Vandalized/stolen mains cable

[AJBangkok]

I am finishing a house build and am just about to move from a PEA temporary power supply to a 3 phase permanent supply. The mains cable was installed whuch runs arround 50-60 meters from the house and crosses under the street to where the meter box is located.

 

There are 4 cables that make up the mains cable . Some A$$hole has cut 1.5 meters off the neutral wire cable from between where it exits the ground  as will attach to the meter.

 

The electrician originaly recommended we dig up all 4 cables, remove and replace the damaged cable with a new one then lay them again. He said the PEA would not allow a joint in the cable. They then said it would be possible to make a joint in the cable the house side of the street which would be underground. But then there is still the question of whether the PEA needs to be involved or not.

 

Its a a pain in the ass. The person who clipped the wire probably got 100 baht for it or it was done out of spite over some beef between contractors or whatever. I have no idea as I'm not on site I just visit every few weeks.

 

In any event it's happened and needs to be fixed. My main concern is safety. Is is safe to join a cable and could it cause me problems in the future. The electrical contractor is a professional foreign run company and they would be able to do this but I'd rather just fork out the money to do a full replacement if it means by not doing so I'd be exposing my family to a dangerous situation or setting myself up for problems down the road.

[Crossy]

It is quite possible to make a safe joint underground, IF, it is done properly. That means a proper resin filled pot and not 2 miles of tape.

 

The fact that it's the neutral at least means it's at or near ground potential (which is why it was stolen).

 

Since you are on 3-phase and have already had cable stolen I would strongly recommend you invest in a lost-neutral detector or (probably easier to find here) an over-voltage relay for each phase.

 

Losing the neutral from an un-balanced 3-phase load (which your home will certainly be) can cause serious over-volting of the lightly loaded phases with the associated fried appliances.

 

EDIT It is possible to DIY a lost neutral detector using an RCD, I'll see if I can find the details.

[AJBangkok]

Thanks Crossy I believe they have the proper equipment so I'll see what they come back with. My priority is safety so at least I know it can be done now. Thank you.

[David B in Thailand]

Deepest sympathy for AJBangkok on this unfortunate theft. I am an advocate to have your own private utility pole at the corner of your property, and then run cable underground. The PEA meter at my home is on my wife's property, behind a serious fence. Then no cables are visible as they are NYY in HDPE conduit underground to our home. Every province has better sophisticated electrical contractors and many cowboys with a 2nd had PEA truck. The better contractors are properly licensed, and land the smaller shopping center, factory, major auto showroom installation jobs. Good example is a 50 million baht retail store selling appliances in Buriram on Jira Road and what electrical contractor the owner of that family owned air conditioning, major appliance shop hired to install his transformer and underground cables.