Electrical Wire Color Coding Used By Electricians
Have you ever wondered why electrical wires and circuits have so many colors? What does it all mean? Let's dig in.
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The primary reason for electrical color coding is to identify all of the different conductors in a circuit. Every conductor in a circuit has a relationship to every other conductor, based on its voltage. Without the ability to know which conductor has what voltage relative to another conductor, a lot of bad things can happen.
An example of this is the green conductor and the black conductor. Each has it's own meaning, which is why each has it's own color. All grounding conductors (conductors meant to bond all metal parts together near electrical equipment) need to be identified so we know that these conductors should not have current on them. They should also have the same voltage as the grounded (neutral) conductor. The black conductor, however, has a much different potential (voltage) than the green and the white conductors. The black is an ungrounded conductor that is intended to always have current on it while under load.
Knowing the difference between these conductors is crucial when wiring an electrical system. Other colors can mean similar things, however the voltage class may be different. For example, working on a 480 volt 3-phase system you may see the colors brown, yellow, and purple - whereas a 208 volt 3-phase system may use black, red, and blue for it's ungrounded conductors.
Keep in mind that voltage is a relationship between two things. Voltage is not something that occurs on one conductor. So having different conductors each taped to identify what it is, allows us, electricians, to know what part of the circuit we're working with, but also what conductors have what voltage in relation to others.
#wirecolors #electrical #voltage
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From my experience... **RELYING ON COLOR CODING OF WIRES IS A FOOLS ERRAND**. Maybe not while youre installing, but most definitely when youre troubleshooting or fixing other peoples work and fkups. Best to more or less ignore them and work your way through a system checking voltages and sounding out wires as you go along. Just my personal opinion...
Not wrong at all. Otherwise you get locked into deductive thinking and assuming you know what you don't about other obvious factors.
Sorry that regular people can learn too..must stink
Orange 🍊 is that aka stinger
And I guess in fl we weirdos cause we use brown orange yellow
@@rickdaruler808s3same as Arizona
Hey dude, I've been an electrician for 40 years, I've been in all 3 world's, residential, industrial, and commercial, you are absolutely spot on, yes it's a little boring, but very informative, and you speak with simplicity, love it !! Dont even start with knob and tube, lol
....AIN'T HE GREAT, with HIS " practicality of education of an invisible entity " ? I Just wanted to add, I did do 3 or 4 of these freak technologies, Navy, Residential, commercial, and the digital that came in with communications,1960s and 70s. Briefly doing tech tele assists with Government satellite Links. Just resets . Today trying to stay out of the 432v stuff in my wall... now which breaker UNMARKED, is it ???
LOL, all joking aside, I actually ran into a house a friend of mine was considering buying, I went to look at it with him, noticed that it had 2 prong outlet in the whole house except 2, I plugged my tester into those outlets, it indicated they were wired right, I pulled the face plate off of those to see if it was new wiring, nope, bootleg grounds, but I noticed the wires in the box looked off so I went and looked in the attic, sure enough, knob and tube all over the place. Needless to say he declined the house, the owner and his realtor refused to come down in price. Good luck selling it, no one will underwite an insurance policy on it until the wiring is brought to code either.
I just looked at your website for the first time and I was completely impressed by the depth you go into for each tab. Genuinely great work as always. You were the reason I got the confidence to quit my job and start my career as an electrician. Thank you for everything you've put out and will continue to put out. Very much appreciated.
IBEW
How is it going as an electrician? I want to get in the trade.
thanks for the enlightenment I have received! for the last 25+ years I've owned/operated 1hp15hp woodworking machinery and I've had to wire my own building(s) for machinery from 1ph to 3ph via a rotary converter. I was "taught" that the two incoming 1ph hots were red/black. Once the hot went through the 3ph rotary converter, I had 3 hots with one of these legs 208/240. This line was colored blue and never used for anything but 3ph motors and the legs for the motor controllers were always red/black, never blue(boom+frying the mag contactor) Motor turning the wrong way, reverse red/black, NEVER blue. Orange was always for compressors and always home runs. I've never been called out on it but I think that once the inspector saw a rotary converter and additional panel, they were out of their league. Lucky or not, it works and NO ONE ever touches my panels/wiring. When I move, wire and receptacles come with me. Conduit stays on the walls for the next guy. Thanks, again, B
"Know, but verify" is pretty important....even if you understand the standards, you should always double check to make sure those standards were adhered to in whatever equipment you work with.
Blue is Neutral in the rest of the world (not NEC or USA Can). I have opened boxes that a black red and a blue were under the same wire nut. Nearest I can figure over the last 40 years it was the hot color the guy had in the truck when the add on was done.
Especially after I get in the panel and use whatever wire I have. LOL
@@WraithlingRavenchild If you look at the panel on the left in his description of the black, red, blue, (low voltage 3 phase) system, you will see lots of colors on the breakers that don't match the correct "phase" colors. Even one white that is taped black. Typically, this kind of color "mismatch" is most often found when using romex where the conductor colors are limited. "Two wire" (with ground) romex is always black, white, and green (as far as I have ever seen) and 3 wire romex (with ground) is always black, red, white, green). I believe MC cable can be ordered in the "high voltage" (brown, orange, yellow, white, green) colors for lighting as an example.
I had to wire custom power panels for Sputtering Equipment used in the USA[60 cycle] and Italy [50 cycle] 208 3-phase down to 5VDC, with connections #0 AWG to 22 AWG wire, with the different colored and mixed color insulation, It was easy to assemble and test and installed a chart that identified voltages inside the panel so if the schematics were not right there you could safely test for voltage. IBM was only company that wanted black only hot wires.....later was told at East Fishkill IBM swapped two phases on a 3 phase pump and pumped chemicals into the local ground water supply. The wire colors might look pretty but the colors do have a purpose.
