The problem with something like this is it can be any number of things and without actually being present for testing, actually doing the testing, not knowing the specific items tested for, or having an exact layout and diagram of the house's electrical system it's going to be nothing other than educated guesses at this point.

One simple check that could point the process is to determine exactly which breakers are feeding the affected items. Since breaker boxes alternate legs as you go down the panel it can help to determine if it is just a single leg, both legs, or if by some strange fluke all the affected items are in fact on the same leg and we're going to be wrong about the neutral (my gut says no on that though).

I don't know exactly how a meter works, but I would imagine most modern day ones are more of a current clamp type configuration so the meter itself would most likely not be an issue. Since a faulty meter may affect your bill I'm sure their testing is going to make sure the meter is working correctly and they get every penny they can.

 

I considered the comments in post #21 as issues to be considered when I made posts earlier. As the hose is in the USA and has breakers, not fuses, it is not likely that all lights are on one breaker. That is common in some other parts of the world, I agree, But not usually how it is done in the USA.
Next, because all of the circuits are affected at the same time, it is very unlikely that we need any information about the wiring beyond the main breaker panel. What would it show us??
Consider that the section of the system where all the power passes through is from the pole to the meter to the distribution panel. past the panel the circuits are independent and do not affect each other for the most part. And the complaint is about the whole house, not just one branch circuit.

 

It doesn't say exactly that all circuits are affected, just that lights are dimming and motors are acting funny. If they are all on the same leg then you could narrow it to just one leg that is affected. That would be the point of knowing wiring beyond the panel. I am well aware of how a house is wired which is why I made the comments I did.


Edit...

I reread everything and saw in #2 where all circuits was mentioned. I guess I'm just overthinking things... at any rate if the power company can't find anything on their end then there's not much left besides a bit of wire, main breaker, and buss bar connections.

 

Monitor your 240 Volts outlet, and the Two 120 Volts outlets at the same time. What is the observation?
If 240 Volt is steady and the 110 volt misbehave, the problem is the Neutral Return.

So it must be something else, not a loose neutral connection. Maybe a failed meter? Probably not Possibly a large load across the 240 feed? Might be, except the TS says it sometimes is longer. A failing appliance does not do that. It could be a large load on the same 240 nearby. OR it might be a pole-mounted transformer with a primary feed problem, such as a loose wire. or a bad ground for the primary return.
OR is the distribution underground?? A different set of causes then.

Are you implying that the two sides of the feed into the house must always have the same current?

What do you think would happen if you turn off all the 220 breakers and all of breakers on one of the phases? Would all the 110 outlets that are still on not work properly?

It's all single phase power. Perhaps better to say "one pole".

When all lights are on, you definitely have diversity with the power, and if they are all dimming same way at the same time then I would suspect a util neutral tie issue in panel, or neutral issue between panel and the transformer, or possibly a bad meter, or even a bad transformer.

I would call the util company and ask them to come verify all is ok up to the meter.

 

@schmitt trigger @dl324

I’ll do that. If it is even moderately competent the price is excellent and it would be very useful.

I‘ve posted a quick first impression (with some possibly very disappointing news, but I am not ready to give up yet).

 

It's all single phase power. Perhaps better to say "one pole".

When all lights are on, you definitely have diversity with the power, and if they are all dimming same way at the same time then I would suspect a util neutral tie issue in panel, or neutral issue between panel and the transformer, or possibly a bad meter, or even a bad transformer.

I would call the util company and ask them to come verify all is ok up to the meter.

SINGLE PHASE service is generally taken to mean it is NOT 3-PHASE. NOT just 120 volts. I have only seen that in rural Mexico, years ago.
Service is 240 with neutral here in the US, 120 each side of neutral so that 240 volt appliances can easily be powered.
other places may differ.
If the 220 in the UK is on each side of a neutral, that would mean 440 volts at the entrance, enough to scare a lot of folks.

 

If the 220 in the UK is on each side of a neutral, that would mean 440 volts at the entrance, enough to scare a lot of folks.

UK is one phase and a neutral from a 3ph transformer, there is no split secondary as with N.A.
In one instance in a UK residence where I installed Off- Peak storage heaters, the load was that great that the supply company brought in a 3ph supply.

 

Hi,
Late to the party.
What about neighbours , are they OK?
Apologies if you have already checked.
Good luck.........

 

Thank you all for the responses and helpful suggestions. I will work my way through them and hopefully get this problem fixed soon!

 

Sensible advice. If the neighbors are experiencing the same issue, the problem is with the utility company.

 

This is worth your time. I'm wondering if you have an open neutral AND an intermittent line source.

 

What we have not suggested is checking to see if all of the dimming lights are on one circuit. I made a guess that they were not all on the same circuit nor all on the same side of neutral. Others immediately decided that it had to be a neutral problem, when we had the statement that it affected appliances as well.
A faulty neutral ALWAYS CREATES A HIGHER VOLTAGE ON THE OPPOSITE PHASE. We have no mention of the higher voltage happening. So that may not be a good guess.

 

A faulty neutral ALWAYS CREATES A HIGHER VOLTAGE ON THE OPPOSITE PHASE.

Could you please expand on that? To my understanding of mains electric we only have one neutral and two hots/phases, so how does the neutral chose which phase to make higher? Not a fake question or as you say stone.

 

Losing the neutral puts all the circuits on one phase in series with all of the circuits in the other phase. The voltage splits accordingly.

 

No phases, split (single) phase, CT = 0V.

 

A faulty neutral ALWAYS CREATES A HIGHER VOLTAGE ON THE OPPOSITE PHASE.

????

Reminds me of a test question I posed to budding electricians, at the time it was mandatory for kitchen double sockets to be wired with one 120v leg to the top outlet and the other 120v supply leg to the bottom outlet and share the neutral. (3 wire cable used.)
Question was, if a 10A appliance plugged in to the top outlet, and 10A plugged into the bottom outlet, what is the current in the neutral.?

 

Question was, if a 10A appliance plugged in to the top outlet, and 10A plugged into the bottom outlet, what is the current in the neutral.?

Zero.

 

Depends...do they both cycle at the same time? Purely resistive loads? Not enough context to give answer.

 

We have no mention of the higher voltage happening. So that may not be a good guess.

From what I'm seeing, there's a LOT of things we're not privy to know. How can one diagnose a problem without knowing all the test results? All that is left is guessing. Good or bad.

 

We have no mention of the higher voltage happening. So that may not be a good guess.

I'm wondering if the TS is using LED lighting that can operate on voltages from 120 to 240VAC. If that's the case it's unlikely the TS would notice a difference in voltages or brightness. Again, Bill, this is just a guess.