Use of Earth Leakage as Condition Monitoring

[Bul]

Monitoring or evaluating earth leakage on installations should be a great tool in our fault finding skill set.

Would people like to contribute some of their experience or thoughts to build a thread of our collective knowledge.

As a starting point it's easy to assume that you would focus on the earth leakage in the earth conductor but I would think that measuring the leakage between the L & N would be more meaningful.

Wots your experience and thoughts?

 

[Octopus]

I've been wondering about adding the earth leakage across an installation as part of an EICR ...... just as a comment.

Obviously its really random because its a snapshot in time depending on what is switched on at the time.

 

[PEG]

It's a thought,but you would have to have total control of what was connected,and any subsequent comparisons,would have to be in an identical state.

Otherwise,one man's deteriorating installation,is another man's additional,leaky IT gear...

I respect anyone who is searching to improve ways of identifying problems,but as long as globals,links and drive-by's,are commonplace EICR tactics,things can be bettered,by simply doing the full,standard tests.

I was chatting to a lad,who had been employed doing such testing,on private dwellings and small commercial premises,and he said there were only 2 IR tests,on 3 core,2 linked to earth,and between live conductors.

I asked why he had never had to test the cpc,obviously,disconnected,and the various reasons,dependant on cable type,why you would do this.

After some thought,he said "It's not in the OSG,so it can't be important..."

Things that they're liable...to say in the bible...aint necessarily so...
(It only works if sung in a really high voice)

 

[dmxtothemax]

Don't make the mistake of assuming that all earth leakages come from that installation !
Cause this is not true.
Some times the fault may lie in the neighbors installation,
And some of the returning currents are using your system.

 

[DPG]

OP, if you do some searching here you will find there have been quite a few posts on earth leakage - I would suggest having a dig through them as there have been some interesting dicussions.

 

[Marvo]

Otherwise,one man's deteriorating installation,is another man's additional,leaky IT gear........

I'm with PEG (not in the biblical sense).
The problem with leakage over a whole installation is that you have leakage from faults and function earth currents and there's no way to distinguish between the two when you monitor globally over an installation.
Insulation resistance which is relative to leakage is one of the things that are monitored for machinery critical analysis when reliability predictions are performed using FMECA protocols. Failure mode, effects, and criticality analysis - Wikipedia - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Failure_mode,_effects,_and_criticality_analysis

 

[Bul]

Don't make the mistake of assuming that all earth leakages come from that installation !
Cause this is not true.
Some times the fault may lie in the neighbors installation,
And some of the returning currents are using your system.

If you are measuring the imbalance between the L & N would that resolve any issue the earth leakage coming from a neighbours installation?

 

[PEG]

If you are measuring the imbalance between the L & N would that resolve any issue the earth leakage coming from a neighbours installation?

Hi,no is the answer,as any imbalance measured,would require further knowledge of the installation,characteristics,earthing arrangements,etc.

Also,if that imbalance was due to leakage to,or from...