Glossary
Terms starting with R
Terms starting with R
Rapid charging (carga rápida)
DC charging at 50 kW or more, where an external charger feeds the battery directly. It is the mode 4 charging found at charging hubs and lets you add hundreds of kilometres in a short time. In US English, DC fast charging.
RCD (diferencial)
Protective device that cuts the power when it detects a leak to earth, that is, when the current going out on the live wire does not all come back on the neutral. Spanish homes use 30 mA RCDs to protect people from electric shock. In the US it is called a GFCI.
RCD sensitivity (sensibilidad del diferencial)
The earth leakage current, in milliamps, at which an RCD trips. On the circuits of a Spanish home it is 30 mA, the value that protects people against electric shock.
RDC-DD (residual direct current detecting device)
A 6 mA residual direct current detecting device, usually built into the wallbox (UNE-EN IEC 62955). It stops charging if it detects a DC leak and lets the charging point be protected by a type A RCD instead of a type B.
Reactive energy (energía reactiva)
Energy that motors, transformers and similar equipment need to create their magnetic fields but which does no useful work. It flows through the network, loads it and is penalised on bills for supplies over 15 kW.
REBT (Spanish Low Voltage Regulations)
The Low Voltage Electrical Regulations, approved by Royal Decree 842/2002, are the basic rules for how low voltage electrical installations in Spain must be designed, built, certified and inspected. The Spanish equivalent of the UK wiring regulations.
Registered electrical installer (instalador habilitado)
A low voltage installation company entered in the Integrated Industrial Register, in Andalusia with the Junta, entitled to carry out, alter and certify electrical installations with the boletín. In US terms, a licensed electrical contractor.
Reinforced EV socket (toma reforzada)
A 16 A socket built for charging an electric car, on its own dedicated circuit with its own protection from the board. It allows slow charging at up to 3.7 kW and is safer than an ordinary Schuko socket.
RIPCI (Spanish fire protection installations regulations)
Spanish Regulations on Fire Protection Installations, approved by Royal Decree 513/2017. They cover the design, installation and maintenance of detection, alarm and extinguishing systems, such as control panels, detectors, call points, extinguishers and fire hose reels.
RJ45 network socket (toma RJ45)
An eight-contact connector used on twisted pair ethernet cables and on wall data outlets. It lets you connect computers, televisions, games consoles or wifi access points to the router by cable.
Need an electrician in Seville, Spain?
Call us or send a WhatsApp message with a photo of the job. You get a fixed quote before any work starts.