It has been 12 years since the change of colors that we must observe in the electrical installations in our country. Since 2006, the main phase color is now BROWN. Reason for the ... "refreshing" of the article we had written 2 years ago, daily visits to websites of electrical interest and "conflicts" with colleagues about what color we should use.
We will observe the young children (and well done) to follow the rules faithfully and in fact those of the new children who work in an "old" electrician, that they are surprised to see the electrician place black and brown as a return as the first phase and in fact most tragic of all, in 4X or 5X cables to use the gray cable as neutral !! 12 years later and some insist on not following the rules. In fact, if you put it into discussion, the answer is the classic of the brainless stuck "old" contractor: "I do it this way, let the rules come to change it for me".
But let's leave the "old contractors" and move on to the new generation that will follow ...
In any single-phase electrical installation, the only color that must be present for the phase is COFFEE
There are several electricians or even panel makers who are confused ... or neglect or do not know what colors to use in electrical installations. And don't tell me that: they have to change profession, because surely from all of us, something always escapes. But the chromatology of the power cables is very important. Imagine an old house or even worse office space, where the neutral conductor is gray ...
A panel manufacturer, to build in 2018, a panel with all the internal interfaces of the components, with cable only black or red or brown coke. We have seen this many times and many still do ....
and after all this, a new colleague goes at some point for damage to the site, I do not say that, necessarily, will cause damage or that he will be killed, but based on what he has learned recently, entering such an installation will '' eat climbing '' for a long time, if the panel is three-phase and large with many components, it will not know .... what goes where !!!! Before we see the new chromatology, in the following link we can see the new name of cables eg: old name = NYM - new name = H05VV-U. A detailed list with all the cables on the market and their new names can be seen here
In the past (before 2006), the colors in main pipes were:
L = Main Phase = Black
N = Neutral = blue
⏚ C e i m p a = R t t p j n a p p d p i n theAnd in three-phase cable with 4 or 5 conductors:
L1 = First phase = Black
L2 = Second phase = Brown or Black (even older red)
L3 = Third phase = Gray or Brown N = Neutral = blue (even older Gray)⏚ C e i m p a = R t t p j n a p p d p i n theSo from 2006, the chromatology changed. So we have:
In single phase three-pole cables
L = Main Phase = BrownN = Neutral = Blue⏚ C e i m p a = R t t p j n a p p d p i n theAnd in three-phase five-pole cables
L1 = First phase = Brown L2 = Second phase = BlackL3 = Third phase = GrayN = Neutral = Blue⏚ C e i m p a = R t t p j n a p p d p i n the
Based on the new chromatology I have to point out a few things about our work ...
In outdoor installation or inside suspended ceilings and plasterboard in general, it is good NOT to use eg in downs to switches NYM 3X1.5 because the blue must be used strictly for neutral, the yellow green strictly for grounding. So in this case the cost goes up a bit and we buy a 4x1.5 cable if we have a simple switch or switch, so we will ALWAYS use Brown for phase and black or gray, ALWAYS in a row, as returns.
Now as far as the 4x1.5 flat cable is concerned, I hear that it is widely used for the ceiling !! For a chandelier, let's say with 2 lights and neutral gray! It is not right. We must at some point break free from the mistakes of the past. Gray has been a phase conductor for 12 years. Get used to it. You are signing a PPA and this is WRONG. Yes, tell me ... '' but 4X with blue are no longer produced !! And yes, why be produced if it is not provided for? It is only for three-phase use with ground, or for return cable on plasterboard with backup or invalid yellow. Read more about how to use 5 or 4 polar cables in the following article: 5X cables ... how do we use them?
Respectively in recessed installations working with NYA type cables we must observe the same.
In general, we always use yellow and green ONLY for grounding. Blue ALWAYS and ONLY for neutral! The rest come on their own….
