Color Code of Electrical Wires

normalized
How to know the color code of electrical wires
Mexico?
Published on: November 16, 2019

Imagine that when you remove the lid of a box ofsplices, you come across a swarm ofcables
electricAt first glance, it is concerning to see all those cables of different colors. And you
questions What is the neutral, the potential, the ground or the return?. To avoid this bad encounter,
It is important that you know the color code of the electrical wires that is required by regulation.

Color code of conductors according to American standard (NEMA / ANSI)

Ground conductor
The ground conductor can be identified in three ways:
Green insulator
Green insulation with a yellow spiral or straight line.
It can be a wire or bare cable (without insulation). This cable is usually made of copper.

Neutral conductor
There are different ways to identify oneself depending on the country, but the most common are the following:
White insulator (used in America) (used in household electrical installations)

Phase conductor
This conductor can be of any color different from that of neutral or ground, but the most used
by rules are:
Black insulator
Red insulator
Dark blue insulator

The common practice (according to local electrical inspectors) is that the first potential wire (live
the active one) is black and the second potential is red.

Black, red, and blue are used for 208 VAC three-phase; brown, orange, and yellow are used for 480.
VAC. Conductors larger than # 6 AWG are only available in black and have colored tape.
at the ends.
 Fig. 1.1 - Colors of the SJT wires.

Color code according to European standards

IEC 60446 is the international standard of the International Electrotechnical Commission that defines the
basic safety principles for the identification of electrical conductors by colors or
numbers, for example in the distribution wiring of electricity. This standard was merged, in its
fourth edition (IEC 60446: 2007), with the fifth edition of the standard IEC 60445 (IEC 60445: 2006) in
2010.
Neutral conductor
If a circuit includes a neutral conductor, it must be identified by a color.
blue (preferably light blue). Thus, light blue is the color used for identification
intrinsically safe conductors, and must not be used for any other type of conductor.
Phase conductors in Alternating Current
The preferred colors for phase conductors inCAson
brown
L2: black
gray
For a single phase in AC: brown
Protection conductor
The color combination green/yellow is always and exclusively used for
identify the protection conductor (grounding). For every 15 mm of the conductor, one of these
Two colors must cover between 30% and 70% of the surface, and the other the remaining area.

Marked
When the drivers are additionally identified by letters and numbers, then:
The letters to be used will be from the set of Latin characters.
The numbers must be written in Arabic numerals, positions 6 and 9 must be
underlined (6 and 9)
and some symbols like + and - can be used.
The green-yellow conductors should not be marked.
Examples: L1, L2, L3, N, L +, L-, M, 35, 16
Fig. 1.2-Multiconductor cable colors.

Fig. 1.3-Distribution center with potential bars (Yellow, Blue and Red)
Wire colors for direct current DC (USA and part of Latin America)
Positive: The red wire is commonly used for current or the positive pole.
(Depends on the country).
Negative: Commonly, the black wire is used for current or negative pole.
(Depends on the country).
Finally, the green, gray, or white wire (if present) is used for the ground.
It will depend on the country.
When the electrical wiring for DC (Direct Current) power supply is carried out,
There will generally be two or three wires.

Cable terminals for electric batteries

The importance of correct identification of electrical cables.

Although it may seem basic, it is common to encounter electrical installations that have been
manipulated, without respecting the color code of electrical wires according to the standard.

It is true that functionally all cables are the same, regardless of color. The
the use of the correct colors to connect the phase, the neutral, and the ground is important because
it greatly simplifies the installation visualization and avoids confusion.
Imagine that when you open an outlet or a light switch box, you find yourself with
a swarm of electrical wires of different colors or, what would happen if today at 12:00 am
Does an electrical issue arise where you will be forced to take action? Without
Doubt, it would be a worrying issue, especially when we have no idea how.
identify which is the neutral, the potential, the ground, or the return.
The easiest way to know the color code of electrical wires in Mexico is
taking five minutes to read our article and discover what its components are.