I’ve seen more brown orange yellow. Pittsburgh here. Feeling like the purple is the oddball lol
Hey man. Thank you so much for video tutoring this videos. They really have been helped me out big time. I didn't even knew of how to identify the wires colors,but sense I started watching your KZhead videos, I learn much more before I started my electrician courses. This really going to help me for my classes thank you.
Basically correct and useful video, but please note four comments: 1) In the final summary, he said the orange wire in a three-phase 240-volt delta system is 240 volts to ground. It is 208 volts, as he said earlier. 2) He said you should never see voltage between the green and white conductors. That is true at the main service entrance panel but NOT at sub-panels. Since the neutral carries unbalanced current, it will have a voltage drop and you will read a small voltage between the neutral and ground at sub-panels, as well as at outlets and fixtures connected line to neutral. 3) Many "low voltage" three-phase systems are grounded at the electrical center point of the three-phase system, not at the center of two of the phases with a wild leg for the third phase. In these very common systems, (called three-phase WYE) the voltage between any pair of phases is 208 volts, and the voltage to neutral of any phase is 120 volts. 240-volts is not available. Many underground systems in cities are this type, and single-phase services are two phases of the 120/208-volt system, and neutral current can be as much as the full load on the phase conductors for all but loads supplied at 208 volts. 4) Here in Connecticut, 480-volt systems are Brown, Orange, Yellow, or "BOY". DMC PE-CT/MA
Being retired and the trade for 40 years thinking I'm so smart then comes the electrician with the correct information. Guess the saying is true "your never to old to learn".... haha!! (I'm a black,red blue white......Brown orange, yellow, gray kinda guy)
Yeah thats the color scheme here in PA as well.
I'm 20 and a 2 year and that's all I've seen in MD as well
same colors in OH and KY
Also never “too” old to learn how to spell.
We use the same colors here in NC
Really appreciate these videos. I am not an electrician, but do some of my own work. Great to see these videos targeted with simple explanations. So many “electricians” really have no clue what they are doing.
True, lol! Always, ALWAYS double check. Have a LICENSED person check and double check. And follow around anyone in your house like you're a dog and they have Milk Bones in their pockets...get a guy that likes to talk and explains everything well. Pay them extremely well and tip in cash if you call and they're there right away. Look out for places that hire some idiot off the street to work for you who doesn't know wtf they're doing and has no license.
The city doesn't tell you what colors you have to use for the current carrying conductors. The code specifies for the grounded conductor (neutral) it is to me identified as white or grey with that being the color of the insulation on the wire or wrapped with tape of that color at any assible point, like a junction box. Usually we like to use white tape for 120/240 single phase systems and 120/208 3 phase systems and grey wire or tape for the neutral in 277/480 v olt 3 phase systems. For the grounding conductor we use green color insulation or green marking tape regardless of the voltage of the system. So foreign and European equipment use green insulation with a yellow stripe.
As an audio technician, I need to mention that speakers are wired for low voltage AC signal, and as such, there is no positive or negative, and a speaker doesn’t care which way it is connected. The only reason there are different colored wires for speakers is because whenever you have more than one speaker you need to have them wired in phase, so they all push or pull at the same time. Reversing the wires on one speaker will put it 180° out of phase with the other speaker(s) and cause its sound to partly cancel the sound from the other speaker(s).
great clarifacation, i also thought speakers had positive and negative connections
@@billmongiello4885 they do but now I know why😊
@@billmongiello4885 They do. Speaker wire has one end w a red stripe.
Absolutely, however...... in subwoofer applications there are situations where you actually need to wire one sub in reverse, switch positive & negative, to correct the phase. Explaining the many factors that can cause this would turn this into a short story, but the actual box type to woofer alignment, box/woofer to application (vehicle/room) crossovers, transfer functions, etc etc can affect this. Simple way to identify this is when you wire 1 sub & its thumping, but then wiring the 2nd, 3rd etc & is sounds weaker than the 1 alone. So then many times reversing that positive & negative can fix the issue. Obviously other things can also cause this, but this is at least a quick way to diagnose if this is the issue. And without harming anything. And believe me I've seen this one happen many times over the years. And to just make things clear I've been doing this for many many years I also got my MECP back in the early 90's & held it (renewed it) for many years
Speakers most definitely polarity sensitive. Get them messed up and "phase" cancelation occurs. Not good!
You explain the coloring system very good. Am a retired Union Electrician with 50 years. Always had trouble with the orange color on a low voltage system. Had one town who had it all thru their system. Took me a while to get use to it. I watched your video just to see what is was about enjoyed it very much.
For 120-volt residential ceiling fans with luminaires, the blue wire is for the light and the black wire is for the fan. Two pair telephone cables can be tricky. Line 1 should always be red and green, and line 2 yellow and black. But, especially older homes, may have 24VAC on yellow and black for old princess phones with lighted dials, there will be a transformer somewhere if that is the case. If you're trying to add a second line with a VOIP service and you can't get it to work, you might have a transformer somewhere in your basement that needs to be disconnected, these were some of the first 'wall-wart' transformers ever made.
K
Interesting, thanks. I remember hearing something like that years ago and I also remember seeing the actual transformer used and the lighted phone dial telephones they were used on in a box of stuff left over from a move many years ago when I was a kid. I believe that one of the phones may have indeed been a princess phone. There were also some trimline phones with lighted rotary dials and large wall phones.
@John Felle or network wires. I just classify it as: High voltage = electricians Low voltage = communication worker
@John Felle haha true. s soon as they bring out the linemans to strip the telephone wires, you know your in trouble!
You just put the blue and black wire from the ceiling fan to the power wire
I enjoyed this video! Thank you for taking the time to create it.
