[logo] Ricearoni, a San Francisco Treat

This is a fictional scenario based on an actual building conversion...

Mark and Laurie are still reeling from the enormously successful IPO that Laurie's company just launched for their Web Marketing firm. The Ricearoni site that Laurie created as Vice-President for Web Design brought a lot of attention to the start-up company and more great things are expected from her.

Mark has been finishing up his culinary studies and is at the top of his class of 23. He expects to land a starting position as junior chef at one of the few 4-star restaurants in the city.

They have decided to move out of their cramped apartment into a more distinctive residence. To match their eclectic tastes they have decided to convert a turn-of-the-century church building, right in the heart of the downtown tech district, into a modern oasis. Of course Mark wants a cutting-edge kitchen with all the latest and greatest appliances. Laurie would like to do more of her design work at home and wants an office that will serve her effectively.

Coincidentally, Laurie's boss learns that This Old House is looking for an interesting West Coast project and puts her in touch with the show's producers. After some planning has been done on the floorplans, Mark decides that he would like to convert the first floor bedroom into a combination laundry/workshop.

Questions:

  1. How much electrical capacity is needed for this conversion? That is, how much current needs to be provided by the electrical service for the building?

  2. Sketch the wiring diagram for the first floor, paying particular attention to the kitchen area.

  3. Sketch the connections and functionality of the new circuit breaker box that will provide the electrical service.
For some additional ideas on the topic, you may wish to refer to Overload, the problem by Barbara Duch that inspired this one.

House Wiring Resources
    Electric Codes from Code Check
    Electrical Wiring FAQ, Part 1, Part 2
    Local Utility Companies

Appliance Resources
    Appliances On Line
    Home Appliances at Sears  - Help With Your Purchase
    Local Electric Department, City of Newark

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Comments, suggestions, or requests to ghw@udel.edu.

"http://www.physics.udel.edu/~watson/scen103/problems/ricearoni.html"
Last updated March 3, 1999.
Copyright George Watson, Univ. of Delaware, 1999.