High System Voltage (245-248V) Affecting Fridge & Electrical Outlets: Causes & Solutions

Hello

Yesterday my fridge stopped working. The first thing I checked was the voltage in the electrical outlet. It turned out that the voltage fluctuates between 245 - 248 V !!! I checked the other sockets in this part of the house and it turned out that there is a similar voltage there (all sockets on the same fuse - I do not know if it is a separate phase - they have too high voltage). I checked the voltage in other sockets in the house and the voltage is normal, i.e. around 226-232 V. My questions (problems) are as follows:

1. Could the refrigerator break down because of too high voltage in the electrical outlet? (it should be 220 - 240, no more). A refrigerator from the newer ones, class A +.
2. What could be the reason for the much higher voltage in the sockets in one part of the house (the same fuse, I don't know if it is in phase)?

As far as I know, such problems can be caused by a significant overload of the remaining phases or a burnt / broken neutral. If you have the opportunity to check the voltage at the entrance to the house with the load disconnected [fuses turned off], then do it - if the problem persists or you do not have such an opportunity, contact the energy emergency because you will not do anything yourself.

As for the damage to the refrigerator, in this case many devices are damaged - unfortunately the norm and bad luck.

As for the voltage value, the voltage tolerance in the power grid is +/- 10%, so there are ranges from 207V to 253V. This is specified in the Regulation of the Minister of Economy of May 4, 2007 on the detailed conditions for the operation of the power system (Journal of Laws of 2007, No. 93, item 623).

1.And if, for example, the power plant cannot provide too high voltage for one phase at the moment? Always on the New Year and immediately after it, there are the lowest partitions.

2.I do not have the possibility to check before entering the building (i.e. I have, but there is a seal, so I have to call the ZE anyway).

3. The refrigerator is under warranty. Is it covered by the warranty, i.e. will the service find out that the damage was caused by exceeding the voltage?

4. The installation in the building is old. There is no separate grounding conductor, there is only phase and zero. In the socket to which the refrigerator is connected, the neutral is connected to the grounding pin of the contact. Increased voltage also occurs in sockets that do not have a "pin", i.e. only phase and zero. In the light of this information, what does the theory with a damaged zero wire look like?

Added after 2 [minutes]:

WMichał wrote:

As for the voltage value, the voltage tolerance in the power grid is +/- 10%, so there are ranges from 207V to 253V. This is specified in the Regulation of the Minister of Economy of May 4, 2007 on the detailed conditions for the operation of the power system (Journal of Laws of 2007, No. 93, item 623).

So theoretically, the refrigerator should not "fall" because of too high voltage. I do not know what it was like yesterday (New Years Eve), because I was not at home and then it happened and whether my theory with the lowest New Year's demolition could be justified.

This is definitely a problem with "zeroing". Measure the voltage between the phases at the power input - before the protection / this will convince you. The problem is with the connection of the neutral - main wire with the rest - thinner, which spreads throughout the building, the contacts are corroded, may be burned visible melting of the insulation in this place. The intervention of an electrician with qualifications or an expensive power engineer is necessary. If someone advises to connect zero from your installation to the pipe
water or central - kill him! don't plug in! call an electrician!

Ricardo290366 wrote:

This is definitely a problem with "zeroing". Measure the voltage between the phases at the power input - before the protection / this will convince you. The problem is with the connection of the neutral - main wire with the rest - thinner, which spreads throughout the building, the contacts are corroded, may be burned visible melting of the insulation in this place. The intervention of an electrician with qualifications or an expensive power engineer is necessary. If someone advises to connect zero from your installation to the pipe
water or central - kill him! don't plug in! call an electrician!

Nobody advises me anything, it used to be connected in the past, unfortunately it is not the best solution, but often used in old installations.

The entire installation chapter is new, it was done about 8 years ago (everything is new: power cables, protection in front of the house, fuse box in the house and installation in the hallway). There is also a whole new fragment to the socket in the kitchen where the refrigerator is connected - the socket was then made.

Of course, this does not preclude the theory that there is a problem with zero input.

asterix27 wrote:

Of course, this does not preclude the theory that there is a problem with zero input.

No theory. If you have a single-phase power supply and in a socket above 243V, call the power industry, let them write down the protocol, then they will pay for any damage.
If you have a three-phase installation, a failure in YOUR installation could cause an increase in voltage in one phase and a decrease in the other two (it is the N conductor). Then you may have a grudge against the electrician who did the installation for you 8 years ago.

I have a three-phase installation. Energetics has just been there. They stated that everything was fine, measured the voltages at the entrance to the building and found that such differences are acceptable (one phase 230 and the other 245 V). Just as they measured, it was around 233 on one phase and 242 on the other). They also found that everything is very expertly done and there are no problems with zero.

Was the problem with the fridge just a coincidence? Previously, I did not measure tensions every now and then because no one normal does it I just started doing this looking for the cause of the refrigerator failure. Perhaps she was working on such a tension all the time.

Hello.
Is the power supply from an overhead line? This may be important in determining the cause.

It would be good to see the refrigerator, what broke, then you would know if the failure could have been caused by too high voltage, or if the cause was different.

Hello, from what I read here, you can boldly submit a refrigerator for warranty repair, according to the new regulations, it should be adjusted to a voltage of up to 253V and everything about it, such voltage as yours quite often occurs in networks.
http://www.sep.com.pl/opracowania/opracowania_zmiana_napiecia_2002.htm
Regards.

perhaps at the time of failure the voltage exceeded 253 volts