14:08 in electronics (DC) black is negative (ground) and red is positive (hot). I heard a story about an electronics teacher who wired the receptacles for an electronics workbench. No one could figure out why they would routinely get shocked when working at this bench. Eventually someone realized that the teacher did not know that AC wiring had a different color code from the DC he was used to. He had hooked the bench grounding strap to the black (hot) AC wire. In an ATX power supply, red is +5v, yellow is +12v, orange is +3.3v, purple is +5v (standby). The great thing about standards is that there are so many to choose from. ;-)
My friend fixed a 240v mixer and swapped a hot leg with ground and the second you touched the machine you got shocked.
All DC circuits it’s Positive (+) and Negative (-) not hot or ground.
@@brianolson8736 That's the most accurate definition,. Although + or - can be tied to ground, it's specific to that system, network, or industry. For example, in telecom, most equipment operates on 48V DC, but it's the POSITIVE side that's grounded to earth, so the live wire is minus 48V.
That sounds like an urban legend. What kind of electronics INSTRUCTOR doesn’t have basic electrical knowledge. Even guys who work on DC circuits understand the difference between AC and DC.
@@brianolson8736 DC circuits have Positive(+) Ground(GND/0V) and sometimes Negative(-) , if there is no negative Voltage then ground is labeled with ( - ) or (GND)
Im a Jr Project Manager and electrical is my achilles heel. Your channel has provided me with a lot of knowledge that I need in the field. Great Job!!
Hey bro can you plz do a video on voltage drop? Good to see you back in action man, love your channel, it has helped me so much in my apprenticeship so far. Really appreciate all that you do my dude!!
Great to see so much new content!
Hi Andrew
Wow! Great job explaining! Ive been an electrician for 28yrs and that's a great explanation for anyone watching!
Really interesting for an electronics and electrical amateur like myself. I never knew about the brown-yellow-purple color scheme, but I already knew most of the others. Nicely explained!
Thanks for the good info. Worked in a factory here in South Africa. Our Wiring colours are red,yellow/white and blue for the live/hot wires black for neutral. Now add to that American machines with your colours of black,red,blue and white and European machines with there brown,black,grey and blue. Made it very interesting to work in that place. To add to this mess we also had some cheap piece of machinery that I think was from china wired all in one colour (probably what ever they had on hand as we had 2 identical machines with different colored wires) with crappy stuck on labels that came of at the slightest touch.
If it helps, the difference between neutral (white) and ground (green) is the neutral is intended and designed (sized) to carry current. (and in most industrial situations, it _will_ -- all multi-phase systems will have some imbalance. Residential likely does, too, but I've not checked mine) Ground should normally never have current flowing on it. (if there's current on the ground lead(s), something is broken.)
Right, the ground lead only has to be big enough to not melt during the time it would take to trip a breaker, assuming everything's functioning properly in the breaker panel. Unsure if it's different in commercial or industrial work, but in most residential wiring cases, all 3 wires for 120v loads are going to be rated for the same current, for example in 12 gauge Romex the Ground conductor will be rated for just as many amps (because it's the same physical diameter) as the hot and neutral conductors, however it will simply have no insulation on it since the intention is for that lead to never have a significant potential with respect to ground (as its purpose is simply to allow a "wrong on purpose" path for current to flow during a circuit fault, rather than having that current flow thru someone or something not rated for it).
The ground does carry leak current away fro the devices. This typically would be at most 1 mA or so. Many modern devices leak like computers and fridges.
You speak logic in all of your video demonstrations. I simply love them all because you state facts in any job application. Thank you so much for the enlightenment!
Hey, not boring at all! I'm semi-retired now but never get tired of learning new things or having a bit of a refresher. Great series of videos, Dustin.
Thanks for the clear explanations. I love you way you ALWAYS have a picture or a real life example when you are making a point. Thanks for the great content. Keep it up.
I’m totally insulted. I’m in a brown/orange/yellow area.
Yup
Brown orange yellow. Black red blue
Triggered!!!
I work in a factory that got a black, grey/white, brown pattern.
Same here, BRB for 120/208 3PHs 4 wire system and BOY for 277/480 3PHs 4 wire system.
brown is easy to remember as that is the color your pants will be if you get hit by it.
This applies especially in Europe where brown is almost always 240V.
lol dealing with low voltage i tell pple red your dead or with fpe panels red handles of hell fire
@@projectartichoke 230 V, only Brits have 240 V as they do not want to change.
lol
Lol
Love the videos! Starting my second year now and loving the trade
Yeeeeee good to see you're making videos bruh! Appreciate you. 🤘
in EU its Brown, black, grey, blue for neutral, and yellow/green striped for ground.
The majority of places outside North America use this coloring. I learned about it doing theater work with a fairly scabby power panel with a techie from the UK I was helping adapt some stuff for US power. We basically had to sit down and compare notes for how one another marks and runs things in a power panel and found it mutually enlightening and left convinced both of each other's coloring schema was bonkers. Also she learned the joy of wire nuts and vowed to take a giant pack of them home.
@@carpespasm Wire nuts are still used by some people in Finland, but a screw terminal is more commonly used since you can change the connection more easily and you don't have to straighten out and twist again those wires.
Right on. Good info! Our here in California 480v 3 phase is Brown orange yellow. Delta High 3 phase we use purple.
so BOY is wye? and purple is delta?
@@thedavesofourlives1 Yup! First time I ever saw a delta system was in downtown SF. I had to do a double take, what the hell? Lol
purple is Wye , orange is delta per Electricians bible app phase colors
@Zachary Frerichs… the code states that high legs shall be marked orange. Of course the local jurisdiction can alter code and it’s possible that you encountered something that predates the inception of this particular code requirement.
I just wanna give you a shout out man! Good job on these videos. Super educational and you keep it fresh and interesting. Thank you for the knowledge!
