Multi-phase may cost more in Heathcote

Press, 2 June 1982, Page 6

Multi-phase may cost more in Heathcote

Heathcote residents who a multi-phase power supply: maj* find themselves facing- an charge ofaflya phase a month. The Heathcote:- ' County Council's commit-tee-,recommelided last evening ■ that the charge be .a condition of supply to a new consumer asking for a multiwhich, in the electrical engineer’s opinion, not warranted. The usual reason for the request'• is either that the copsumer has a two-phase or three-phase appliance or.that the : multi-phase supply is stipulated by an architect. The county’s electrical engineer, Mr I. R. Densem, told the '.'meeting that’ often a sirtgle-phase supply wassatisfactory. ,

- .The cost of a multi-phase supply was higher for cabling dnd for meter equipment, he said. ' Power failures Heathcote experienced its share of power faults last month. ' Power was off for almost an hour on May .1, probably caused by a tree * branch touching a high-tension line. On May 5, three separate outages occurred on a circuit breaker supplying the Bowenvale area. A relay set- . ting set too low was to blame.' Pn May 13 a fault occurred on a phase supplied from the Port Hills Road kiosk and a. low-tension fuse “blew” at the Hollis Avenue kiosk.