches; those had the physical appearance
of an open door when they interrupted a circuit and a closed door when they let current through. But
we are stuck with the terms.
Outlet
Technically, any point along a circuit where a light or appliance receives its final connections to the hot
and neutral of the circuit. The outlet may consist of a receptacle for a cord to plug into, or it may be a
box at which the item using the electricity is "hard-wired". In practice, however, we usually mean a
receptacle. The following are not outlets: switch, breaker, junction box.
Overload
When in its normal operation a circuit has carried a little too much flow a little too long, so that the
wires will be getting too hot to be safe, the breaker will trip off. This is called an overload -- you were

trying to run a bit too much at once on that circuit. You can now change your habits, plug one of those
things into another circuit, let it happen again some other month, or have a new circuit installed for
some of those things. So long as breakers do their job, overloading is not dangerous, just inconvenient.
Safety people often warn us not to overload outlets or power strips, as if we know how to judge that.
The two cases of this kind of "overloading" that need a little attention are light sockets and extension
cords; just don't exceed their stated wattage or amperage. Compare "Short".
Panel
Or "panel box" or "breaker box". The large metal box containing breakers for circuits. The "main" panel
or "service" panel would be the central source for the home and would be receiving its power from the
power company. There can be subpanels in a home, fed from the main panel and containing some of
the homes circuit breakers. Some people still use the term "fusebox" to refer to a panel, but that term
should relate to something having fuses. I suggest the term "panel" could refer to either a breaker box
or a fusebox.

Pigtail
To provide circuit connection to a fixture, appliance, or device by means of a single wire (the pigtail)
getting its own connection out of a connector (wire "nut") that contains other wires of the circuit. One
illustration and another. Compare "Jumper". Other ways of connecting would be for incoming and
outgoing circuit wires to connect directly to the device's terminals or the fixture's wires.
Phantom voltage
An inconsequential voltage many testers will detect. It may register as a lower or a full voltage found on
a wire that is connected neither to hot nor to neutral/ground. It seems to come about by means of
capacitance or inductance from a hot wire that is near the unconnected wire over a good distance in the
same cable. See this explanation. ...Do not confuse phantom voltage with "phantom load," which is the
consumption of electricity by a TV when it is plugged in but not turned on, or a charger when it is
plugged in but not charging anything.
Receptacle
Also "plug-in"; or, loosely, "outlet" or "plug". A device that serves as the outlet for lights or appliances to
connect to a circuit by means of a cord with a "plug" on the end.
Short
A short circuit. I am including ground-faults here. A short is basically, an unintended continuity from a
hot wire to something of different voltage. In a 240-volt circuit a possible short would involve both hot
wires touching (rare). All other shorts in a home will tend to be from the hot to ground by way of the
neutral wire or (less technically) the ground wire or anything else providing a path to the earth. A short
will not trip a breaker if its path has quite a bit of resistance. A short is something other than an
overload that can trip a breaker, and for quite a different reason. With a short the flow of current is not
due to the intended, limited use of electricity through lights and appliances, but is due to a potentially
huge flow of electric power by way of an unintended and (often) very conductive path. Current still
flows around from the ungrounded starting point to the grounded end point, and so it is still technically
going in a "circuit". But it is not the intended circuit, which would be limited and safe by design. So it is

