Flickering all ligts at home while water pump is switched on

[robotsmani]

Hi,

I have compressor motor to pump the ground water(borewell). when i switch on the motor, all the lights(bulb, tubelights) in the house in flickering. What is the issue? is it some grounding fault or loose connection. How to troubleshoot this...

Thanks,

 

[mvs sarma]

a straight indication of oxidised connection either on the pole or the jumpers at the point your lane starts wrt main road.
get the service wire checked for reconnecting and taping the joints.
if left unattended, even the motor is likely to burn.
a loose tied fuse wire at the cut out on the pole ( i remember Bangalore has some such standard) can also cause similar effect , not for motor , for any other high load like immersion heater etc

 

[robotsmani]

thanks sarma...i will check with fuse wires...

 

[KeepItSimpleStupid]

Sarma is on the money.

it's evidence of a loose contact. You might check to see if it's only half the lights that flicker. i.e one leg of the 240,
The main breaker in the panel and or connections is usually the first to check. Usually this can be done using a low voltage scane on an AC meter and testing between the contact and the wire. You should get nearly 0.

Testing the voltage ACROSS the contacts of the main breaker is another test. This means from where power comes in and where power exits the main breaker. That means two tests. Again should be nearly zero.

Knowing if the pump is 240 or 120 would possibly modify my procedure.

Call the power company.

 

[robotsmani]

The power is 240v...it is happening the day1 when the electrical is done at my home. It is almost two years completed now. Nothing happened with the motor but the flickering is still occurs.

i know there are some 3to4 circuitbreakers, each one is for splitted to the diff rooms.

It is flickering all the lights

Can you please explain me how to test and what to test.

@sarma, actually this place is in my hometown(madurai, tamilnadu, india) not in bangalore.

 

[KeepItSimpleStupid]

Can you take a pic of your panel and post it all because I'm not familiar with India power.

 

[MikeMl]

How far is your house from the nearest pole-mounted power transformer?

My mother-in-law lives on a farm in Alberta, CA. The AC power comes for miles on overhead wires at 12KV, and is stepped down to 240V near the house. The lights dim perceptably whenever the deep-well pump starts, or when the 2.5HP compressor in the shop starts. The voltage sag is likely only a few volts, and doesn't disrupt anything, but it is a bit annoying. Smaller motors, like the hot-water heat circulating pump, the dishwasher, washing machine, refrigerator do it too, but are barely noticeable.

 

[transistor495]

The power is 240v...it is happening the day1 when the electrical is done at my home. It is almost two years completed now. Nothing happened with the motor but the flickering is still occurs.

It's happening in my home too. We use a 2hp piston pump to pump water from a 200mtrs away open well down the valley.


It causes alternative flickering of lights during operation. I think because of the heavy load. A normal centrifugal pump causes the voltage to decrease a bit and remain constant throughout. Have you noticed it? What happens when we switch on a CRT TV? The voltage flickering is severe in places near to welding units.

I think it primarily depends on the amperage of the FUSE~ unit either in pole or in the home. We can't do anything actually

 

[Rbeckett]

If the contractor who built your home used aluminum wire then you need t re-torque the connections in the box after coating with a proper anti-oxidation paste. This should probably be left to an electrician due to the volts and amps you are working with. Had the same issue in my home and that solved it.
Bob

 

[ben7]

If there is a bad connection, you need to get your electrical wires (outside on the pole too!) checked! Bad connections = lots of heat = fire hazard!

 

[mvs sarma]

Sarma is on the money.

.....

Call the power company.

I didn't get you?
Yes, I want to save the money of any O P if possible.
but not after money LoL
Robotsmani can arrange fresh wires from the mains input point or mainswitch what we call in India, and have thicker guage of wiires to suite motor loads. They should not take from some socket of available wiring as it is not meant for Motor loads.