As a 42 year union electrician ( years in trade) and instructor, 120/208 or 120/240 is black. Red and blue. White neutral regardless of single phase or three phase 277/480 is brown, orange, yellow and GREY neutral. Grey is used instead of white so it can never be confused with the lower voltage system. Utilities use their own colors.
Awesome video! If you need a video idea here’s one: how to properly size wires and voltage drops
I would be interested in that. good call
Would love this video
Voltage drop would be great
Agreed
Easy way to do it is for every 100' go up another size. So a 20 amp circuit which normally would use a #12 AWG would use #8 AWG if you go over 200' but less than 300'.
Same colour scheme used in my country (Chile): Phases: black, red and Blue and neutral White. At last a state that use the same as we use.
Dude you video content is getting Better n BETTER. THANK YOU MIAMI, FL.
Your info is so thorough and clear. Much appreciated!
In Finland we have three phase system (230 volts) and colorcodes are: green/yellow Ground, brown Live 1, black Live 2, grey Live 3 and blue is neutral.
Europe mostly the same , totally different in USA
And 400V between any two live conductors. And those colors are the present colors. Also been black live, grey neutral and red for anything, ground, light circuit, third phase... That was in the 60-70's, then in the 70's there came green-yellow-purple as live and grey as neutral. And sometimes there was also a three phase with black-blue-red as live and grey as neutral
Current standards for wiring colours in the UK, as per Europe is: Single Phase, Brown Live, Blue Neutral, Earth Green/yellow striped. Three Phase is L1 Brown, L2 Black, L3 Grey,
It's true. In Czech Republic we must NOT change color of ground wire (green/yellow striped) and must NOT make ground wire from different color. Ground wire must have the same color along the entire length.
Thats the same all over Europe. Ground must be the same - and Green/Yellow stripe cannot be used for anything else. I build equipment for all over the world and it's mystifying how many different colour schemes are used.
@@mattylad8035 In this context I thinking about use that black wires and color tape. I can't imagine something like in 11:11 in distribution box in our country (even for ground). Advantage is we have the same voltage between phases (all phases are the same) and between phase and neutral.
I really hate how they changed the 3 phase colours away from ryb. Now a neutral in single/three phase swap to live, its confusing. Plus, seeing RYB helped identify 3 phase systems. I guess it makes sense having L1/L are brown, but the black/grey is confusing and harder to make out in dark environments.
This is very educative.... I love it! Keep up the good lectures.
Thanks for a a most informative video. Your inclusion of what prevails in some other countries is useful
aqui dejo una reseña para aquellos que hablamos español de la explicacion: VERDE: tierra no importa el voltaje ni el tipo de sistema, se conecta al punto medio del transformador junto al neutro en el desconectivo principal. BLANCO: neutro del sistema, acompaña a cada fase en los diferentes circuito. PELIGRO, por el neutro si circula corriente no confundir con tierra. NEGRO,ROJO Y AZUL: colores de las fases de un sistema hasta 240 v. NARANJA: es el color que se usa para marcar la fase conocida como HIGH LEG, la cual es bastante peligrosa de usar ya que posee 208 v con respecto al neutro. para 277V hacia arriba, GRIS: se usa para neutro CARMELITA, VIOLETA ó NARANJA Y AMARILLO: se usan para las fases. en circuitos residenciales solo se usan 2 fases NEGRO Y ROJO con su respectivo neutro (BLANCO) Y la tierra de color (VERDE). en caso de paneles de servicio y acometidas secundarias donde todas las cubiertas de los cables son negras se usan tape de esos colores.
Watching your KZhead videos.it makes feel like I don't even need to take any courses.i feel that I learn better by listening to your videos.thanks again
really appreciate all your videos. getting ready to go into a wireman apprenticeship through IBEW so your videos are definitely helpful in giving me a heads up before i start. thanks!!!
This channel is great. I'm currently a licensed pool repair contractor in Florida. I've worked plumbing (wiring water heaters) and general property maintenance where I've done basic electrical repairs like replacing outlets, switches and breakers up to replacing motors on commercial 3 phase laundry equipment and some HVAC work that was mostly on the control side where we replaced bad contactors, relays and motors. So, I think I know the basics but the couple of videos I've watched here have been very informative. I've got a question about something I've run into down here that due to FL laws, I have to stop and tell the homeowner they need to call a licensed electrician so I never do get to figure out the cause. I do a lot of hot tub work and have often found that I had 120 from Line 1 to Neutral and 120 from Line 2 to Neutral but 0 volts between Line 1 and Line 2...and the hot tub is not running because there's no power to it. I've assumed it was a bad breaker or other wiring fault. These circuits are usually 50 or 60 amp GFCI breakers.TIA for feedback.
I'm not an electrician. In house wiring this would occur if the both the hot wires were on the same leg of the incoming wires. The two hot feed cables feed the breakers and every adjacent breaker is on the other feed wire. I think your 240 volts are being supplied by separate 120v breakers but the breakers aren't adjacent and happen to both be in slots that are fed by the same incoming feed cable instead of by both incoming feed wires.
Hey Dustin! At like 14:45 when you were quickly reviewing I think you accidentally said the high leg is 240 to ground. Awesome video though, thanks for everything you do, your videos got me interested in the trade and gave me a tremendous edge when I was starting out. Most master electricians don't know or care how things work as long as they work in my experience so thanks for content that fills in the gaps for us ever-curious nerds.
I caught this as well, but since he mentioned earlier in the video that the high leg is 208v to ground, I know he just made a mistake.
I see people posting BOY or YBO in certain locations. In the Washington DC area you'll find both. Usually it's in the Job specifications as to which way they want the 480 color coding installed.
Only if its Phased that way!!!