called a "short" circuit. An example would be if the hot wire at a light fixture made contact with the
metal of the fixture, which, being grounded by a ground wire, sends a lot of current through the circuit,
tripping the breaker. Although this example is technically a ground-fault, in common parlance, "short" is
understood to refer to either hot-to-neutral or hot-to-ground faults. There are at least as many ways a
short can come about as there are outlets and lights on a circuit. Also a nail for hanging a picture or a
screw in a remodel project will occasionally find a cable in the wall and short across its wires.
Socket
Also "lamp holder". The part of a light fixture that receives the bulb or tube. It is understandable that
some people use "socket" to mean the receptacles we plug cords into, because in both cases the one
thing is receiving the other thing that actually "uses up" electricity.
Splice
An unanchored electrical connector joining two or more wires directly. Compare "Terminal". Submain
breaker
One of up to six (double) circuit breakers allowed till 1985 to be the means for disconnecting all power
to a home's circuits. Since then a single "main breaker" has been the required means. This has provided
a confusion, because submains were commonly labeled "Main". When a submain has trouble passing
current through one of its six points of contact (at its busbars, at its wires, or at its internal contacts), it
will arc, overheat, possibly trip, and eventually fail to pass current any longer through that half. The
result of this is that about half of the 120-volt circuits of the house (fed by that half) will be dead. If any
240-volt loads are fed from the submain breaker, they will not work and may enable the non-working
120-volt items to operate weakly and sporadically. This is similar to what happens when a true main
breaker has a similar problem, called a main hot open.
Switch
A device used to interrupt continuity and current to part of a circuit.
Terminal
A screw or other pressure-device to which one or more wires are connected for passing electrical
continuity and current along. Like a "Splice", but a terminal is anchored to a larger structure, whereas a
splice is "free floating".
Three-way
Although there is a type of light bulb and socket by this name, here we mean a switching system in
which a light(s) is controllable from more than one location by two or more switches. The name comes
from the usual number of terminals on or contact points within the switches involved. See How 3-way
switches work, and Read more about 3-ways, including diagrams. For several ways that 3-way systems
are wired, see my Tour of a Circuit [or frames version].
Travelers
The pair of wires in a three-way switch system that are run (within the same cable) from one switch
device to the next, attaching at each.

Voltage
The forcefulness with which electricity is ready to flow; also, the measurable relation of this force
between two points ("volts"). Voltage can be present or fail to be present, and this is not identical with
whether current is flowing or not. The relation is: current cannot flow if voltage is lacking, but even with
voltage available, current will only flow if a continuous and somewhat conductive path is provided.
Mathematically voltage is the "product" of current (amps) and resistance (ohms), but in practice current
is the product, that is, the result, of a provided voltage acting on a given resistance.
Wattage
Rate of electric energy used by lights or appliances. When applied to devices, it indicates the maximum
watts the device is designed to deliver or control (rather than use). Wattage is directly proportional to
current and to voltage and is mathematically the product of them (amps times volts). 120 volts driving
15 amps through a resistance means 1800 watts is being used.

Wire
A wire is bendable metal for carrying electric current. Except when used as a grounding wire, it is coated
with insulative material. In homes, wires that run to outlet and switch locations are mostly within
cables; their sizes (gauges: "AWG") are (from smallest) 14, 12, 10, 8, 6, 4, etc., with larger wires at the
meter and panel using a different numbering system. To understand the function that different wires on
a circuit play, see Hot or Neutral or Ground above, or see Background. The functioning of each of these
wires is not assured if they were not installed correctly or if they come apart at a connection or if they
touch each other unintentionally. And it is not just the hot wires connections that can interrupt power
along a circuit. If the neutral loses its continuity back to the main panel, the parts of the circuit that
depend on that connection will no longer work.

Building Wires
TW Wire (Thermoplastic Moisture-Resistant Wire)
Used as interior housewiring at circuit voltage up to 600 volts. Maximum operating temperature is 60C
in dry or wet application.
THW Wire (Thermoplastic Heat-and Moisture-Resistant Wire)
Used as interior housewiring at circuit voltage up to 600 volts. Maximum operating temperature is 75C
in dry or wet application.
THHN/THWN (Thermoplastic Heat-Resistant Wire with Nylon Jacket)
A general purpose 600 volt building wire that can be used as a power, lighting and control wiring.
Maximum operating temperature is 90C for dry application and 75C for wet application.
Durex Wire (Type NM) Non-Metallic Sheathed Cable

Designed specifically for use as an internal 600 volts building wire installed above ground and in any
location at maximum operating temperature of 60C. Use of conduit is optional as per section 5.5.4 of
the Philippine Electrical Code.
TF Wire (Thermoplastic Fixture)
Used as lighting fixture or interior appliance wire in circuits not exceeding 600 volts at a maximum
operating temperature of 60C in dry or wet location.
TFN (Thermoplastic Fixture) Wire with Nylon Jacket
Used as lighting fixture, interior appliance wire, machine tool wire or hook up wire in circuits not
exceeding 600 volts at a maximum operating temperature of 90C in dry application and 75C in wet
location.