If one end of each winding is tied together to form one connection point this point is typically referred to as the common connection. What does the common wire do.
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What does a common wire do. Knowing the color code is essential for setting up the correct configuration of an electrical system and for safety. A white or gray wire can only be connected to another white or gray wire. If you recall your science classes in school you probably built simple circuits using a battery and a light bulb. The white wire is the common or neutral wire in a 100 volt service but the wire can also be gray in color. Simply remove your current thermostat face from its baseplate and look for the terminal labeled with the letter c if this terminal has a wire attached to it you have an active c wire. Your house wiring works on the same principle just on a larger scale and at higher voltages.
Power flows from the red wire but not continuously so the common wire is necessary to complete the process. A neutral wire is any wire with 0 volts potential to ground hence a neutral potential. Regarding thermostats one thing you do have direct control over relates to a single wire called the c or common wire. Contrary to its name the c wire isnt actually all that. If you are referring to the neutral wire in a three wire split phase secondary it is. When it works as a connecting wire the wire connects at least two wires of a circuit together.
In three phase electricity transformers have three separate windings. When everything is complete the thermostat will have a continuous supply of 24 volt energy. Standard wiring design in us. 2015 11 16 174721 2015 11 16 174721. Homes involves a neutral wire at the ground potential and two hot wires of 120 volts each. A common wire is either a connecting wire or a type of neutral wiring depending on the electrical circuit.
The common wire is a trick that saves wiring and simplifies electrical panel design. They usually need a common wire or c wire to provide this continuous power. Thermostats can get this constant power through a common wire or c wire it is easy to see if you already have a c wire connected to your system. The common wire is usually blue or black but that is not guaranteed.