@Jamie Vann… I don’t think the utilities are consistent with the color vs phase rotation coming into the facility. The different order in colors might be an effort to try and coordinate this. Typically the inside wiremen just label X1 brown, X2 orange, and X3 yellow and maintain the phasing throughout the system and only correct rotation issues at the point of connection to supplied equipment. That being said anything is possible. Every plant/facility I’ve worked at in my hometown is BOY on 480v except one that uses BYO on 480.
The three phases also normally have specific positions on the power poles and the transmission towers. They do deviate occasionally at a pole or two but for the most part the insulators on each support are for specific phases.
We always used Grey added to Red/Blue/Black or Brown/Orange/Yellow, to indicate the circuit was the Generator Wiring Only. If The Grey Tape was on top of the colored tape, it was from Street Power or Generator Wiring. Purple or Pink wire in a unit, was to indicate field added controls to the factory circuit. BTW, they now have Pink Electrical tape. Also Red Wire or Wire with Red Tape or from a Red Paint Marker, in a Light Circuit, indicates the Traveler Wire for a Three-Way, Four-way or More than Four Switches, in a Switch Circuit.
Watching your videos and see how eloquent you demonstrating...it's like am literally sitting in a class taking notes..I would work as an apprentice for free just to learn more and more from you.
Wow, thank you!
@@ElectricianU I'd have to "Ditto" what @Raymand said above...just awesome...keep 'em coming!
Speaker wires: Backwards wiring is just out of phase, sound is an AC signal. If both speakers are "out of phase" you won't be able to tell the difference, but if just one is there will be places where the speakers cancel out each others' frequencies depending on the room it's in and placement etc.
Exactly
Speaker wires can also be same color for both, but the sheathing is smooth on one and rifled or ridged on the other so you can feel it in the dark realm of speaker installations.
Power going from your stereo or amp to your speakers is DC, not AC. The rest of your comment makes no sense. You seem to be confusing a delay with a noise cancelling signal.
@@akuunreach3260 not true. It's AC. And the rest of his comment makes perfect sense.
@@ehsnils I remember when I was a kid speaker wire was like that. Both conductors same color. I didn't know then one side was rougher than the other one until I got older. I used to get really annoyed by that. It was probably very common for people to wire up speakers incorrectly because of this.
On fixture wires the phase conductor is usually the wire with the information stamped on it, or some times a black line. You generally see these cords on lighting fixtures that hang from chain, or lamps. But it’s good to know so you don’t put voltage to the wrong part of a limp socket. Great videos!
Typically one side has the writing and smooth on that side while the side without the writing is ribbed and that goes to neutral. Really old lamps with non polarized plugs might not follow this convention so it's a good idea to check continuity from the screw shell to identify the neutral wire from the cord.
Great videos, appreciate it. Started a new career working on large UPS systems and these videos really help reinforce what I’m learning on the job. So far it’s been mostly high voltage 3-phase for very wealthy companies so the build outs and labeling (coloring) have been pretty solid, but great knowledge to have.
Dustin real talk the fuckin man bro It shows u the levels there are to this Electrical game
We've never used brown yellow purple, Always BOY.... I always learn a little something in your videos, keep em up man
In the Netherlands (and the rest of Europe) we use Brown, Black and Grey for the hot wires and Blue for the neutral and Green/yellow for grounding (400/230 Volt / 50 Hz). We had made electrical systems in our company for the US market (offshore). When an electrical system goes to the US, we must use the US standards. For 480/277 Volt / 60 Hz it was always Brown, Orange and Yellow for the hot wires and Grey for the neutral and Green for grounding and for 208/120 Volt / 60 Hz it was always Black, Red and Blue for the hot wires and White for the neutral and Green for grounding. Some cables we use on ships they don't have a green of green/yellow wire for grounding, in that case brown in used as grounding (ship is ground). The neutral is at the source (generator or transformer output) connected to the ship.
I like your vintage collection, but you need the split knows that separate conductors and fastened to wooden roof framing. Keep making videos and share.
@@JGvanStraten We had already wired a machine that was for making breakfast cereal we were not told it was for another country and put in Brown Orange Yellow and Grey wires tested the machine everything was fine andthey were happy, a few days before we broke it down for shipping they had some visitors from another country check the machine and they were alarmed and told us the colors needed to be changed out. since it was specked out and their guys okayed everything we got paid to take out all the cables and wires to all black and kept the scrap. either i never found out what country or i forgot.
Was about to make the same comment. Also it's strange the nec hasn't really addressed color coding
Canadian here: Only seen it here on government building contacts as switch legs.
In commercial that I've worked on the orange almost always means 277v, commonly lighting circuits
Same
In the picture with a red, black and orange colors the orange should designate a 190v high leg and the red black as 120.
I am a traffic signal technician, we can have up to 32 colors out to the field often in many many runs. But the service runs are always black, white, green (usually bare).
Very interesting stuff indeed. I have never touched high voltage commercial applications but it was interesting learning about the colors. Strangely enough, in our region we use Brown on a single phase circuit to identify low voltage. In older homes when the air exchanger was hardwired to 120 through the controller our guys will use that wire for low voltage signal to the newer controllers and then we are required to wrap that nmd in brown tape to identify it as low voltage or technically ultra low voltage. I've also never seen Orange on any of the three phase high leg systems I've worked on. Our instructor told us years ago that the brighter the tape the higher the voltage. Not always true.
14:50 Isn't that supposed be 208V against Grounded/N (for a Orange WildLeg)🤔
Yes, he just made a mistake.
Clean electronic circuts might require an ISO (isolated ground) Green W/ Yellow tracer.
Really nice to know the electrical code differences of other counties, Brazil have a similar color code, but blue is the neutral here.
Hey Dustin, loving the content! I am currently going through some pre-apprenticeship training with my local IBEW and enjoy soaking up knowledge wherever I can find it! Quick question/video idea for you: What is some of your favorite literature within the profession? These could be particularly useful or clear technical manuals, histories of the industry, biographies of people relevant to the industry, popular science examinations of electrical theory, or even fiction novels that feature interesting applications of electrical concepts. I am a big reader and would love some tips on what books you think offer useful or entertaining examinations of the industry. Thanks brother!
