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The use of larger gauge stranded aluminum wire (larger than #8 AWG) is fairly common in much of North America for modern residential construction. Aluminum wire is used in residential applications for lower voltage service feeders from the utility to the building. This is installed with materials and methods as specified by the local electrical ...
Fittings for non-threaded conduits are either secured with set screws or with a compression nut that encircles the conduit. Fittings for general purpose use with metal conduits may be made of die-cast zinc, but where stronger fittings are needed, they are made of copper-free aluminum or cast iron. Couplings connect two pieces of conduit together.
Revised standards for wire materials and wiring devices (such as the CO/ALR "copper-aluminium-revised" designation) were developed to reduce these problems. While larger sizes are still used to feed power to electrical panels and large devices, aluminium wiring for residential use has acquired a poor reputation and has fallen out of favour.
Also seeing much use is all-aluminum-alloy conductor (AAAC). Aluminum is used because it has about half the weight of a comparable resistance copper cable (though larger diameter due to lower specific conductivity), as well as being cheaper. [2] Copper was more popular in the past and is still in use, especially at lower voltages and for grounding.
AFCI circuit breakers include a standard inverse-time circuit breaker but provide no specific protection against "glowing" connections (also known as a high resistance connection), high line voltages, or low line voltages. An AFCI does not detect high line voltage caused by an open neutral in a multiwire branch circuit.
Aluminum can also "creep", slowly deforming under load, which also loosens connections. These effects can be mitigated with suitably designed connectors and extra care in installation, but they have made aluminum building wiring unpopular past the service drop .
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A distribution board (also known as panelboard, circuit breaker panel, breaker panel, electric panel, fuse box or DB box) is a component of an electricity supply system that divides an electrical power feed into subsidiary circuits while providing a protective fuse or circuit breaker for each circuit in a common enclosure.