Forums > Specific Focus > Home, Garden & Construction in Mexico

Adrian

Oct 26, 2002, 3:03 PM

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Electrical Questions

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Folks
Construction of a 4 bedroom aprtment on the upper levels of la casa de mis suegras en Tampico is coming along nicely. As I am building a 'hobby workshop' at roof level I have some particular electrical requirements I need advice on.

1. Is there such a thing as 'ground fault interrupt' device in Mexico?

2. I need 240v on a single wire supply (ie: 240v between hot and ground) to power European gear - what's the best way to achieve this?

3. What's the usual rating for a household supply from the pole transformer? Or does that depend what size pole-pig you have? Costs?

4.Related issue - what's the best AC system? Mini-splits or in-the-wall units?

All advice welcome
Muchos gracias

Adrian

Rolly / Moderator

Oct 26, 2002, 4:09 PM

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Re: [Adrian] Electrical Questions

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1. Yes you can buy GFIs in Mexico. You may have the go to a large wholesaler.

2. To get 240v hot-to-ground you are probably going to have the buy/lease a transformer. You need to talk to a CFE engineer (not a clerk in the office).

3. I'm not exactly sure what you mean, but I'lly. Most small homes have a main fuse rating of 30 amps. You can have what ever you want, although if it is more than the existing capacity of the line in front of your house, you may have to pay for a bigger pole transformer. Businesses often pay this. Again you need to talk with CFE.

4. Central air vs in-wall units is really a cost issue -- mostly an operating cost issue. You are talking about major monthly costs either way. I have heard people argue that in-wall units are cheaper because you can turn off units where they are not needed while leaving others on. I live on the desert where evaporative coolers work well and are not costly to run.

Rolly Pirate

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_Howard_

Oct 27, 2002, 6:52 AM

Post #3 of 3 (1549 views)

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Re: [Adrian] Electrical Questions

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Re question 1 about GFI: If you are installing a sub panel or have an existing distribution panel that uses circuit breakers, consider using a GFI circuit breaker.
It protects the whole circuit, gives you more flexibility in wiring (don't have to
daisy chain from the GFI outlet/receptacle), and can handle more current than
the outlet/receptacle. You should be able to get them at an electrical wholesaler
or distributor.