Marc BrookerDec 28, 2022

There’s a wind storm around, so today I’m thankful for reclosers, one of my favorite parts of electrical infrastructure.

Reclosers are part of the electrical distribution system, the “medium size” electrical network that bridges between the big steel tower 400,000 volt world of electrical transmission and the happy little 110v power in your home. They’re like the circuit breakers that turn your power off if something bad happens to your home wires, but have a special trick up their sleeves.

Show threadMarc BrookerDec 28, 2022

Out in the distribution world, a very high percentage of bad things that happen to electrical lines are short-lived, like bird poo, falling branches, lightning, and grilled squirrels. Reclosers watch the lines carefully, and can turn current off in tens of milliseconds if one of those things happens.

Then, a couple seconds later, they turn it back on automatically. Mostly the transient badness has passed, and the network can go back to normal operation.

Show threadGordon Guthrie
@marcbrooker in Trinidad in the 50s the problem was Lover Birds - so called because they touch their beaks in a kiss
Dec 28, 2022 at 9:25amWeb