The US electrical system is not 120V
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- čas přidán 21. 06. 2020
- It's more than 120V. It's even more than the other 120V! It is the sum of the two (and sometimes a different two!) that makes us who we are. Learn about the US electrical system in this not-at-all snarky video!
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• Fans; High is next to ...
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One of these days I'll tidy up that wire...
A minor note; the thing about 208 being 86.7% isn't right for simple resistive loads like heating elements. You'll actually only get 75% the heat on 208! Power (watts) goes up with the square of the voltage. But, if something is designed specifically for 208, you can pull up to 86.7% what you could on 240 with the same amperage.
One day or day one.
Me to my DIY outdoor sensor wiring too.
Your neutral and ground wires are not looking to (current) code: 1. There are spots where two wires are under one screw. 2. The neutral and ground are not separated (yeah, I know, they are the same potential, but the code says they need to be separated... for reasons.).
But the panel probably predates those changes.
PS: Wear your electricians gloves when working on a live panel... including just poking at it with a meter.
The two wires under one screw is a definite no-no. In my area, however, both neutral and ground must be bonded to the box. It is ridiculous, but that is what the inspector demands.
One day? Shocking.
"This building is a single family home..."
"Honey, did you hear that? Is someone downstairs?"
:D LOL
That's a Tim and Eric skit in the making
oh he's the guy who took our laserdisk, our beta vcr and the old microwaves oven.
It must be a huge house according to that circuit panel and the number of breakers.
@@robertcuminale1212 Not necessarily. Newer code requires a lot more dedicated circuits than older code, and if he's got a bunch of 240v stuff (furnace, dryer, stove, water heater, car charger) it'll fill up fast.
I've occasionally wondered what a national power grid would look like if you could start again from scratch using current technology. No backwards compatibility, no infrastructure limitations, no analog TVs to sync.
It would be heaven
400v /230v three phase seems to be pretty good. Decent L-N voltage, high three phase voltage.
Oh, it would be so worth it to resurrect Tesla right now, somebody get on that.
DC everything, please.
It used to be that you'd want higher frequency mains allowing smaller transformers etc, but now that switch mode supplies are the norm, that doesn't matter. Still, I'd probably go to 100Hz.
Why three phase, why not four?
--edit, fixed weird autocorrect
Actually in Germany we typically have 3 phase power to our home. This means you have 3 powelines, 120° appart and one ground. Depending on how you connect these between eachother or to ground you get either 380V or three times 240V. Bigger machines like washing machines, driers, ovens etc. use the 380V three phase power. Other smaller machines, connected to the normal outlets, use the 240V single phase power.
Usually the fuses for the main lines are 63A for each phase. There are other breakers like 125A, but these are not so common in normal households. Hosehold machines thypically have lines with 16A breakers. Bigger industrial machines use 32A lines ore less commonly 63A.
Yeah that's true for the most part but the voltages are 230V and 230VxSQR(3)=400V
Fun fact the "normal" 230V plug is only rated for 10A consistently but u can still pull 16A for a short periode
Greetings from an electrical engineer from Germany
In Germany, the 3-phase is 400V. . . . Which naturally gives 230V Single-phase. . . ( For Americans, Single-phase is a SINGLE live line and Neutral. ) . . Not like their 2- phase 120/240V which is TWO Live lines and Neutral.
The US 3-phase electrical wires carry 480V at 60HZ but usually only commercial and industrial uses get that much. But none of this matters. Everyone gets what they need which is the point of his video.
@@tawnyforest7932 No they don't in America, that is what I am getting at . .. You cant get 120/240V directly from a 3-phase supply. . . From 3-phase, you can get 240/140V nasty for 120V loads. . . Or you can get 208/120V nasty for 240V loads.
Do you really use 3 phase power for washing machines in Germany? Most run just fine on 10A / 240V single phase. Your fuses are also pretty big at 63A. In the Netherlands we usually get 3 x 25A. More amps are possible, but at much higher monthly network charges.
I am a retired electrical engineer and I will tell you this: Your explanations are very clear and concise. Thank you. I am glad I found. Your channel and have subscribed 😊
I take it you graduated last in your class.
must be a title, not a degree.
@@larrymaloney877he’s retired
@@larrymaloney877wtf? Why the hostilities?
As a retired [wizard]. Fixed it for you. Electrical stuff has always been confusing to me for some reason.
When I heard that 60HZ hum, I thought, "Wow! Does this guy have a sub-station in his basement or are all of those breakers in desperate need of replacement?".
i lived down the road from a substation...that was right next to a park and YMCA. always a constant hum even half a mile way. now that i dont live anywhere near one i find the quiet of night to be unsettling.
He fucked up and they're both in phase, so the hum is doubled.
@@pulsefel9210 I've got high voltage power lines near my house. You can hear them when you go outside.
@@masheroz yes, same
@@pulsefel9210 okay, so... Does this town happen to love Halloween?
