Domestic Wiring Colours
Although still used today the earth wire used to be pure green.
Domestic wiring colours. Allowable wire and cable types and sizes are specified according to the circuit operating voltage and electric current capability with further restrictions on the. Brown orange and yellow are used for 480 vac. The outer plastic sheathing or jacket and the inner color coded wires the sheathing binds the inner wires together and its outer markings indicate the number of wires and size of wire gauge within the sheathing. It does not normally cover the transmission or distribution of electricity to them.
Whenever you see a black wire you know it is hot. The usa have their own wiring colours for electrical circuits black red and blue are used for 208 vac three phase. The live wire colour used to be red. In 2006 amendment 2 of 17 th edition bs7671 wiring regulations saw a change to harmonise the uk colours with the european cable colours for consistency and to avoid confusion.
Wiring is subject to safety standards for design and installation. Electrical wiring in the united kingdom is commonly understood to be an electrical installation for operation by end users within domestic commercial industrial and other buildings and also in special installations and locations such as marinas or caravan parks. Fixed wiring electricity supply requires specific wiring colour regulations bs 7671 to identify different power lines in different countries. Black red and green with yellow stripes.
Old uk wire colours changes since 1977. The old wiring colours used in the uk in domestic electrical situations and in domestic appliance plugs used to be three colours. Electrical cable and wire color markings. We show you how the new wiring colours translate to the old electric wire colours and how you can ensure that the right wires are connected in any instance.
This was the live wire. Old australian colour code multiphase. Electrical wiring is an electrical installation of cabling and associated devices such as switches distribution boards sockets and light fittings in a structure. Phase 1 red phase 2 white phase 3 dark blue neutral black earth green.
This was the neutral wire. It s important that properties get their wiring checked to see if the wiring colours are out of date have deteriorated over time and to check if they comply with bs 7671 wiring. The list below also outlines the different colour codes for single phase and multiphase in australia. Non metallic or nm 120 volt and 240 volt electrical cable come in two main parts.
The black electrical wire used to be the colour for the neutral wire. New vs old wiring colours. New wiring and cable colours new electrical wire colours and uk wire colours. Installation wiring also known as building wiring is for things such as the wiring behind power points and walls.
What were the old uk electrical wiring colours. The old colours were. The wire that carries the current from the power source to the outlet or receptacle is the hot wire. In this diy guide learn about the new standard wiring colours for electrical wiring and house wiring.