RCD( see photo below) stands for a protective shutdown device. Its main purpose in an electrician is to protect the wiring from a leakage current. For example, by accident, you accidentally damaged the cable insulation and did not notice it. Any contact with bare wires can cause an electric shock. To prevent this from happening, just this electrical product exists, which immediately turns off the electricity in the network when a leakage current is detected. 
We draw your attention to the fact that leakage can also occur due to the aging of the electrical network. The old insulation simply crumbles and bursts, resulting in a leakage current. That is why it is necessary to replace the electrical wiring in the house in time and make sure to connect the RCD with grounding!
The principle of operation is quite simple: the device compares the incoming current( phase) with the outgoing( zero) current. Ideally, there should not be any difference, if an insignificant difference is detected, the product immediately works. There are other reasons for the operation of the RCDs, which we discussed in the corresponding article!
Main drawbacks
Among the shortcomingsa residual current device should be highlighted:
- If protection is installed for all electrical wiring in the house, then at the slightest threat of leakage, electricity may be cut off throughout the private housein a time when you do not. A false alarm sometimes causes many problems, for example, if you left for a few days and the light goes out, the refrigerator will unfrozen and the street lighting will turn off.
- The connection of the RCD to the mains does not solve the problem of short-circuit and overloading of the wiring line. In the case of a short-circuit, the device will simply fail. Therefore, together with the product, it is necessary to connect the circuit breaker.
Connection diagram
To your attention, the simplest schemes for connecting a two-pole RCD to a single-phase network with your own hands. We pay attention to the fact that the protection must be installed in front of the meter or after it, so that control is carried out for all electrical wiring. It is also recommended to perform wiring for each individual section of the circuit so that current is cut off only for the area where a leak occurs( for example, only on the bath, on the washing machine or only on the sockets).
Here we have figured out the purpose of the protective shutdown device and the scheme of its self-installation. Now go to the process of connecting to the network 220 volts.
Rules for installing
Installing an RCD with your own hands does not represent anything difficult, even for an electrician-beginner. Consider step-by-step instructions for connecting in an apartment and a house.
Step 1 - Power outage
First you need to turn off the power in the network and check it with a multimeter or indicator screwdriver.
Step 2 - Determine the location of the
It is already up to you to decide whether to connect the product in front of the meter, after it, or on a separate section of the circuit. We recommend mounting immediately after the electricity meter, but before the circuit breaker( to protect the device from short-circuit currents).
Step 3 - Connecting
It's all very simple - you need to connect and connect the conductors of wires in special holes( top and bottom).A connection diagram is displayed on the front panel of each model, along with the necessary strands. For example, the scheme 1-N, 2-N means that the phase is started from the top and zero, and the phase and zero are also output from the bottom( observe the polarity necessarily).If there is no marking of the neutral by color, it can be found with an indicator screwdriver( the bulb will not light when touching the zero conductor).
Step 4 - Test check
After complete connection of the RCD, it is necessary to check its capacity. This can be done with a specially derived test button on the front panel. When it is pressed, an imitation of the leakage current is simulated, so that the protective shutdown device must be activated. If it worked, then the installation was done correctly.
Errors in the installation of
As with any case, dangerous electrical errors can be tolerated in wiring work. To prevent this from happening to you, we will now describe the most common errors of connecting the RCD with your own hands:
- The feeder is wound up from the bottom of the enclosure. Doing this is not necessary, becauseeven on the product diagram the supply of the supply wire is carried out from above. If the connection is incorrect, the unit may malfunction.
- A circuit breaker is not installed after the RCD.As we have already mentioned, the device of the protective switch-off does not work at short circuit, which can immediately disable the product. That's why make sure to connect the machine to the right place.
- Local protection devices are not installed in separate sections of the large electrical network. As a result, a leak may occur, due to which the power is turned off throughout the room.
We also recommend viewing a visual video instruction that shows all connection errors:
Video instruction
For your attention video instruction on connecting a two-pole RCD to the wiring in the house:
This is all,that I wanted to tell you about this issue. We hope that now you know how to properly connect the protective shutdown device yourself!
Useful to read:
- Why in the bathroom it beats the current
- What is better to choose: RCD or diafi-automat
- How to replace the wiring in the apartment
