BUILDING

SYSTEM
VOLTAGES
 Common Building
Supply Voltages
System Voltages

System, Utilization,
System Voltages
and Maximum
Voltages

Circuit Wiring
1. Supply Voltages
• Power is delivered by the utility company to the user at supply
voltages.

• expressed as a nominal voltage because it varies slightly.

• can vary from about 90-105% of nominal voltage during

normal conditions
1. Supply Voltages

o Causes of variations from nominal voltage:

✓ Load variation

✓ Changes in conditions at the utility power system

✓ Transient voltages: caused by phenomena such as lightning strikes,

some types of faults, and the switching of some types of user loads
2. System Voltages
• principal voltages available in a building

• Medium and high voltage systems carry voltages above 600V.

➢ Such as those used for: large signage, sports lighting in stadiums, and
services for large manufacturing plants and skyscrapers
➢ Drawback: costly, special precautions such as heavy insulation and conductor
shielding are needed.

• Low voltage systems carry voltages less than 600V, typically used in buildings.
2. System Voltages
• Design of a building’s electrical system begins with establishing the
desired building system voltage.

• A higher voltage means that a circuit can carry more current.

➢ A 208 V circuit can carry 1.73 times the current of a 120 V circuit
(208 V/120 V 1.73)
➢ A 240 V circuit can carry twice the current of a 120 V circuit
➢ A 277 V circuit can carry 2.31 times the current of a 120 V circuit; and so on
3. Circuit Wiring

Types of Wiring found in a Circuit

1. Ungrounded conductor
2. Grounded/Neutral conductor
3. Grounding conductor

• A minimum of two types of conductors is required to deliver alternating current in a

building electrical system: the ungrounded conductor and the neutral conductor.

• A grounding conductor, the third, is added to most circuits.

3. Circuit Wiring

1. Ungrounded Conductor

• Initial current-carrying conductor in an AC system

• known as hot or live conductor because it feeds current to the

circuit
3. Circuit Wiring

1. Ungrounded Conductor

• When an ungrounded conductor is grounded (connected to

ground), a closed circuit in single phase results.

• Used to power small appliances, pieces of equipment and lighting

• When two associated ungrounded conductors are connected in a

single circuit, higher voltage is delivered.
3. Circuit Wiring

2. Grounded (neutral) Conductor

• Required to complete a single-phase circuit by connecting the

ungrounded conductor to the ground.

• neutral conductor is a grounded conductor that serves more than one

circuit

➢ Carries the unbalanced load between two ungrounded (hot) conductors.

3. Circuit Wiring

o Grounded/Neutral conductor

• Both conductors complete the circuit(s) by connecting it to the

ground, making them current carrying conductors.
3. Circuit Wiring

3. Grounding Conductor

• Provides supplementary but important grounding protection.

• not normally a current-carrying conductor, but is energized only on a

temporary, emergency basis when there is a fault between ungrounded
conductor and any metal associated to the electrical equipment.
NOTE: In a simple single-phase circuit

• Ungrounded conductor provides power to the load

• Grounded conductor provides a path from the load to power source.

3. Circuit Wiring

• Voltage in a circuit = voltage on the ungrounded conductor

• When two ungrounded conductors in a single-phase circuit are

connected, voltage in the circuit doubles
A Single Phase AC Power system consists of two wires.

A Three phase system use either three wires or four wires for transmitting power.
4. Common Building System Voltages
 The service entrance conductors
Shown is a include ungrounded (live)
conductors A and B and one
schematic of grounded conductor (N).
a 120/240 V,
alternating At the panelboard, a
current, grounding conductor that runs
single- continuously through all
branch circuits is added.
phase,
three-wire
system.
5. System, Utilization, and Maximum Voltages

3 ways that a voltage is defined:

1. System voltage

2. Utilization voltage

3. Maximum voltage
 5. System Voltage

• Target voltage entering the service panel.

• The standard for the system voltage is actually 120/240 V

➢ that is, the voltage available at the service equipment is approximately
120/240 V.
➢ In practice, this voltage is sometimes a little less and sometimes a little
more.
 5. System Voltage

• System voltage will vary slightly for different buildings because of variations of
voltage available at the transformer and voltage drop in the service conductors.

• It is, however, the target voltage distributed to a building’s service

equipment.
5. Utilization Voltage

• A voltage drop occurs as current flows from the service equipment through
the branch circuit conductors to the outlet (point of use in the building) .

• Utilization voltage accounts for anticipated voltage drops on branch circuit

conductors.

• On a 120/240 V system, approximately 115/230 V is available at the

outlet of the branch circuit
5. Maximum Voltage

• Wiring devices such as switches, receptacles, relays and

conductors, and electrical equipment are manufactured to
endure voltages slightly higher than the utilization voltage.

• Maximum Voltage is the highest voltage to which a wiring

device can be exposed.

 For example

A duplex receptacle that is the wall-mounted receptacle

common in most homes and offices is designed to handle a
maximum voltage of 125 V, but is intended for use on a
120 V circuit, where the line voltage is likely about 115 V.