Electric power factor and harmonic distortion

[chrisgj]

My house installation is generating more harmonic distortion than it should and the power factor is way off. I need the tools (or the man) to check all my appliances to see where the problems are, and to find out what is needed to fix the problem (e.g. capacitor of right capacity and rating)

Anyone can point me in the right direction please.

Thanks

 

[spicyayam]

I doubt your average tukang would know. I guess you would need to find an electrical engineer or someone from a university to do the test.

 

[SamD]

My house installation is generating more harmonic distortion than it should and the power factor is way off. I need the tools (or the man) to check all my appliances to see where the problems are, and to find out what is needed to fix the problem (e.g. capacitor of right capacity and rating)

Anyone can point me in the right direction please.

Thanks

If harmonic distortion is a major issue for you in Bali then I would point you to the departure terminal. Nobody, including me, has a clue what you are talking about.

 

[chrisgj]

It seems unlikely that anyone who has no clue what I am talking about is likely to be of any use to me. But JUST POSSIBLY somebody here MIGHT understand and be able to offer guidance.

I am asking for practical help from someone who can give it. I am not really interested in the opinions of those who can't.

 

[chrisgj]

But for those who do not know but are curious, power factor of, say 80%, means you are getting only 80% of the electrical power you are paying for. You ae also putting more load on the PLN infra-strucure than necessary. Harmonic distortion could roughly be described as 'noise on the line' and if there is too much of it, it can cause PLN's local transformers (The ones you often see at the top of poles) to overheat and fail, possibly even catch fire.

I hope that is enough to satisfy the curious.

 

[Markit]

[QUOTE="chrisgj, post: 127172, member: 23406"

I hope that is enough to satisfy the curious.
[/QUOTE]

Na, me I gotta know how you found out - stick the old John Thomas in the plug and hummmmm?

 

[SamD]

It seems unlikely that anyone who has no clue what I am talking about is likely to be of any use to me. But JUST POSSIBLY somebody here MIGHT understand and be able to offer guidance.

I am asking for practical help from someone who can give it. I am not really interested in the opinions of those who can't.

If you know what harmonic distortion and power factor refers to, then I would assume you would know how to fix it when they go wrong.
Posting on a Bali expat/tourist forum seems eccentric to say the least. Can't you find a forum that is more focused on your needs?
Most people here are concerned about the price of Bintang and other serious issues like that. Not harmonic distortion.
Good luck in your search.
BTW I looked up harmonic distortion on Wikipedia and I still couldn't understand what it was all about. It's a topic for specialists.

 

[SamD]

Judging by your post on another thread, you really do know what you are talking about. Which only prompts me to ask again, why are you asking complete amateurs for advice on something about which you are an expert ? Makes no sense to me. Find a specialist forum and parade your Intellect there instead. Stop making us ignorant plebs feel bad about our lack of scientific knowledge.

 

[AuroraB]

Amateur here: My wife complained about increase in electricity usage and cost. Villa owner sent over AC man and he told me capacitors had to be replaced. Good idea I replied and later on my wife reported electricity bill back to normal. The root cause (harmonic distortion?) was not addressed, so its just a matter of time before these capacitors are going kaput again... If you search for "mrfixitbali", you will find their web page / facebook. This company offer MEP consulting. I'm not affiliated nor have I used their service so far.

 

[Markit]

Pray tell where are these capacitors hidden at?

 

[AuroraB]

Pray tell where are these capacitors hidden at?

AC repair man replaced capacitors inside the condenser units of our split system. Search google for "split ac bad capacitor symptoms"...

 

[Markit]

AC repair man replaced capacitors inside the condenser units of our split system. Search google for "split ac bad capacitor symptoms"...

Officially committing to going freely to the Old Folks Home - thought the whole conversation was about Alternating Current only to realize Air Conditioner was the AC in question...

Time to call Nursey to get the keyboard.

 

[SamD]

AC repair man replaced capacitors inside the condenser units of our split system. Search google for "split ac bad capacitor symptoms"...

Fucken hell. On top of all the other stuff I have to worry about, now I have to worry about the capacitors in my AC? I am already stressed out about harmonic distortion and power factors.
But thanks anyway for the heads-up.I have had ongoing issues with my bedroom AC and maybe a wonky capacitor is the answer.

 

[OrangeDragon]

Fucken hell. On top of all the other stuff I have to worry about, now I have to worry about the capacitors in my AC? I am already stressed out about harmonic distortion and power factors.
But thanks anyway for the heads-up.I have had ongoing issues with my bedroom AC and maybe a wonky capacitor is the answer.

Don't stress out too much... add in line conditioners between the outlet and any valuable electronics which would be sensitive to it. There's no real "fixing" the problem unless you're going to rewire your entire neighborhood, including the power station... but you can mitigate it's impact on your personal electronics with high quality conditioners.

Experience source: Common problem with pro audio rigs running on generators or on warehouse power, which we often used at event when I was a younger man having much more fun. A $300 conditioner saved us from having to repair/replace a $10,000 amp and control board after each gig.
That said, not a lot of things are sensitive enough to be bothered about it... stuff with capacitors or logic boards but not already going through a transformer (like the AC, a Fridge, TV, etc) before reaching said circuits... as the transformers should even things out before they hit the device in question.

 

[mugwump]

Amateur here: My wife complained about increase in electricity usage and cost. Villa owner sent over AC man and he told me capacitors had to be replaced. Good idea I replied and later on my wife reported electricity bill back to normal. The root cause (harmonic distortion?) was not addressed, so its just a matter of time before these capacitors are going kaput again... If you search for "mrfixitbali", you will find their web page / facebook. This company offer MEP consulting. I'm not affiliated nor have I used their service so far.

This reply is indicative of the fact that those of us that speak for all maybe are being a bit too inclusive. Hang in there Chrisjg. You found the right forum.