2 - 180 Watt Power Houses =Phasing???

My only comment is Dale I think you're engineering by nuclear power plant specs for a toy train layout. There are plenty of places in my house and probably yours too that have 16 gauge and maybe some 18 gauge wire that's fused at 15 or 20 amps. Let me name some, all the lamps in your house, all the insides of your electronic gear (some parts may be fused but most will not), the light fixtures, possibly some of your appliances and maybe more. All these items are plugged into 15 or 20 amp circuits and there current carrying capability is less then the fused amount. Adding all those relays and extra transition blocks go against the keep it simple principle.

Ron

This litany of bull crap that comes with one guy asking how to phase 2 bricks is beyond me. You guys put out so much info that has little relevance to phasing bricks, the average guy can't understand what the he11 your talking about. I have 4 bricks powering roughly 2 - 15x48 loops, a yard and a turntable area, I have DCS and Legacy with very few operational problems. I've had several derailments and a few unexplained shorts that require a simple power down, power up and never had a fire or a sign of smoke other than coming from the locomotives stack. It's a model railroad, not an electric chair people, you probably won't die running your trains unless you breathe in too much smoke. 

Hey I just wanted to take this time to thank everyone that helped answer my question. Complicated or not everyones advice has been helpful.

Ron

It is about having potential of 20 amps connected by inadequate wiring. It is also about separating TIUs so the signal will not be degraded,then connecting them back together with passenger cars. A layout with 4 TIU power districts using 4 transformers could potential all be connected together with 3 passenger trains bridging the gaps if they were positioned that way with 22 gauge wire. In that instance a short could produce 40 amps I guess. Ohms law and good electrical practice extends to low voltage systems also.

I never got the opportunity to work in a nuclear plant but operated some conventional ones. The power generation end of it is pretty much the same with the turbines etc,only the fuel is different.

The smallest extension cord I have seen available is 16 gauge which can carry 13 amps. Even 18 gauge should not be a problem in a dead short with modern breakers. It could be overloaded by plugging in a heavy appliance etc,that is a bigger danger.

Most everything I have worked on,pinball machines, jukeboxes ,coin op games televisions,radios,amplifiers,automobiles, etc all had internal line fuses if a smaller wired sub circuit shorted out. It does not rely on the house breaker. As a side note the chassis can share a common with high and low voltage circuits,both AC and DC at the same time.

John

thanks for the response

Dale H

You're missing my point completely Dale. There are plenty of places on the layout AND IN YOUR HOUSE that do not have a wire capable of carrying the maximum current available to them. So I'll just agree to disagree and opt out as I'll be getting nowhere with you.

Ron

Ron, do you mean the little charger I have that has some really puny wires and is plugged into the outlet with a 20A breaker?

Thinnest wire I have plugged in my house outlets is #18. Some seasonal Christmas light strings are are #22 but they have fuses in them. I would not plug in anything smaller than #18 unless it had extra protection.

Dale H

You could be right John and also the lighting fixtures that are mounted in your house probably have #16 wire in them. 

Ron