Question for Utility Guys

[HotConductor]

I was working with some utility guys troubleshooting some underground SE conductors pulled through PVC. I rang them out and easily found the culprit, one bad conductor. This was at night in the dark so I couldn't see what they did but the lineman said his meter read 50v with the conductor disconnected from the transformer. He said it was probably grounded. He said if it was a good conductor it would read maybe 1-5 volts. He was using a TEGAM VOLTMAN 125 meter. Can someone explain how this works?

 

[paul renshaw]

What was the fifty volts referenced to? Could it be that conductor had continuity to earth/utility neutral, and he was reading the voltage drop?

 

[peter d]

I'm 99.9999% that what the lineman was reading was ghost voltage on the disconnected conductor. This is assuming the other conductors where live and still connected to the transformer when he made the measurement.

You can often observe the same situation on a multiwire branch circuit with one of the ungrounded conductors disconnected or turned off.

 

[brian john]

I'm 99.9999% that what the lineman was reading was ghost voltage on the disconnected conductor. This is assuming the other conductors where live and still connected to the transformer when he made the measurement.

You can often observe the same situation on a multiwire branch circuit with one of the ungrounded conductors disconnected or turned off.

I posted in the this topic but my post disappeared this meter has protection against ghost/phantom voltage.


Am I crazy or did my previous response disappear?

 

[hillbilly1]

Am I crazy or did my previous response disappear?

I had the same thing happen to me earlier today. Maybe we have pissed off the wrong people!

 

[nakulak]

nah, you're just crazy

 

[HotConductor]

I posted in the this topic but my post disappeared this meter has protection against ghost/phantom voltage.


Am I crazy or did my previous response disappear?

You're not crazy, I read your earlier post and now it's gone???

 

[HotConductor]

Actually there are several posts that are missing??? Someone is robbing us blind!

 

[iwire]

I posted in the this topic but my post disappeared this meter has protection against ghost/phantom voltage.


Am I crazy or did my previous response disappear?

Are you sure your not thinking of this other thread?

Stumped?

There are no deleted posts in this thread.

 

[iwire]

I had the same thing happen to me earlier today. Maybe we have pissed off the wrong people!

I checked, you have not had any posts deleted today.

 

[HotConductor]

Thanks IWire. That's what happened. I reposted the question in this category because I didn't get much response in the other.

 

[Faultfinder1]

Rule #1 - don't trust any voltage readings that you don't take yourself! Especially if a worker from the utility company is the one measuring. In a typical 3 wire circuit in a duct there will be voltage transference from one cable onto the others. If one leg is left energized and the others are not energized there will be measurable voltage on the supposedly de energized line. Apply a load and the voltage should go away. If the voltage remains then possibly the other conductor is faulted as well in the same area, causing stray voltage.

www.faultlocating.com