Home power supply: planning, connecting, power limits, approvals, and off-grid options.
July 15, 2010
Electrical power supply design for a private household.
Amid the rapid growth of low-rise construction in Russia, the issue of equipping new homes with utility systems remains unresolved.
In particular, sewage networks and district heating networks are underdeveloped.
In today’s Russian realities, the vast majority of new homeowners do not seek to connect to trunk heating and sewer networks, instead setting up independent autonomous systems for heating.
The situation is roughly the same with water supply. If connection to a centralized water supply network is impossible for any reason, an autonomous water supply is possible using artesian wells.
The most labor-intensive and complex issue remains connecting a detached private household to the power grid.
The fact is that there is a monopoly on electricity supply in Russia, and the ordinary consumer cannot choose a power supplier and is forced to comply with the requirements of the one that already operates in their region.
The calculation of the power demand for a private household consists of the sum of all lighting sources, including some low-wattage floor lamp with a side table, both inside the house and on the outdoor premises; the power of other electrical equipment is also added up, including the stove, range hood, air conditioner, refrigerator, TV, computer, etc.
For long-term, full-fledged operation of electrical appliances, a stable, fluctuation-free voltage is required; therefore, the total power of the appliances used makes it possible to determine the required amount of continuous power.
Taking all these needs into account, the home’s power supply scheme is designed. In addition to internal power supply, it must include outdoor lighting and the paths for incoming electric power.
The power supply design and accompanying documents are submitted for approval to the power grid company, which either agrees with the design and approves it,
or returns it for revision.
Approval is simplified if there is already an operating streetlight pole near the house. In this case, the home is allocated the maximum possible capacity for that supply point, which, however, may differ significantly from the power required by the house.
To obtain the required capacity, the homeowner receives technical conditions from the power grid company,
and after fulfilling them, receives permission to connect.
Up to one year is provided to fulfill the technical conditions. During this period, the homeowner must carry out the necessary work or refuse the connection.
Often, citing remoteness, terrain, and the like, the grid company sets connection conditions that are practically unfeasible, or that significantly exceed in cost the installation of the household’s own electrical system.
Unfortunately, in the current situation, the owner of a private detached house is forced to comply with the requirements of grid companies or be left without electricity altogether.
An autonomous power plant running on liquid fuel can, of course, power household appliances and lighting. The cost is unjustifiably high over the long term.
Under peak conditions, when the allocated capacity is insufficient, switching to low-voltage equipment can reduce part of the energy consumption. With the help of transformers, 220 V is converted to 12 V and, thanks to a severalfold reduction in energy use, it becomes possible to adjust the power consumption scheme.
Low-voltage equipment is widely used for outdoor and indoor lighting, including residential settings.
Modern low-voltage equipment is not inferior in material quality and design variety to traditional equipment and sometimes surpasses it.
Modern transformers are compact and do not clutter the space.
Low-voltage lighting equipment is produced by all major lighting companies, which guarantee the quality and reliability of their products. A full range of household fixtures is made for low-voltage lighting: floor lamps, wall sconces, chandeliers. China, under license from leading companies, produces a wide assortment of not only household but also industrial light fixtures. Official production in China is no less high-quality than at factories in the manufacturers’ home countries.
Thus, when the allocated capacity for a household is insufficient or autonomous power supply is required, part of the costs can be reduced by using low-voltage lighting equipment.