Electric cables are generally made of copper due to its excellent conductivity, these cables
Electric conductors that are always covered with an insulating or protective material.
The insulation that covers it is usually made of plastic, and its type or thickness will depend on different factors.
factors that range from nominal current to ambient temperature.

What are the components of electrical cable?

1. Conductor. Made up of one or more wires, commonly made of copper, this component is the
which will conduct the electric current.
2. Insulation. In order to prevent accidents or damage, the insulation surrounds the conductor.
electric to prevent electric current from flowing outside of it.
3. Filling layer. This insulating material keeps the circular section of the assembly connected and fixed.
wrapping around the electrical conductors.
4. Cover. Protects the insulation of electrical conductors from different factors such as
rain, the temperature, the sun, thanks to the materials that mechanically cover the cable.

Now that you are a little more familiar with the topic, let us tell you how to know the code.
of electrical wire colors in Mexico;
Try to memorize them very well as they are the ones that will help you facilitate that repair at 12:00.
I am, but beware!, never disregard their sizes, thicknesses, or the simple two-colored wires that they are.
those that conduct two channels (positive and negative).

Green and yellow cable: To prevent electricity from passing through the person
And to prevent accidents, this cable, also called a 'ground' type conductor, will be responsible for
bring electricity to the switch panel, outside to a rod buried in the ground.

White wire: Also called 'neutral' conductor, these are neutral wires that also
they can be ground connections, by taking the unused and current electricity to carry them from
return to the switch panel.

Black cable: Known as 'hot cable', it carries all the electricity from the panel.
from switches or the light source. It is visible in the vast majority of the
installations and cables; it can respond to aesthetic reasons. Always avoid using them to
establish a neutral or ground connection.
 Brown cable: This is the phase cable and, depending on the aesthetics of the device that it
It can also be black or gray.

Red cable: These cables are generally used in 220 V circuits, with requirements
of a second power feeder and can also be used to interconnect the
circuit.

Blue cable: This is the neutral cable. The red one used to be used, so we recommend that you
Check the cables of this color very well before using them.
As you can see, each cable has a use and it is very important to know its different applications for
avoid accidents this way. It is likely that now that you have discovered the easiest way to know the
color code of electrical wires in Mexico, if you are looking for one, remember that in
EEGSA we have a great variety,find them by clicking here.

Color code for installations

residential electricity in Mexico
Color code for electrical wiring. The color of each wire depends
much of the use and the current that must flow through it. It also goes according to the
country and the tension that it will handle. the color code of each wire should be
to respect in order to avoid future problems in later repairs to the
installation.

What do the different colors mean for the

electrical wiring.
In the image we can see the most commonly used colors for an electrical installation.
from 127v-220v.

This rule is commonly applied to an installation, but it depends on the country.

in this case for Mexico. although other types of cables are used, the ideal is
respect this color table.

Phase wire or line of the electrical wiring

For the phase or line, a black-colored cable is usually used. Although

Some electricians also use a red wire. Which is not
recommend as it can confuse many with a cable with another function
electric like the return of electric switches or some extra function.

In this case, it must be specified in the electrical installations plan, the

colors and voltages handled by electrical cables, as well as their gauge.

Neutral or ground line cable

The neutral should be a white wire, although a wire is often used

gray color in some electrical installations.

But what happens with this color combination. This makes the engineers
electricians get confused with this because this gray wire color is used for
supplies above 220v.

Ground protection
This cable is to be used in green or green with a yellow stripe or vice versa.
it can also be a completely naked wire.

In this case, this color should not be replaced as it may cause confusion.
as mentioned earlier.

Electrical connections color code for electricity

Next, we will see an example of an electrical contact connection and of

how cables should be used while always respecting the code of the table
colors for each country.
In this case, the correct connection of this electrical contact adheres to the code of
AC line colors. When the electrical installation suffers a fault, it does not
it will cause no problems for the electrical engineer who has to repair the installation,
since you will know precisely which wires correspond to the colors of
installed cables.

