3 Phase Power Installation
If you’re in any kind of industry that requires large amounts of power, then it’s likely that you’ve come across the term “3 phase Power” more than once. It’s also likely that when you attempted to research what exactly 3 phase power is, but you were met with a bunch of jargon and over-long posts and videos that didn’t really cater to the layperson. Here at All Electrics we don’t want you to just take our word for it. We’re not just here to take your money and run, we’re here to let you know exactly what we’re doing, and why we’re doing it. So before we go telling you all about 3 phase power installation in Melbourne, how it can help your business, and why most major companies use it, we’re going to clarify a few things. If you already know the ins and out, simply fill in the form to get a free, no obligation quote or call us on 03 8719 8776.What Is 3 Phase Power?
This is where a lot of informational posts on the internet miss the mark. If someone is looking up “what is 3 phase power” it’s more than likely that they need an introduction to the basics as well as a definition, and really as one is given the other becomes clear.
So, to begin with 3 phase power installation we need to first understand a few key things:
- What electricity is.
- How it’s created.
- What a circuit is.
- How a circuit works.
Let’s start with the most intrinsic of these elements. What is electricity? It’s a fair guess that you’ve heard of an “electron” before. Electrons are positively charged particles that make up electricity. Electrons react to conductivity, and are the reason electricity is as useful as it is. Without the electron, there’d be no electricity.
Electrons can be created naturally and artificially. When there’s a storm, a blend of air pressure and temperature fluctuation causes mass friction in the air, generating static electricity in the form of lightning. However, humanity is yet to harness the raw power of the elements so, how do we get electricity? The answer, magnets.
An electrical generator consists of a magnet which spins rapidly in a series of revolutions called “hertz”. The magnet spins between two terminals. When the polarity of the magnet changes due to its spin, the magnetic field of the poles causes a disruption in the terminals. This disruption to the magnetic field creates electrons, which are then conducted by the copper wires in the generator, and flow to the destination or “load”.
Once the electrons reach the load (such as an engine, lightbulb, or electrical appliance) the electrons deposit their electrical substance, creating power but losing their positive charge in the process. The electrons then flow back to the generator, and the process begins again.
This is referred to as “alternating current” or “AC” power. It gets its name from the fact that on a graph, power is only delivered to the load in peaks and troughs. It is not a current supply, it’s a wave. This is due to the rotating magnet. Sometimes the magnetic field is within range to create the disturbance that makes electricity (peak +) and sometimes it’s outside of that range (troph -). When an ac current is at 0, no power is generated.
The reason we don’t see this powering down effect of AC in appliances is because the magnet rotates extremely quickly, 50-60 times per second. If we watched lights and appliances through a very fast slow-motion camera, we would see flickering, or momentary lapses in action.
All of this occurs along a “circuit”, and is called a “phase”. You can probably see where we’re going now.
3 Phase Power occurs when a circuit is established with additional terminals, offset by 120 degrees from each other. These terminals add two additional electric waves, which are offset by a third of the “main” wave. This means more frequent and consistent peaks and troughs, resulting in stronger power.
If you’re still not quite getting it, let’s look at a biological example. Your heart is a generator, your blood is electrons, and electricity is oxygen. When your heart pumps blood, it delivers oxygen and nutrients to your organs, then returns to the heart to pick up more. This is single phase power operating on a closed circuit.
With 3 phase power, you don’t get more hearts, but your heart gains the ability to produce three times as much nutrient-rich blood as it could before. This means that you’ll be able to run further for longer without exhausting, get more energy from your food, make better use of the oxygen you breathe in, etc.
Do I Need 3 Phase Power Installation?
Continuing on with our biological example, let’s imagine your company’s body and bodily organs and systems are the building you’re in, and the computers, servers, lights, air conditioners, heaters, and any other electrical appliance you might need.
Depending on the size of your company, you may be able to get away with single-phase power points. But as you grow in size, and more organs start to get added, and the toll starts to become more and more evident as computers start to run slower, printers don’t work, lights flicker, and appliances fail – you’ll wish you had those extra phases.
For companies that deal with huge numbers of employees and their individual electrical needs, 3 phase power becomes more of a necessity, and generally as soon as a company is using any of the following:
- Air conditioning
- Heating
- Motors and pumps
- Heavy machinery
- UPS systems
They’ll require 3 phase power installation.
Why All Electrics?
All Electrics isn’t just your standard electrician providing 3 phase power in Melbourne. We’re not going to come onto your property, rush through the job, and then leave you in a shambles. All Electrics is a team of 20 years, offering some of the finest electrical services in Melbourne. All of our workers are fully licensed, master electricians and bring a wealth of training and experience to every job they take on.
When you hire All Electrics for your 3 phase power installation services, you are hiring some of the most trusted names in the business. We arrive on time, make sure we do the work to the best of our ability, clean up after ourselves, and make sure to leave you with optimised electrical solutions.
Call us now for a quote on any commercial electrical services and maintenance you need on (03) 8719 8776, or contact us at our website here.
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