Hi All
Can anyone advise me on how I go about wiring blocks for my layout? (not block detection)
Do I need to connect a booster to each block that I need ? Or do I just add a curcuit breaker to each section I want to have a block ?
My new layout will have switching and staging so I want to have blocks wired so that if we have an incident somewhere I won't have the whole 3 level layout shutting down.
ALSO !!!! something else popped up that I need your help with,
On a 3 level layout, why do I need to have a NCE UTP panel on all 3 levels? Can I just have them on the middle deck? or does this cause problems?
Is this because they will have trouble recalling loco's after a certain distance? OR!!! Do if you have blocks wired do I need a UTP panel in each block?
Many questions so few answers on these subjects.
Thanks everyone
From the land DOWN UNDER!!
tomcatMy new layout will have switching and staging so I want to have blocks wired so that if we have an incident somewhere I won't have the whole 3 level layout shutting down. Do I need to connect a booster to each block that I need ? Or do I just add a curcuit breaker to each section I want to have a block ?
On a 3 level layout, why do I need to have a NCE UTP panel on all 3 levels? Can I just have them on the middle deck? or does this cause problems? Is this because they will have trouble recalling loco's after a certain distance? OR!!! Do if you have blocks wired do I need a UTP panel in each block?
Putting the UTPs on only the middle deck is fine.
You can add as many circuit breakers as you want to have power districts. You do not need to add boosters unless you increase the power draw (amps / more locos running)) on those districts. My layout is 12x23 double decked with a 5amp system. I have 4 districts; two yards and each level. I run 6 - 12 locos at a time, half are sound).
Jay
C-415 Build: https://imageshack.com/a/tShC/1
Other builds: https://imageshack.com/my/albums
You do not need a booster for each block, just install a circuit breaker for each block. Actually, the better term for block is power district.
You do not need a UTP panel for each block. UTP panels are controlled by the bus wires. As TZ said, even just one UTP on the middle tier would work fine. The only advantage of multiple UTP panels is convenience so you can move your tethered throttle around the layout without stretching the cords.
Do yourself a favor and eventually convert your NCE system to wireless.
Rich
Alton Junction
I wired mine in blocks that I just connected with jumpers because you never know what the future will bring. Now I am glad I did. The only detection I have added so far are three blocks for grade crossings. I am, however, beginning to experiment with signals. Dividing it up is as simple as removing the jumper.
Dave
Lackawanna Route of the Phoebe Snow
I also made provisions for blocks on my current layout.
As I was building the layout bits at a time (with it being over 2500 sq ft) I wanted to host Operations from the beginning and would only have sections hooked up as the track & Turnouts were ready.
I initially was able to run the whole layout using one 8 amp Command Station/Booster and had 65 engines on the layout at one time.
I routinly had 20 to 25 operators running the layout
BUT - this was before the Sound Engines!
Once the Sound Engines became popular and I began replacing the non sound engines, the requirement for more Power became fairly evident!
If we had a short - the system would NOT recover and we had to tilt the Sound Engines to get it to come back up.
I now have 4 - 8 amp Boosters plus the 8 amp Command Station/Booster.
Each of these are broke up into blocks controlled with 4 circuit breakers per Booster!
As more Sound engines keep showing up - I am going to have to break the layout down further and further!
I will soon be back to the DC days in having the same number of BLOCKS as I would have had I started out with DC!
So much for the simple 2 wires to the track method! ;-)
But having wired the layout for blocks in the beginning - makes this change over a lot easier to do!
BOB H - Clarion, PA
tomcatOk , where and how do I connect the circuit breakers to create the district ? Do I have to gap the rails at the start and end of the district I want to create ? Does the circuit breaker just connect straight to the main power bus ?
You can have multiple power districts on a single booster, each protected by its own circuit breaker.
A pair of bus wires connects from the booster to the input side of the circuit breaker, and a pair of bus wires extend out to the power district from the output side of the circuit breaker.
The instruction sheet for the EB1 shows the wiring diagram on page 2.
http://www.ncedcc.com/pdf/EB1v1.pdf
The arrows to the input side, and the arrows from the output side, represent the bus wires. DCC Power is the booster.
Since the EB1 only has one dual port for the input, you won't be able to daisy chain the input connections, so if you already have one circuit breaker in place and now want to add the EB1, set up a terminal block.
Run the bus wires from the booster to the terminal block and then tap off the terminal block with bus wires to the input side of each circuit breaker.
The circuit breaker must be in the bus between the booster and the block. Power comes out of the booster to the circuit breaker then out of the circuit breaker to the layout.
BTW, blocks can make trouble easier to find but they are not required with DCC.
Martin Myers