Free Voltage Drop Calculator

Calculate the voltage drop in a cable run for single-phase or three-phase circuits.

A
m
ohm/km
V

Voltage Drop

3.45 V

Voltage Drop %1.50 %

Voltage Drop vs Load Current (I)

Cable Voltage Drop

Voltage drop occurs as current flows through the resistance of cable conductors.

Formulas

Single phase: V_drop = 2 I L R_cable / 1000

Three phase: V_drop = sqrt(3) I L R_cable / 1000

where I is current, L is one-way length in metres, and R_cable is resistance in ohms/km. The factor of 2 in single-phase accounts for the return conductor. Most codes limit voltage drop to 3-5% of supply voltage.

Example Calculation

Single phase, 30 A load, 50 m cable run, cable resistance 1.15 ohm/km.

  1. 01V_drop = 2 x 30 x 50 x 1.15 / 1000 = 3.45 V
  2. 02Percentage = 3.45 / 230 x 100 = 1.50%
  3. 03This is within the typical 3% limit.

Frequently Asked Questions

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