[Amps] Lines Voltage High

[Glen Zook]

Having spent 10-years with TXU, the electric company for almost half the State of Texas:

The ambient line voltage for most major electric companies has been 125-volts +/- 2-volts for decades.  Because of the additional load from air-conditioning during the warmer months the voltage is usually on the high side.  Now solar generation may play a role in California.  However, in most of the country solar generation from homeowners, etc., is so insignificant that it is not going to affect the line voltage.

The ambient line voltage in this country has not been 110-volts for a long time.  This voltage has been increased from 110-volts to 115-volts, then to 117-volts, then 120-volts, then 122-volts, and finally, today, 125-volts.  The primary reason for increasing the voltage is that the customer pays by the kilowatt-hour.  Modern appliances require more kilowatt-hours and the distribution lines (the lines supplying the power to your house) have a fixed resistance which drop the voltage as the current goes higher.  To supply the higher kilowatt-hour requirements and to keep the voltage from sagging, the ambient line voltage has increased.  It is VERY expensive to replace the distribution lines so the least expensive way of supplying more power is to increase the voltage.

Collins specifications call for 115-volts or 230-volts on the 30L-1.  However, the linear can handle a wider range of voltages than the specifications.  Remember, the 30L-1 was used in a lot of military applications where the line voltage varies all over the place.  If one is worried about the line voltage, then it is very easy to add a voltage "bucking" transformer to drop the input voltage.
 
Glen, K9STH


Website:  http://k9sth.com


________________________________
 From: Jerry Kaidor <jerry at tr2.com>
To: amps at contesting.com 
Sent: Friday, June 15, 2012 5:38 PM
Subject: [Amps] Lines Voltage High
 
Hello,

   I've noticed that the 110V at the wall socket has crept up over the past
several years.  Nowadays it always seems to be 125V.  I read somewhere
that such high voltage is not good for the 30L-1, and I took steps to set
the bias point properly with a diode string in the PTT line.

   OK, last week I had an opportunity to ask a PG&E ( the local power
company ) guy about it.  Why has the voltage come up?  His answer was
simple:

                   ************ SOLAR *************

   The price of solar stuff has come down, the government is giving
incentives, so there are more and more systems out there.  Little
generation facilities that the power company has no control over,
pumping electrons into the grid.  So it's become harder for them to
regulate the grid voltage.  Before, if it got too high, they'd just
generate less.  Easy.  Now, when there's excess energy - what can they
do?  They can send it elsewhere, but what if elsewhere also has an
excess?  Gotta dump it, I guess.  In a *big* dummy load somewhere. 
Wait, they can still generate less.  Maybe it has more to do with
voltage drops.  Up till now, the residential grid was a pure *consumer*
of current....