Reg Mitchell
09-10-2006, 12:25 AM
I was happy as a new born puppy this morning as i drove over to the shop. The radio blasting Toby Keith and me singing along, drinking a Mountian Dew, and the nice cool air rushing through the rolled down window. What a day it was going to be. I was finally gonna get to fire up my machines and make some noise and sawdust for the first time in quiet awhile. :D
I swing off the main road and up the newly graveled driveway into the front of the shop. Vicky, my lovely girlfriend, was out getting ready to go for some wagon wheels for the fence we just put up...the split rail type, very nice. She was smiling because today was the day we had been working for for a few months.
I pushed open the garage door and stood momentairly looking over the pieces of equipment I had collected, repaired, painted and traveld for over the last year smileing to myself.
Slowly I walked accross the room and, looking back, Vicky was smiling leaning against the garage doorway. I opened the panel box and made sure all the breakes were off before i moved to the disconect. Feeling the pounding in my chest i raised my hand and slowly pressed against the switch....:eek:
First a loud pop and then sparks flew through the air. A little smoke and a slight sizzeling sound....:confused: I jumped back about 10 feet and looked at it. It was quiet. Thoughts rushing through my mine as I walked over slowly ...I reached for the switch to turn off the power ...it wouldn't kick off :confused: . I tryed a cpl times to get it to kick out but it wouldn't catch so i let it turn back on again.....:eek: again flashing pop and a little smoke as i looked on.
Looking back Vicky was stareing open mouth and wide eyed and still standing in the doorway of the garage never haveing moved inside.
What was that she said... all i could say was hell if I know. I reached to flip on a 110 breaker and the lights hanging from the cealing burst into illumination scareing the crap out of me:eek: . They were bright and worked well. I fliped a few more 110 breakers and a cpl 220 breakers and waited. Nothing. I ask Vicky to go into the house and grab the voltage meter which she did and slowly crossed the room to where I was standing at the meter box. I check a few lines and they were fine. Just as i was checking a fellow woodworker arrived and said he saw the lights accross town and though he would stop by.
I told him what had happened and we begain searching for the problem. I had bought a bridgport mill from him and we decided to see if it would work..nothing . After a few minets we noticed ...no fuses:o . Feeling pretty stupid we hopped into the truck and ran to the local box bought some fuses and returned putting them inside. Still nothing.
We started checking lines and thats when we found it.
Accross ph 1 to 2 we had 212. Accross ph 1 to 3 we had 113. Accross ph 2 to 3 we had 110. Didn't make sense. We went to the main box, same thing. Now we went to the disconnect and checked over the top where the power comes into the building. 212, 212,212...just as it should be.:) Next the bottom of the disconnect 212,113,110. As far as I can tell now they sold me a faulty disconect. I can't do anything until Monday except clean out my shorts,:o bit my tongue and only pray when I make the call to cuttler and hammer a man answeres the phone cause someones gonna get an ear full and I garentee it won't be pretty:mad:
Reg
I swing off the main road and up the newly graveled driveway into the front of the shop. Vicky, my lovely girlfriend, was out getting ready to go for some wagon wheels for the fence we just put up...the split rail type, very nice. She was smiling because today was the day we had been working for for a few months.
I pushed open the garage door and stood momentairly looking over the pieces of equipment I had collected, repaired, painted and traveld for over the last year smileing to myself.
Slowly I walked accross the room and, looking back, Vicky was smiling leaning against the garage doorway. I opened the panel box and made sure all the breakes were off before i moved to the disconect. Feeling the pounding in my chest i raised my hand and slowly pressed against the switch....:eek:
First a loud pop and then sparks flew through the air. A little smoke and a slight sizzeling sound....:confused: I jumped back about 10 feet and looked at it. It was quiet. Thoughts rushing through my mine as I walked over slowly ...I reached for the switch to turn off the power ...it wouldn't kick off :confused: . I tryed a cpl times to get it to kick out but it wouldn't catch so i let it turn back on again.....:eek: again flashing pop and a little smoke as i looked on.
Looking back Vicky was stareing open mouth and wide eyed and still standing in the doorway of the garage never haveing moved inside.
What was that she said... all i could say was hell if I know. I reached to flip on a 110 breaker and the lights hanging from the cealing burst into illumination scareing the crap out of me:eek: . They were bright and worked well. I fliped a few more 110 breakers and a cpl 220 breakers and waited. Nothing. I ask Vicky to go into the house and grab the voltage meter which she did and slowly crossed the room to where I was standing at the meter box. I check a few lines and they were fine. Just as i was checking a fellow woodworker arrived and said he saw the lights accross town and though he would stop by.
I told him what had happened and we begain searching for the problem. I had bought a bridgport mill from him and we decided to see if it would work..nothing . After a few minets we noticed ...no fuses:o . Feeling pretty stupid we hopped into the truck and ran to the local box bought some fuses and returned putting them inside. Still nothing.
We started checking lines and thats when we found it.
Accross ph 1 to 2 we had 212. Accross ph 1 to 3 we had 113. Accross ph 2 to 3 we had 110. Didn't make sense. We went to the main box, same thing. Now we went to the disconnect and checked over the top where the power comes into the building. 212, 212,212...just as it should be.:) Next the bottom of the disconnect 212,113,110. As far as I can tell now they sold me a faulty disconect. I can't do anything until Monday except clean out my shorts,:o bit my tongue and only pray when I make the call to cuttler and hammer a man answeres the phone cause someones gonna get an ear full and I garentee it won't be pretty:mad:
Reg