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Single-pole circuit breakers feed 120 V circuits from one of the 120 V buses within the panel, or two-pole circuit breakers feed 240-volt circuits from both buses. 120 V circuits are the most common, and used to power NEMA 1 and NEMA 5 outlets, and most residential and light commercial direct-wired lighting circuits.
Lighting and general purpose receptacles are at 120 volts AC, with larger devices fed by three wire single-phase circuits at 240 volts. In commercial construction, three-phase circuits are often used. Common 3 phase configurations within a building are 208v/120 wye, 120/240 center tapped delta and 480v/277v wye. Lighting is usually fed by 277 V ...
Minimum wire size for hand-held or portable equipment is usually restricted by the mechanical strength of the conductors. Many areas, such as the US, which use (nominally) 120 V, make use of three-wire, split-phase 240 V systems to supply large appliances. In this system a 240 V supply has a centre-tapped neutral to give two 120 V supplies ...
Phasor diagram showing 240 V delta and center-tapped phase (a–c) creating two 120 V pairs. Consider the low-voltage side of a 120/240 V high leg delta connected transformer, where the b phase is the high leg. The line-to-line voltage magnitudes are all the same: = = =.
They are also found on some RVs for connecting to shore power. RVs in the US are equipped for 120 V 30 A or 240 V 50 A service, and use a cord to connect to a receptacle at the campsite, usually on a power pedestal with one or more receptacles providing 120 V 30 A (TT30R), 240 V 50 A (14-50R), or 120 V 15/20 A (5-20R) service.
For example, in North America, a unique split-phase system is used to supply to most premises that works by center tapping a 240 volt transformer. This system is able to concurrently provide 240 volts and 120 volts. Consequently, this allows homeowners to wire up both 240 V and 120 V circuits as they wish (as regulated by local building codes).
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Most of the Americas use 60 Hz AC, the 120/240 volt split-phase system domestically and three phase for larger installations. North American transformers usually power homes at 240 volts, similar to Europe's 230 volts. It is the split-phase that allows use of 120 volts in the home. Japan's utility frequencies are 50 Hz and 60 Hz.