What is included in a modern electrical panel. Basic components for home electrical panels

Any private house or apartment in a multi-storey building must have its own electrical panel. In the classic form, the electrical panel looks like a metal box with a door, and various devices and a meter are installed inside (or meters, if the panel refers, for example, to several apartments located on the same platform at the entrance).

For an absolutely uninitiated person, the devices located behind the door are something transcendental, it is not clear why they are standing there. Meanwhile, an electrical panel is a necessary, but unsafe thing, so it’s better not to climb into it without the need and qualifications!

The distribution and accounting board (as it is correctly called) is initially designed and installed by specially trained craftsmen (electrical engineers) during the design and electrical installation works.

They design the electrical wiring, choose the future installation site for the switchboard, develop a scheme for its assembly, select a more suitable housing (built-in or mounted, plastic or metal), choose the necessary components with suitable characteristics. Finally, they mount the shield and connect its equipment on the one hand - to the power cable, and on the other hand - to the electrical wiring of the apartment.

Usually, an individual shield is placed inside the apartment in the hallway, near the door, in height - at eye level. Or they install one shield - a common one on the site at the entrance, to several apartments on the floor. The shield body is locked. The power cable is usually pre-wired into a niche.

Often, electricians offer ready-made type shields, do not be scared. One way or another, all the necessary components in this shield will be installed. Let’s finally consider what kind of components on the example of the simplest shield for an apartment.

To protect the entire wiring loop, which will be serviced by this shield, is used introductory machine. It is to the terminals of the input machine that the cores of the supply line cable are connected. Often, in front of the introductory machine, you can also find a switch that allows you to de-energize the entire switchboard network with one movement in order to repair or prevent it.

The introductory machine follows the chain electric meter. He will consider the energy consumption in the room for which the shield is intended. If the shield is installed on the floor and serves several apartments, then each apartment will have its own counter, then each of them will be followed by its own protective circuit.

RCD (residual current device) installed after the counter and serves to protect people from electric shock in the event of a leak, to protect the wiring and, accordingly, the room from fire, and also simply to protect the wiring from unauthorized leakage currents.

If the circuit is single-phase, for example, for one small apartment, then RCD one thing is put, and if the apartment is, say, large, and three-phase circuit (one phase - to the kitchen (stove, kettle, microwave), the second - to the bathroom (washing machine, water heater), the third - to lighting and other outlets (appliances, lighting), then there may be three RCDs for each phase By the way, in this case, both the counter and the opening machine must be three-phase.

To protect each of the lines inside the apartment from overcurrents (to protect devices and the wiring itself in the event of a short circuit) line circuit breakers - circuit breakers. With their help, you can separately protect each room and even each appliance.

These machines are able to prevent a fire due to overheating and subsequent fire of the wiring due to a short circuit in a particular consumer. The machine will simply disconnect the part of the wiring related to the failed device or the closed circuit from the common circuit of the apartment. So the rest of the serviceable equipment will continue to work as usual, and the problem part can be repaired at the same time.

Instead of an RCD and a circuit breaker, a so-called differential machine - This is a protective device that combines the functions of an RCD (protection against leakage currents) and a classic circuit breaker (protection against overcurrent).

All of these devices, including a counter, DIN rail mounted, which is installed on the back wall of the shield. There can be several such rails inside the shield, depending on the number of mounted protective devices. One way or another, on the wiring diagram of the shield, all these nuances are obvious, and for the master of surprises during installation should not arise.

Zero conductors and ground wires are connected to the corresponding circuits and mounted together with each other using special distribution tires. Distribution busbars are practically terminal blocks. These terminal blocks are convenient for combining many conductors that need to be electrically connected to each other at one point.

Finally, connecting busbars. These are insulated conductors designed specifically for the quick, safe and convenient connection of modular devices, such as RCDs, difumtomats and circuit breakers, as well as terminal blocks.

In addition to all the above electrical apparatus and devices in modern home electrical panels can be:

• Voltage monitoring relay

• Modular Surge Protector

• Multifunctional protection device UZM

• Power limiter

• Switch-disconnectors

• Electronic timers

• Digital wattmeters

• Various modular relays

• Modular contactors

• Pulse relays for lighting control

• Programmable Controllers for Home Automation

Be that as it may, it is better to always entrust the professional engineers to electricians with the development, assembly and installation of the electrical panel, since the distribution and metering panel is one of those rare devices that are installed once and for a lifetime. And it is better that it contains the highest quality components, with the correct characteristics, and would not require frequent attention, unless you need to look at the meter readings.

See also the continuation of this topic: How to assemble the electrical panel andFeatures of the assembly of modern electrical panels