Diversity?

[Cacus]

Been reading alot on cooker installs laterly and many have mention the use of diversity in there posts. Shurely if you have say a double oven at say 7.2kw then when both ovens were on you would draw 32amp and not 16amps as suggested with diversity. I appreciate that the oven may not be running at full bore all through the cooking process but at some point it must demand the full 32amps.

Or am I missing something?

Just curious.

 

[davy_owen_88]

You can usually get away with it because it will only draw full load for a relatively short period of time after initial switch on. MCB's/fuses don't trip very quickly under these small overloads so it usually isn't a problem.

 

[RobFurn]

Diversity is usually applied to a cooker with hob i.e. you usually (except christmas) wont have the cooker, and all 4 rings of the hob on at the same time working at max power. In my opinion applying diversity is usually used when the you dont want the extra expense of upgrading say a 6mm calbe to a 10mm cable. So you apply diversity and put in a smaller breaker to suit the cable.

 

[Cacus]

Thanks for the replies.

Just seems an odd way of doing things. To save on a bit of cable and fuse!

 

[big-all]

Thanks for the replies.

Just seems an odd way of doing things. To save on a bit of cable and fuse!

without diversity you would need to uprate all the cables on a ring to allow for every socket [or double ]to draw 13 amps

so say 30 sockets in a house = 400 amps
every house with a 400amp triple the cables to the power station

and 3 times as many power stations just in case

 

[Cacus]

Sorry I appreciate using in terms of a ring of sockets but on a radial with one or two (incase of oven and hob) units on of which you know the possible total draw in advance seems a bit odd.

 

[adwt2004]

I agree and my mcb and cable for my oven are designed for full load. My electrician is funny like that

Diversity works though so it's horses for courses.

 

[FatGit]

Should you really use diversity for a cooker?

 

[davelx]

The rings/plates also won't use full power all the time - only when first switched on - they will either be thermostatically controlled or have a number of power settings. Even if they are on full to bring a saucepan/frypan to the boil, they will soon be turned down to prevent it boiling over/catching fire.

Also, IME (of cooking - I do a fair bit) it's unusual to switch all rings on from cold at the same time.

 

[securespark]

Unless the CH is b*ggered!

 

[davelx]

Unless the CH is b*ggered!

I find the fan-assisted oven with the door open is better for that!

 

[Tim 77]

Unless the CH is b*ggered!

I find the fan-assisted oven with the door open is better for that!

In contrast I have the freezer door wide open when it's too warm in the house

 

[Stoday]

In contrast I have the freezer door wide open when it's too warm in the house

I think you'll find that leaving the freezer door open will heat up the house.

 

[CallEdsFirst]

In contrast I have the freezer door wide open when it's too warm in the house

I think you'll find that leaving the freezer door open will heat up the house.

Technically, it should do very little! Apart from the heat generated by the pump/compressor it will just act like a heat pump from the front to the back and being in the same room, this should balance out surely!

On an aside, why is it that (chauvanistically speaking), when it's hot, women always turn the air con on but open the windows too "for fresh air"? Anyone else noticed this? They can't get their heads around it! How many BTU to cool our entire street?

 

[davelx]

Yes, and when the rooms is cold in the morning they turn the heating room thermostat up to make it heat up quicker - and the room ends up like a sauna