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| That's because 480 volt arcs persist and burn the switchgear down where 240 volt arcs quit when the gap opens up. Worse yet a 480 volt arc to ground won't draw enough current to flow a fuse or trip a breaker so it just sits there. That's what makes 480 volt equipment expensive.
Yet 480 volt equipment can use smaller wire and so saves there and the voltage drop of long runs isn't as much of a problem.
I know electricians that have been burned by the arcs of 480 volt circuits and just plain refuse to work on them. Even if their factory has both 240 and 480 volt circuits, they tell the boss to do it.
Gerald J. | |
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