Voltage Control

Press, Volume CI, Issue 29896, 9 August 1962, Page 3

Voltage Control

Sir,—Several points arise from your news item concerning the effect of low voltage on television reception. What is the legally required minimum voltage? Who polices the supply authorities to ensure that they maintain it? Must they maintain the minimum even on peak? What legal rights has the consumer when his supply voltage is below the legal minimum? How .does he go about having his rights enforced? In the M.E.D. and Heathcote areas how many feet of main does the authority supply free between the street frontage and the consumer’s house? In the event of the consumer’s load growing in excess of the capacity of these mains is the “free” length renewed free of charge?—Yours, etc., J S. POLLARD.

July 31, 1962. [The consulting electrical engineer for the Heathcote County Council <Mr W. H. Gregory) said: “The Electric Supply Regulation sets out the legal minimum of voltage of supply and the feet of mains to be supplied free by its supply authority. Television sets are prone to be affected by very small changes in supply voltage that are well within the electric supply regulations.]

I The general manager of the Municipal Electricity Department (Mr J. P. Shelley) explained the M.E.D.’s practice with service lines. “The Electrical Supply Regulations. 1935, require the supply authority to supply 60ft in the case of an overhead service line or 20ft in the case of an underground service line, free, measured from the street frontage along he shortest practical route for the service line. In the case of areas where the underground had been partlypaid for by the consumers byspecial arrangement, this would apply to the free section also. The free sectis»» of line would be maintained, and if necessary replaced with heavier line by the supply authority.”]