Standard for indicator lights on breaker panels 2

[rmiell]

I would like to know what the standard color scheme for the indication of "OPEN / CLOSE" on control panels remote from actual breakers.

We currently use white(amber) for indicating that the breaker is CLOSED, and we use green for indicating that the breaker is OPEN.

Reason for white(amber) is visibility from the control room.

I am in need of replacing sockets and caps because of breaking of the threaded portion of the sockets.

Should this go the the color scheme of RED/GREEN? If so, what do you base your suggestion on?

Any ideas?

Rick Miell

 

[Sn00ze]

In my experience. Different clients have different preferences. Most seem to agree that Green means Breaker OPEN.

I've seen Amber/White/Red for closed. I've also seen Red for breaker control panels and amber for air break control panel and white for lock-out indication specifically.
I'd say, try and be consistent with what you are replacing or with the rest of the sub/client.

 

[JG2828]

You may want to read over these two threads that go into depth on this topic.

http://www.eng-tips.com/viewthread.cfm?qid=39408

http://www.eng-tips.com/viewthread.cfm?qid=48055

However, from my experience in the ANSI world, red means the breaker is closed and green means the breaker is open. But in the IEC world, red means the breaker is open and green means the breaker is closed.

Here is an ANSI relay

Here is the IEC version of the same relay

 

[ScottyUK]

In the UK we see two conflicting standards:

Power industry

red = closed, green = open​

Process industry

red = open, green = closed​

The process industry standard makes more sense in the context of valves, where a an open valve allows flow much like a closed switch and vice-versa. Unfortunately the industry applies the same open/closed colours to both valves and switches even though functionally they are reversed in terms of control. It can get awkward when DCS uses one colour scheme and the hardware uses the other one.

White is generally a 'control power present' indicator or similar.

 

[davidbeach]

The actual color is much less important than that anybody who looks at it knows instantly what it means.

 

[unclebob]

One is from a safety point of view, the other from an operational point of view.
Yeah I know, pushing a red button to light a green bulb is weird. That'a why OPEN and CLOSE words are still in use.

 

[crshears]

First place I worked at out of college used green for open breakers and red for closed; it always seemed wrong, even though there was nothing for me to unlearn...

Before my utility was broken up, the standard within the thermal/fossil[nuclear?] stations where I worked was red for no flow, green for flow; open breakers and closed valves made for a nice predominantly red panel when a unit was shut down, conversely a mostly green one when running at full load; worked great.

Did I ever get messed up when I moved into hydraulic generation, though; for everything green meant closed and red meant open, which really messed me up for a while when it came to valves.

CR

"As iron sharpens iron, so one person sharpens another." [Proverbs 27:17, NIV]

 

[buzzp]

Depends on who uses the lights more, electricians or operators. For electricians, I always use red - stop, closed and green for go, open. This from a safety standpoint. If they are more concerned with operations, then I switch the light colors around. Red - something wrong, green - everything good.

 

[mvcjr]

I prefer the color green for a closed breaker and a red color for an open breaker. This relates to the standard colors of a traffic light.

Green traffic light - traffic is flowing
Red traffic light - traffic is stopped

Green breaker light - current is flowing through the breaker
Red breaker light - current is not flowing through the breaker

 

[rmiell]

OK, thanks for all the replies.

I, as an electrician, would rather use RED for stop, and GREEN for go.

As a member of a line crew said to me, red should mean stop, stay away because the breaker is energized, while green mean you could approach it because it is de-energized.

As a manager of a power plant, the operators have, for as long as I have been here, used green to mean the breaker is closed, and amber for breaker open. Visually this gets their attention when looking at a long control board.

Like it has been mentioned in earlier replies, as long as everyone knows what the sequence is, it should be ok.

Thanks again.

Rick Miell