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Re: Wiring to "Code" Specs

>>From richard.quick-at-slug-dot-org Mon Mar  4 01:15 MST 1996
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for <tesla-at-grendel.objinc-dot-com>; Sun, 3 Mar 1996 19:46:42 -0700
>From: richard.quick-at-slug-dot-org (Richard Quick)
>Subject: Wiring to "Code" Specs
>Date: Mon,  4 Mar 1996 01:29:00 GMT
>To: tesla-at-grendel.objinc-dot-com
>
> * Carbons Sent to: usa-tesla-at-usa-dot-net
>
>Just thought I would update you all on my progress with setting
>up a coiling lab in the new house. 
>
>Saturday I began making the trips to the hardware store required
>to obtain the materials for bringing 100 amp 240 V service into
>the two car garage area where I will be firing. After pulling the
>cover off of the master electrical panel (breaker box) in the
>basement, I measured a ~50 foot run to the garage with one 90
>degree turn required. Indoors, with this type of current
>requirement (100 amp_, and that long of a run, I prefer using
>galvanized steel conduit to sheath the cable.
>
>The first trip to the hardware store ran about $100.00. I picked
>up 160 feet of #4 AWG stranded copper (41 cents per foot) for the
>run from the panel to the garage. Also on the list was five 10
>foot sections of 3/4" conduit, one bag of double ended
>compression fittings, one right angle fitting, one box of conduit
>hangars, one box of 22 cal loads for the power driver (nail gun).
>
>Starting out I discovered that the loads were not strong enough
>for the job. I purchased Remmington "green" loads and had to go
>out again for the stronger "yellow" loads in order to get the
>conduit hangars driven into the basement foundation. Also, the
>first hardware store where I had purchased the copper cable did
>not have a 100 amp breaker that was compatible with my off-brand
>electrical box ("Challenger", wasn't that the name of the ill
>fated space shuttle?). The second store had a decent 100 amp
>Westinghouse breaker and the more powerful "yellow" loads for my
>nail gun. I also spent $20.00 on a much needed cable cutter (wire
>cutters literally don't cut it when you get down below #8 AWG).
>Anyway the breaker was $38.00, with the cable cutter and a few
>other small misc. items I spent about another $80.00.
>
>Back at the house I measured and cut the cable into three equal
>sections. Hanging conduit and stringing wire as I went had me
>thinking that I would use 1 inch conduit if I were to do this
>over. While there was enough room to string three #4 AWG cables
>through the 3/4" conduit, there was no room to spare. Getting the
>heavy cable through the 90 degree fitting was also a little
>frustrating, but not as bad as when I discovered I had not
>allowed sufficient length to reach the breaker. I wasted nearly
>45 minutes pulling additional cable through the right angle
>fitting, galling the insulation and skinning my knuckles.
>
>>From that point on however it was all downhill. I made a 1 inch
>hole through the sheet rock fire wall behind the furnace and into
>the garage. After feeding a 10 foot length of conduit through the
>hole, I lined up perfectly with conduit coming across the
>basement wall. Since I had 2x4 braces to cross, I put backing
>blocks behind the conduit, switched to 2-1/2 inch nails, and
>using two rounds for each nail, managed to get the conduit hung
>firmly all the way into the garage. After cutting down the final
>length of conduit I bolted on a terminating box, and sunk that
>into the concrete garage wall with a couple of nails from the
>nail gun.
>
>Before wiring the new circuit into the main panel I checked the
>continuity of the conduit to the 60 cycle ground, making sure I
>had a good solid connection. One of the #4 AWG copper cables was
>wired into the breaker box ground as well. After checking for
>short circuits between the remaining two cables (using my trusty
>VOM) I bolted them into the new 100 amp breaker, and then flipped
>the breaker over into "ON" position. Everything looked and
>measured "by the book".  Bolting the cover back on the breaker
>box, I had completed wiring in a dedicated Tesla coil circuit
>into the house mains. 
>
>Running with the right wiring is very important to the operation
>of medium-high powered Tesla systems. By the time the 60 cycle
>gets to my step-up transformer it passes through three separate
>breakers and a set of fuses. Doing a first class job the first
>time around is a little more expensive, time consuming, and
>troublesome, but it means never having to look back.
>Realistically this new circuit will carry 150 amps intermittent,
>which it may never do, but it is nice to know it is there.
>
>
>Richard Quick
>
>
>... If all else fails... Throw another megavolt across it!
>___ Blue Wave/QWK v2.12
>
>  nice one You would put tim taylor to shame.?  Makes me feel a little bit
better
abuout my endouvers??-at-#$$$$  Thanks for the column ,,,I am going right for
my pannel
getting my hammer????? and hooking up some things.  ?/ And I thought I had
to use a battery..,???????See ya In the prommised land 
Steve.
>
>
-----
seth knutson - A Subscriber at Internet On-Ramp, Inc.