The laws of physics are the same everywhere in the world, but is the installation or regulatory documentation similar? Not at all, there are also quite significant differences, both in the United States and in Europe.
1. Conductor marking
It is very convenient to assign not all aggressive colors to the phase wire, but only brown. And then all conductor manufacturers will manufacture their products according to a single standard. Grounding and "zero" remain the same - yellow-green and blue.
2. Fuses instead of circuit breakers
Nonsense. After all, Europe has always kept one step ahead, but still prefers to use ordinary fuses as protection against short circuits or prolonged heating... Yes Yes! Not circuit breakers, but fuses.
3. Cross-section of power circuits
It is very easy to understand the required conductor cross-sections, living in Russia: for sockets - 2.5 mm2, for lighting lines - 1.5 mm2. In Europe, it is somewhat different, here only for powerful consumers 2.5 mm2 lines are laid, for example, an air conditioner. For a simple TV, a 1.5 mm2 power wire is mounted.
4. Arresters
If arresters in Russia are installed only at the request of the consumer, then in Europe this is a mandatory step. In fact, an arrester is a very useful device, which even in the event of a lightning strike will take over the excess current.
5. Ready grounding
They have not even heard of such a concept as "zeroing" in Europe, here from the substation to the consumer there are not 4 wires (3 "phases" and "zero"), but 5. The fifth conductor is the standard grounding, which is enough to connect to the bus. There is no need to install a ground loop near your home.
6. Standard fuses in the plugs
A very interesting design feature. In order not to waste time installing an additional circuit breaker, you can simply put the fuse directly... in the plug. Additional protection never hurts. The fuse is always installed on the phase conductor, like circuit breakers in switchboards.
7. Combined version - socket and switch
This does not mean that one device is responsible for supplying power to consumers and for turning on / off lighting. Everything is much more interesting. In Europe, the outlet can be turned off or on. The algorithm is as follows: insert the consumer's plug into the outlet, for example, a vacuum cleaner, and then press the power button on it. And after the device is not needed, its cord can not be taken out of the socket, but simply turned off by clicking a button.
With this design, the contacts of the outlet are preserved intact and the operating life of the device is extended.
8. It is not necessary to change old meters
In Europe, an electrician who comes home tries not to earn as much as possible on the owner of the home, but, on the contrary, to save his money. There is no specific normative indication for the replacement of energy monitoring devices, so if the meter is not alone ten years, but he works properly, the master will advise him to leave, and not to perform unnecessary, but solidly paid replacement.