I was coming to write the same thing. It's subtle, but I think I see books added in the background of the studio and some new "guts" as I like to say. Love the vintage tech... I saw "electricity one-seven" screen left but most are obscured... Great content Dustin, not boring at all. I like the color orange talk you give, gave me piece of mind. Also key are the other comments on color standards from other students. Next lesson, control wiring color! I'd love to see a discussion/interview about control colors with someone in the know who started in the earlier mechanical relays era and has transitioned to the standards of today such as they are. To Hubis73 the most useful/practical books for me are the ones that have visuals for me. I was entertained... I started with official NFPA Handbook to the NEC. Delmar has three books, Residential, Commercial, Industrial that I like. Mike Holt is a badass and frankly his illustrator is badass. interview them too!
@@MrBizwack Awesome! I received the NFPA 70 NEC 2020 in my package for the pre-apprenticeship program, along with the Test Instruments and Applications, Electrical Systems based on the 2020 NEC, and Conduit Bending and Fabrication (all three from American Technical Publishers), as well as DC Theory 3rd edition, Electrical Industry Applications Manual, and Foundations of Mathematics (all published by the NJATC). Our program director got us a grant from the state Department of Education which provided all these books for free (!!!). I will also definitely check out the stuff from Delmar and Holt, thanks for the heads-up!
@@Hubris73 well that's nice we have same books but we pay $250 a year for our NJATC books and the NEC isnt included! thats another $150-175 if we get a deal on it, beware of buying NEC off amazon i bought 2017 NEC for $60....and got about $60 worth....had over 200 pages missing and it came brand spanking new out of the plastic wrap. so just pay the $$$ and get the real book from a reputable dealer or the NFPA
@@brentwerks1471 Yikes, thanks for the advice. I will definitely beware of amazon dealers. I'm guessing it wasn't a "prime" seller? Normally those have pretty good return policies.
Did you end up starting 1st year? We spend like 2 weeks on the history of IBEW and there's a 600 + page informational article on the homework 😂
I think it is important to note that an orange wire or marking in a panel means hi-leg but if you come across orange wire in a receptacle or switch box location this does not mean it will be a hi leg. Typically this can be a switch leg or a traveler.
Really you should mention open delta and delta high legs. Most Electricians will encounter Y secondaries so no high leg will be present.
Open or closed delta has no visual affect on a delta system. You can have a 120/240 grounded delta in an open or closed configuration and you wouldn’t be able to tell by reading the voltage.
@SeanLeonDrums… the National Electrical Code states that a hi-leg shall be marked orange but it doesn’t restrict it’s use to only a high leg as it does with the green=grounding and white & natural gray=grounded (with the white in Romex switch leg exception). It is legal and very common to find orange colored phase wires in 480 volt systems that do not have a high leg (ie.. 480v wye)
Once u get to 12kv in the U.S. those colors don’t jive. Best thing for u guys learning is to check the NEC, and FOR SURE check with ur AHJ.
Probably once you get to 4160V. But fortunately, there are other conductor characteristics like shielding that will suggest the presence of medium voltage.
More info: Speakers are DC powered so they need to be wired so red causes the speaker cone to expand outwards, pushing the air. Another wire is for lamps and extension cords. If the plug is missing or is going to be replaced the wire that is neutral will have ribs on the surface that you can feel or see. That one goes to the neutral, or wide blade side of the plug or receptacle. Great videos, sir!
Most instances you will see residential having only single phase, your black and red wire from this phase this is the split phase coming from main transformer, tapping off the opposite ends of the same transformer. I’ve heard of 2 phase being used in some industrial facilities in Texas. 3 phase is common place for commercial and most industrial installations.
purple was a high leg, , 575 or 600 vac it can be 208 or 240 also. use a multimeter to check!!
Yep I was taught it was for you high leg.
Well, one thing that I learned is that I should call a electrician do do the wiring in my house. Thanks!
Oh yeah I forgot
If one is trying to learn, this was not boring. Keep up the good work and keep the videos coming. Thanks.
Love this channel. You know your stuff. Thanks for sharing your knowledge.
Electrician U is Mike Holt for apprentices 🤟
Except this is free and to benefit from Mike Holts products you need to have lots of petty cash. Few books and cd's from Mr Holt can easy be $1000+. Guys a crook tbh.
This is an excellent analogy!
Orange is also used to identify a highleg (b-phase) in a delta system. You never install a single pole circuit on this phase in a panel. You will usually see the panel skips this breaker when used mostly as a single phase two pole circuit. You can however use a three phase breaker with no issue in these panels. Typically a delta installed system doesn't always have a neutral. You can tap the transformer between b and c phase to derive a neutral which can be used for single pole circuits such as lights and plugs.
Isn't that what he described and showed with the diagram for 240 volt delta center taped between A and C phase?
@@matthewperlman3356 Probably, he knows what he is talking about for sure. Watched this video a while ago so I can't remember if he mentioned it specifically. He most likely did describe that as he is pretty on point.
@@matthewperlman3356 he's just trying to sound smart lol
I love how thorough you are! I have a conundrum that wasn't addressed here. I'm changing my fluorescent light to use the new LED lights, and I have to remove the two ballasts (for 4 bulb unit). Coming out of the ceiling there are orange, blue and white wires. What is what? Which do I hook to red, blue, black and white? I just want to make sure before I make a big mistake! Thank you!
Sounds like you could just have some nasty discolored wires. I've seen black wires turn a blue color and white wires turn yellowish orange. Best thing to do is use a tester and find your hot, and neutral.
