voltage drop calculations for parking lot lights

[matt s]

What is the best way to figure out the voltage drop on parking lot lights when you have multiple lights on the same circuit and cover a large distance when the lengths are added together. I currently do the voltage drop calculation for the nearest light pole and then use the answer for the input voltage on the next light pole etc. This is very time consuming and has not been as accurate as I originally hoped for. Any Idea's?

 

[mivey]

I do a sequence calculation as well but use the IEEE exact formula from the red book. Put it in Excel and it becomes quite easy. It should be accurate as you would need.

 

[mull982]

What is the best way to figure out the voltage drop on parking lot lights when you have multiple lights on the same circuit and cover a large distance when the lengths are added together. I currently do the voltage drop calculation for the nearest light pole and then use the answer for the input voltage on the next light pole etc. This is very time consuming and has not been as accurate as I originally hoped for. Any Idea's?

I do a sequence calculation as you mentioned in excell and it is very easy to change paramaters when needed. I basically find the drop for each section between lights based on the distance between lights and the total current flowing between lights (remember current between lights will decrease as you get to the end of the circuit). I then add all of these sections up to arrive at a total voltage drop.