But what happens if there is a connection from a contact to a switch?

lamp or light bulb.
In this case, a yellow cable is used for the return of the phase of it.
installation. This color can be applied in different shades as long as it
respect in its entirety. the colors of the installation recommended by the table
of electrical installation codes.

The most recommended and used colors for this installation are yellow and the
blue. This identifies that this cable is a return line for the activation of a
focus on the lamp. the other colors are not recommended but the electrician
you will be able to easily locate the function if the electrical installation is done respecting
the code.
What gauge of electrical wire should I use?
to use?
What wire gauge should I use? This is a very common question.
for many. mainly for beginners. we have a wide variety of
cable calibers and we can't say which one you should use until
knowing what use is going to be given.

What gauge of electrical wire should I use for my...

project?

The gauge of each wire depends a lot on the use; the gauge is the measurement of
diameter of these calipers is determined using the American system
A.W.G. which refers to the initials of American wire gauge. These have a
a certain number that is assigned to the cable itself, to determine its
caliber.

Assigned calibers to electrical wires

The caliber is determined as follows, the higher the number of

the assigned gauge, the thinner the cable will be and the greater its resistance.
the thicker the assigned gauge, the smaller it will be, and its resistance is
smaller, allowing the passage of large amounts of electric current in
larger distances.

Isolation of electrical cables

The insulation of electrical cables is determined according to the following
default acronym table for each type of insulator

Electrical cable insulation table

Thermoplastic insulation, this lot has all the

T (Thermoplastic)
cables.

H (Heatresistant) Heat resistant up to 75° Celsius (167° F).

HH (Heatresistant) Heat resistant up to 90° Celsius (194° F).

W (Water resistant) Water and moisture resistant.

This cable has low smoke emission and low

LS (Low smoke)
content of pollutant gases.

This nomenclature is used to identify a

cord that is made up of two flexible wires and
SPT (Service parallel thermoplastic) parallels with plastic insulation that are
united among themselves. It is also called a cord.
duplex
The amperage of electrical cable

In the table shown above, the assigned cable gauge is determined and to
current supported by it. The cables or electrical wires are capable of
to withstand a certain amount of electric current, this capacity is measured in amperes.
this is determined by the capacity of the supported flow of current intensity
electric.

In the wire gauge table, the supported amperage is determined.

by gauge. An example is the 14 gauge wire which is capable of supporting 15
Amperes, or in the case of 8 gauge wire, it can support loads of 40.
Amperes.

What gauge of electrical wire for an installation

residential electricity?
Residential electrical installations use a certain amount of cables per
the most common calibers used in Mexico are caliber 8 for the fuse box,
10 gauge for the main power feeding to the load center, 12 gauge for
electric contacts and 14 gauge for switches and bulbs.
It is important to know what type of electrical installation we should carry out since this
it is based on the consumption of electrical devices. the watt consumption of certain
Devices indicate what type of electrical installation we need.

Formula to know the amperage consumption we need

For example, an electrical device of 1400 watts. We need to know the amount of
voltage that we will handle in our residence, let's say 127 volts. So
We are going to create a formula to determine the amperage of our electrical line.

1400 / 127 = 11 amperes

The 1400 represents the watts of the electrical device divided by the voltage that is
operates in the area at this case 127 volts the result is 11 amperes of
electrical consumption. This means that a contact with a 12 gauge wire is
sufficient as it can support loads of up to 20 amperes.

Although it is also important to mention the following: a very general use and more
realistic. we have a washing machine with a consumption of 600 watts and at the same time
we listen to music with a 200-watt device, but we also want to use
our microwave oven that consumes 1900 watts. all together they give us a
A total of 2700 watts, this amount is divided by the main voltage in this case.
127 volts.

2700 / 127 = 21.25 watts which means that the cable must be of a larger gauge
otherwise we could damage the installation if we do not have a center.
of load. That is why it is important to know the amount to be consumed in order to know the gauge.
of the cable to be used.