As usual a very informative video. Easy to relate to you. Only one other viewer (Joe Occhipinti) mentioned that during your conclusion you said (I think) that in a three phase system the orange phase to ground was 240V, instead of 208V. If viewers watched the entire video they will know what you meant. I've yet to encounter one of your videos that wasn't fun to watch and informative.
It's so messed up how in the US phase+splitphase is called 'single' phase. technically that's correct, but practically... please call it split phase.
I think it's because in some areas there is a multitude of different transformers...
Nah I think we’ll stick to our ways and continue infuriating you confused foreigners 😉😎
If it's technically correct,then it's correct, why call it something that is not correct? Seems simple.
It's called single split phase. To electricans we know that it's split. No need to say split
I mean it’s a single phase primary....but secondary Ive always called legs. Gets confusing to call a secondary leg a “phase”
In the 480 3 phase system, I was taught that Orange still Meant the Wild Leg. so instead of 277 yellow, or Brown to Gray, you had 440 Orange to Gray Open Delta When there is Purple, then all of them , Yellow, Brown or Purple to Gray is 277.
There is no high leg in a 480V system. You either have a 480 Wye where all 3 phases are 277V to ground, an ungrounded Delta where you’ll have a weird range of voltage from phase to ground, or a corner grounded Delta where one phase is 0 volts to ground and the other 2 phases are a random voltage to ground.
I am an old guy who until 1984 worked in West Texas as a pretty knowledgeable unlicensed employee of a 1500 hp 480 volt grounded Delta three phase industrial plant. We had dry transformers to get 120/240. I had quick access to a large contractor when I needed a licensed crew or needed a question answered. I probably had enough knowledge then to try the Journeyman exam but never took it. Since 1984, I have done work only on my own equipment, mostly residential, under an apprentice license issued by the State of Texas after extensive examination evidenced by my credit card number on the web site. I also had a First Class Radiotelephone license from the Federal Communications Commission. BFD but needed for an AM radio station. In my experience, "a m" is correct; I never heard of 277 volts anywhere in a 480 volt system. Also in my experience during 1979s and 1980s, almost all conductors were black, white or green. Any other colors were either 120/240 volts or 120 volt control wires. The grounded 480 volt leg was always placed on the right side of the service switchgear. I was not taught whether it mattered to distinguish the grounded leg. So my question is, in a 480 volt three phase grounded Delta system, is there a color code to identify the grounded leg? If you mentioned that, I missed it.
@@danadcock9743 no, there is no color to designate a ground phase in a corner grounded Delta system.
@@atmacm I’m pretty sure the NEC requirement for corner grounded 480 v service should have brown, yellow, gray, with the gray being neutral (grounded conductor) and UNFUSED! I have been in the industrial field for more than thirty years and have NEVER seen a corner grounded delta 480v. System marked, or done with two pole breakers and an unfused neutral 😭
@@atmacm there is also a mid tapped 480v. Delta tapped transformer that has a wild leg just the same as a delta 120/240 3phase system!
Best explanation I've heard on this topic.
What color would you use to a second or third switched hot wire in a ceiling box for example if you have one switched hot for lights and another for a ceiling fan. I've typically seen yellow be used in older houses that used FLEX for the switched hot but would you continue to use yellow for additional switched hots?
They don’t call it Neutral in the NEC because there are cases where the grounded conductor is not technically a neutral. The NEC only requires grounded and grounding to be a specific color. The rest of the colors are based on convention and local/state requirements.
I also think he thinks the ground and neutral are the same. They are not. The neutral is a current carrying conductor, ground is not. The ground is there for safety and should never carry current. The neutral is a tap off a transformer. Usually its the center of the secondary windings
Grounded and current carrying. Those are the two characteristics I teach my students/apprentices for identification of conductors. Current carrying/ not grounded, current carrying grounded, non current carrying grounded.
@@bigmikeh5827 good point, as neutrals may NOT be at ground potential (they should be) but grounds are NEVER supposed to carry current.
Most people who aren't familiar with the Technical Terms get lost in the terminology of the Words, I think he does a excellent job explaining it a on a basic level. No System is perfect, do you want to boar them to death before they have a understanding. I'm sure he has a Understanding of what your saying...
Besides do you know the difference between a grounded Neutral and a Neutral going to Ground...
So funny us old timers (35 years in trade) always used BOY for 277/480 I even still order BOY when I need high voltage 😀😀😀😀
Same...1st time I saw Brown, Yellow & Purple.
I'm 20 yrs and that's what I was taught.
Very interesting info. I always learn something watching your videos. You are never to old to learn. Thanks for taking the time to make them.
How awesome you provided practice test you truly care about your audience and are not just trying to make money or fame you explain things in a way to empower people and not just drag out a series
Funny that when he was going through the grounded vs. grounding examples my brain went into high gear on the terminology because I'm actually a lawyer, then he mentioned us not being lawyers. Haha
Me too. I was an electrician for 12 years before law school. I often wish I had stayed with the National Electric Code rather than the United States Code!
B,O,Y, perhaps its the region in the country you are in has always been the norm for me. B,Y,P, I'm just now hearing about from you lol!
In California, BOY is prevalent, but certain jurisdictions that are mindful of the Code's purpose for the color orange have mandated the use of purple for this reason (the University of California and the labs it manages are brown, yellow, purple for A, B, C.) In another case where "if you can't beat 'em, join 'em" the City and County of San Francisco has amended the NEC for its own use, stipulating that 277/480Y systems shall use BOY, while 120/240V Delta systems shall use purple to denote the high leg or "stinger". Just to be different than anywhere else in the nation.
thanks , I've been asking for updated training for years from my company . guess i just had to go and find my own training . thank you for the update . i need more training , this is getting fun now .
