Electricity norms?

SosuaJoe

New member
Feb 24, 2005
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Maybe some of you DR1 electricians can help me out.

For about a month I've been dealing with Edenorte about my power, and despite persistence on my part, I am getting bogged down in the bureaucratic idiocy that is Edenorte.

My power is coming in at 250V.

One Ede technician tells me the upper limit is 235V
Another tells me that 250V is fine
Yet another (this one the supervisor, who is apparently an enginero) tells me 245 is the upper limit, but that sitting at 240V is the way it should be.

Of course, i have two dead fans, as well as a dead pool pump so I am REALLY enjoying dealing with this issue.

Does anyone know for certain what the power company's actual limits are, as well as at what V the power is supposed to come in at.

Also, since it's been a month and at least 8 trips to the office, as well as visits from both the high line and the low line crews with still absolutely no resolution to this problem, what's my next step?
 

dv8

Gold
Sep 27, 2006
31,266
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i am not an electrician but i think a voltage regulator may help. it should regulate the voltage coming in (which should be 210-220, apparently) and protect your equipment.
 

ExtremeR

Silver
Mar 22, 2006
3,078
328
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i am not an electrician but i think a voltage regulator may help. it should regulate the voltage coming in (which should be 210-220, apparently) and protect your equipment.

What she said. X2

Edenorte will only give you headaches.
 

donP

Newbie
Dec 14, 2008
6,942
178
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La Lu

Does anyone know for certain what the power company's actual limits are, as well as at what V the power is supposed to come in at.

I think it should be 220-230V on 60Hz.
But they deliver anything from 140 to 290 V (m?s ? menos) and it's called "la lu"....

donP
 

MikeFisher

The Fisherman/Weather Mod
Feb 28, 2006
13,766
2,195
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Punta Cana/DR
www.mikefisher.fun
for a 220V connection you should always use a voltage regulator.
those 220V come from 2 separate 110V connections, and both go independently up and down, all day and night long, so they united powers may reach low's of just 190V sometimes and their highs may reach powers of 270 or 280V sometimes.
both, the highs and also the lows, fu$$s your equipment.
even on a simple 1 line 110V connection a Voltage regulator is a lifetime safer for sensible equipment like Pumps, Fridges, Computers etc.
dealing with Edenorte or any other elec provider about your damaged equipment and the ''estimated'' incoming power will not bring your damaged equipment back, but you risk to damage the next pool pump, too.
if their Ingenieurio they sent would be a real one he would have suggested such option to you on the first visit, as a good Ing. he even should have made you a offer to purchase and install such.
we had one installed by CEPM back in the Time when we lived in Veron,
it worked very fine over the years on the 110V and on the 220V,
the electrical equipments in the house always had a constant power, in all the years not one machine damaged, no fridge repair, no burned computer, no damaged TV set etc, and that was very different in the prior years, we lived 9 years at the place in total.
good luck
Mike
 

SatinPeach

Member
Feb 18, 2008
53
2
8
75
We are coming down again (with a laptop) should I be looking at some kind of regulator for my PC? Sure don't want it fried. IF so what exactly should I be looking for (renting in Caribe Campo)
 

puryear270

Bronze
Aug 26, 2009
935
82
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I really don't know much about electricity. Is it possible to put a regulator on the entire incoming system at the meter or breaker box, or do i need regulators for each major appliance (or one for appliances located in proximity)?
 

belgiank

Silver
Jun 13, 2009
3,251
103
0
interesting... but what is the cost of a voltage regulator, where can I get it, how should it be installed, etc...

just so I can negotiate correctly with my local electrician...

great post btw...

BelgianK
 

donluis99

Bronze
Jul 12, 2004
721
16
0
I really don't know much about electricity. Is it possible to put a regulator on the entire incoming system at the meter or breaker box, or do i need regulators for each major appliance (or one for appliances located in proximity)?

Yes, you can install a 1 - 10 kw voltage regulator or a inverter, best a programable type.

Most good inverters are set up to cut in and out at low voltage as well as high voltage, mine is set to cut in at 106 vac on the low side, and on the high side 136 vac.

One on each incoming hot lines of course for the 220 vac.
 

