What is "hotel power"?

[pne]

What is "hotel power"?

I've seen that phrase used in reference to powering trains.

Is it for things such as lights and electricity at on-seat sockets? Or the galley where they heat food? Or what?

 

[button_boxer]

All of the above - it's essentially power for everything except actually moving the train (and I suppose opening and closing the doors), so lights, heating/aircon, at-seat sockets, catering, etc. etc.

 

[Taunton]

The biggest electric power user in the coaches is heating/air conditioning.

Plus all else you mention. Expression comes from US railways, which hung on to steam supplied down the train until the 1970s if not later (including air conditioning - they perfected steam powered air con which never came to Britain). Installing electric power from the locomotive brought this expression along.

 

[swt_passenger]

Alternatively, 'hotel services' may have been borrowed from shipping where the term is used as a catch all for most things that are passenger related.

I always thought the railway use of 'shore power' or 'shore supply' must also have come from naval sources...

 

[Murph]

The biggest electric power user in the coaches is heating/air conditioning.

Plus all else you mention. Expression comes from US railways, which hung on to steam supplied down the train until the 1970s if not later (including air conditioning - they perfected steam powered air con which never came to Britain). Installing electric power from the locomotive brought this expression along.

I believe the term actually originates on ships. It's the same for ships as on rail, it's the power for the creature comforts. Early 20th century ships had steam turbine generators for hotel power (e.g. the White Star Olympic class, such as Titanic, had extensive use of electrics for passenger services and comfort), although I'm not sure if they actually used the term at that time.

 

[brianthegiant]

All of the above - it's essentially power for everything except actually moving the train (and I suppose opening and closing the doors), so lights, heating/aircon, at-seat sockets, catering, etc. etc.

Are you sure? does it include control systems etc or is that handled seperately with higher priority (battery backup) in the event of loss of power?

 

[BestWestern]

Are you sure? does it include control systems etc or is that handled seperately with higher priority (battery backup) in the event of loss of power?

I'm not sure there's any 'official' definition, rather it's more of a generic term. Taking an HST, which is a good example of a big train with numerous kit and power set-ups on board, there is no such thing as 'hotel power'; the systems are referred to by their technical nature - there is a 'three phase train supply', the train can be plugged into the 'shore supply', and the coaches themselves can be switched to 'auxiliary only' to run only certain equipment - but 'hotel power' doesn't form an official definition of any of those systems. I would suggest the nearest thing might be train supply, as the essential control systems on any specific vehicle would in most cases still function on emergency batteries if that supply is lost, but even that is a rather fuzzy comparison.

 

[edwin_m]

I think in the American context "hotel power" refers specifically to the power taken from the locomotive or a separate generator to power the equipment in a passenger train. Most US locos never see a passenger train so don't have hotel power, but they would all need to generate some electricity for their own battery charging and auxiliaries including those provided to keep the crew comfortable.

 

[DownSouth]

I think in the American context "hotel power" refers specifically to the power taken from the locomotive or a separate generator to power the equipment in a passenger train. Most US locos never see a passenger train so don't have hotel power, but they would all need to generate some electricity for their own battery charging and auxiliaries including those provided to keep the crew comfortable.

You're thinking of Head End Power (HEP) in this case, which is roughly equivalent to the UK term Electric Train Supply (ETS).

Hotel power is the generic catch-all term for what is used, not the method of supplying it. Hotel power can be supplied by means other than HEP/ETS, such as a generator van, small diesel generators under coaches, or even an alternator on one of the coach's axles.

 

[DarloRich]

I was led to believe the term originated in the shipping industry and was used to describe the power generated and used on board a ship to provide the power needed to run the "hotel" (passenger) section and associated services of the vessel. It did not provide propulsion.