As a journeyman electricians, instructor, electrical inspector and commercial and residential electrical contractor I enjoy your talks. All electricians do things a little different but the willingness to learn and expand is our greatest attribute. The NEC or code as I recall has only a few colors. The rest are industry standards. Grounding conductors are green or green with a yellow stripe. Grounding rhymes with green is how I remember it. Grounded conductors are white or natural grey. Dead white is how I remember it. The high ungrounded leg of a three phase system(208) is orange. Those are the only colors that are in the code as I recall. The other colors are industry standards but not code and should be verified. They all should be verified but you know what I mean. I love what you're doing keep up the good work and don't think for a second I'm being disrespectful.😊
Exactly Right, never been called for a color pattern using the colors you mentioned...
@@steve-o6413 in the end its up to the AHJ in your area
The Utilities use a 3 wire Delta configuration and they ground 1 hot leg, when the get to distribution level the usual trans. in MO is a 4wire Y secondary, either 120/208V or 277/480V. So Delta primary and Y secondary. I am with "AmericanOne" on the colors B,R,Blu,Wht 120, BR,O,Y,Gry 277. Retired IBEW wireman. )
I always learn something new watching your videos man. Thank you and keep up the content cause it definitely prevents me from looking like such a dumbass out in the field 😂
And don’t apologize for things being “boring” color coding saves lives and equipment!
Looking good bro!! I’m just beginning my apprenticeship and I like to study your videos! Thanks man
5
5555
55555
I have also heard the neutral (white) called the "common" wire Another place you may find a "blue" wire is in a ceiling fan. They often use blue for the "light" circuit while the black runs the fan - white is still neutral.
What about the switch leg and traveler colors? 🤔
At my house, I installed an outdoor lighting system with a photocell and I used red as the switch leg from the sensor. Am I going to hell? lol
Switch legs and travelers can be whatever you want, other than white, grey or green... As long as you know what you've used.
@@IceBergGeo new code yes but any homes not built in the last year nuetral was used as a switchleg all the time. Smart homes have changed that and with wifi switches that require neutral have changed code not for life safety but only because consumerism.
@@cheynebest7028 as far as running Romex, you can still use the white conductor for a dummy three way, as that is one of the exceptions to the "need neutral in the box" code rule. It just needs to be identified as not neutral.
Know the difference between Residential, Commercial and Industrial Wiring...
US electrical system looks such a antique thing... If I ever move to the US - I'll definitely change my trade... 😄
U.S. trades very slow to change (adopt new techniques & technologies). It’s a union thing.
Just seen this video, very interesting. I'm an auto tech, and orange is used in the hybrid/fully electric cars to indicate high voltage. In my field, high voltage is 60 volts and higher. Everything that is a part of the high voltage system is colored coded orange, the cable, the connectors, and the master disconnects. Watching this video has helped me to understand the wire color coding. I have messed around with the wiring in my house, and watching these videos has helped me to understand the wiring better. The three phase stuff is mostly commercial/industrial, but there are a few instances in which three phase is used in residential applications. For example, an air compressor in the garage may have a three phase motor in it. Thank you, Dustin for doing these videos, very educational.
I can't say as I've ever seen 3-ph in a residential setting. Not that it couldn't be requested if it were available, I suppose, but not all neighborhoods would likely have it.
You are great teacher I’m learning electricity thank you very much to explain clearly everything what I need to know
Hey Dustin, if I wear the T-shirt will it make me a better electrician
Yes
No
No, but it won't make you a worse Electrician either, buy the shirt...
Absolutely
Maybe
5min in, and now I understand why they are all alcoholics
Can't get your license without a bad tattoo, a divorce and a DUI
@@spenzerwright5693 I did, but the Divorce came after lol...
Sometimes it‘s useful to know other wire colors from other parts of the world. Especially if you buy appliances from there. Seen a video made by a UK electrician installing a wall charger for EV. The cable had US colors (black, white and green) but the appliance was 230V. And if we sell an appliance to somewhere they get a cable with european colors. Brown, black and gray are lines, in three phase L1, L2 and L3. Neutral is blue and protective earth/ground is green/yellow. Voltages are 230V between every line and the neutral and 400V between the lines.
hi, loved the video. I'm new engineer just starting out and I'm trying to get the basics down.
Brown, orange, yellow is all I have ever use never heard of Brown, yellow, purple learn something every day
I memorized it initially like this, "Be our B boy", BRB BOY....... Black Red Blue Brown Orange Yellow And, "Green's the ground, the world around."
Q: What does a landscaper know about electricity? A: Ground is very important, and it is either green or bare.
@@carultch ...Not quite. The ground can also be "half yellow and half green" at the same time.
@@theSword-I know that. But think about this from the point of view of a lanscaper. "Bare" means bare dirt, and "green" means grass to them. Both of these describe a meaning of the word "ground" that has nothing to do with electricity.
@@theSword- Also, what is the reason for using a half-yellow/half-green ground? Are there reasons one would need to distinguish a bi-color ground wire from a mono-color ground wire?
@@carultch ....I never said anything about a landscaper.
Than if get into wiring up security & networking equipment.... The wire colors are different as well. Don’t forget about when digging & they mark the ground, use diff paint colors for different services too. Sometimes can be tad overwhelming for apprentices/beginners, but imo; once get the “basics” down it’s not so bad especially if working w/ the stuff daily, it becomes second nature. Thx Dustin, always good to have a “refresher” now & again. Happy Thanksgiving 🦃
My grandpa always referred to the ‘wild leg’ as the ‘Bastard leg’, and that’s what I’ve always called it. Electricians would flip out if you worked with us in our transmission substations. Red is Ø1 or C Phase, White is Ø2 or B phase, and Blue is Ø3 or A Phase. Some of our plants use Brown, Yellow & Orange for the iso-phase bus running to the step-up transformer, then it switches to Red, White & Blue when it steps up to 500kV.