MikeFisher

The Fisherman/Weather Mod
Feb 28, 2006
13,766
2,195
113
Punta Cana/DR
www.mikefisher.fun
some prior poster asked about a reggulator while bringing a laptop.
for a Laptop no regulator is needed,
each Laptop's Charger is doing the work of a "Regulator",
b/c the laptops only work on low Voltages of 12-28Volts,
that's why the have a lil "charger-box" connected, and not just a simple cable from the computer to the 110V plug.
usually Laptops chargers are suitable for incoming Volyages flexibel from 90V-350Volts, so they can be charged worldwide, und lows and under highs, very flexibel without the need of expensive extra equipments.
but make of course always sure about the needed incoming Voltage by simply reading the description written on that Laptop's charger.
there is always described the "Input Volts/Amperes" and the "Output Volts/Amperes".
to charge your laptop here in the country you need a "Input" of 110V included in the wide range shown on your charger.
most chargers run from 90Volts to min 250Volt and often til 350Volts,
so here's the local 110V easily included.
for a Personal Computer always a stabilizer should be used,
they are sensible on Volyage changes/ups and downs, such power probs are often the reason for freezing PC's and also for damages on 'em.
Mike
 

J D Sauser

Silver
Nov 20, 2004
2,940
390
83
www.hispanosuizainvest.com
Just some thought...

First you need to establish the effective voltage UNDER LOAD. :Under load" means, you turn some power guzzlers ON and THEN measure the effective voltage. Here, the voltage usually collapses under little load. I'd be inclined to bet that if you measure your voltage under a load, it will easily fall under what EdeNorte is supposed to deliver, even if you are on a strip with a little "hot" transformer (that gray barrel somewhere nearby on a post)... as the power delivered to that transformer is most likely to be weak.

Most apparatus labeled for, lets say 220V are designed to handle voltages which are in a +/- 10 to 15% range.

When we talk about too high voltages, we usually refer to voltage spikes which can go into the 1000's of volts for a split second.

Voltage regulators are not to be confused with surge (spike) protectors.
Voltage regulators for a whole house or property are BULKY and expensive... easily as expensive or more as a comparable rating good quality inverter rig but bigger in size.

... J-D.
 

wuarhat

I am a out of touch hippie.
Nov 13, 2006
1,378
89
48
Maybe some of you DR1 electricians can help me out.

For about a month I've been dealing with Edenorte about my power, and despite persistence on my part, I am getting bogged down in the bureaucratic idiocy that is Edenorte.

My power is coming in at 250V.

One Ede technician tells me the upper limit is 235V
Another tells me that 250V is fine
Yet another (this one the supervisor, who is apparently an enginero) tells me 245 is the upper limit, but that sitting at 240V is the way it should be.

Of course, i have two dead fans, as well as a dead pool pump so I am REALLY enjoying dealing with this issue.

Does anyone know for certain what the power company's actual limits are, as well as at what V the power is supposed to come in at.

Also, since it's been a month and at least 8 trips to the office, as well as visits from both the high line and the low line crews with still absolutely no resolution to this problem, what's my next step?

Most stuff is designed to have a tolerance of 5%-10% of any kind of fluctuation, and usually even more for A/C input. You have a 240 volt service and 250 is within the 5% range of tolerance, so I don’t think that is your problem. The 240 volt service is comprised of two separate 120 volt lines (called legs). They are not independent of each other. In fact at any given instant one is supposed to be (and practically always is) the negative of the other, in other words, if one is +23 Volts the other is -23 Volts if one is -59 Volts the other is +59 Volts. However, since the voltage on each is bouncing, back and forth between +120V and -120V sixty times a second the only way you can see that is with an oscilloscope. Luckily phase variations are virtually never large enough to be a problem with ordinary household equipment. More frequently voltage spikes are a problem, but motors, which are basically what pumps and fans are, are more likely to cause spikes than to be effected by them. One thing which I’ve seen is the legs being improperly referenced to ground. To check for this, measure the voltage difference from the neutrals to each leg. The neutrals will either be connected to a metal bar in the side or bottom of the box or all tied together in a bundle. The legs will be the where the big wires are connected, usually two big lugs at the top of the box. The voltage to each leg from the neutrals should be half of the total measured across the legs, in your case 125 VAC. If you have something like 180 VAC on one and 70 VAC on the other you have a problem. I should say, be very careful with the voltmeter probes, and if you don’t know how to make these measurements safely, then get someone, who knows how, to do it.

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