"But first, a quick reminder of what transformers do: they're more than meets the eye."
Well memed, sir.
Don't be dumb it's not a meme it's a real day video
@@stephensnell1379 Are you a transformer??
@@stephensnell1379 Star Scream thinks so too..
Good meme
@Jeff Desert Mountains 250KV goes wherever it wants. :)
As an American commercial electrician 15 years I usually steer very clear of videos like this for fear of yelling expletives at my screen because so many people just get so much wrong. BUT you sir have nailed it this is the best starting explanation video for basic electricity you never let me down keep up the good work also I’ll try not to be so pedantic about the 110-120 thing but it does drive me nuts especially seeing as how I’m most homes a voltage of 110 puts you above the range for allowable voltage drop (read inefficiency/dangerous)
One of the reasons i like this channel so much - he tries to be as close to the truth as possible and do that while being as clear as possible and in most easy to digest way possible.
Tell that to europe, we have real 230 v here in the outlets... and no it is not dangerous and inefficient! Well current always is dangerous even at 110 but also there are security measures in place every installation needs to have to keep people alive!
What do you think has been nailed. ? . . . Not the energy down wires being carried int he E & M Fields.. . Derek is very wrong there.. . The Energy is in the moving ?Electrons INSIDE the wires.
@@hughleyton693 what? Can you try that again?
@@hughleyton693 You're thinking of Veritasium, go yell at him instead 😅
I went to tech school for HVAC, and I was never really taught the difference between 208/240. Even my super awesome, smart, one-of-a-kind electrical instructor never really mentioned it(I learned a lot of other really valuable stuff from him though, and particularly have a better working knowledge of how motors work than most of the HVAC techs I work with, thanks to him)
I had no idea that 208v was from 120v-3 phase. In my (limited) experience I've pretty much only worked with 240v-3 phase or split-phase120/240v and only ran across 208v once or twice, and had no clue why it was different.
Thank you sir, I've learned something new today! Been watching your videos for a long time.
What he doesn’t mention is that 120/208 is usually produced by stepping down a 277/480 utility feed.
Commercial/industrial customers often use 480 for motors and 277 for lighting.
@@k5sss What he doesn’t mention is an infinitely large set
"We're just going to ignore three-phase for right now" *Angry entertainment electrician noises*
Right?! XD
3 phase is best!!
more like all europeans. my entire country has 25A 240v 3 phase in the home.
@@SupremeRuleroftheWorld my studio flat in the UK only had 2 phase power.
But I'm sure the building as a whole had 3 phase. (since the usual approach is to split different pairs of 2 out of 3 phases to multiple buildings/units to balance the load on the 3 phase supply system.)
Not sure what Australia is using, but I'd be surprised if it isn't also either 3 or 2 phase power to most homes...
@@SupremeRuleroftheWorld yep even when individual houses are single phase as in the uk. We usually have one large 3 phase transformer per street.
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Well, depending your age you can go to the university next
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Lmao
How does it feel to be the worst person alive?
Dad award 🥇
I like the way that you talk to the viewer like they're 3-year-old kids. And lots of great, on topic information without being condescending.
As an electrician, I appreciate you and your humor.
Found your channel a bit ago, and im going through your old videos. Its a gold mine of terrible jokes and education. Thank you for your service:)
Sometimes when I watch these videos I feel like you’re attacking me personally.
Only with the kettles :)
Technology Connections 😂
Shhh... You're one of us now.
@@richkurtz6053 no good for tea.
@@richkurtz6053 or an electric powered instant hot tap by the kitchen sink. A tiny electric water heater lives under my sink and keep the water just below boiling. Holds enough for 5 or 6 cups of hot water. All on 120v
"I'm showing you mine, so you don't need to see yours."
- Technology Connections 2020
so you can be fat and don't need mirror to see it
That should be on a shirt of sticker.
Dirty... I like it
My dad said this to me when I was young
@@y0uCantHandle I'm 24 and he stills says it to me 😳
When I was a kid, my little brother decided to drop a penny behind the outlet cover in his room. It was an old 120 2-prong receptacle and that penny fell in just the right way to bridge the gap, my family was all surprised when we screamed. I'm not sure why, but I was the one who ran out, through the living room and kitchen to get to the breaker box. Being 10, I just turned everything off as quickly as I could. Needless to say, my dad pulled out the remains of the penny while replacing the outlet and it proved to be a good lesson to all of us. My dad doesn't neglect electrical repairs these days. Though I don't know why he never did anything about the one power switch in a place we lived in for a year that almost always shocked us.
Well, actually I do. My dad was in terrible mental health during that time, so it took a lot out of him just to provide for us. He and my mom had split because of it, which honestly just made things worse, but that's all a different story.
The electrical system in the US isn't something you should play around with. Thankfully I know some electricians, so I know who to call to help me.
Also, I checked my panel. 100amp @ 240v. I figured, being a manufactured, single wide home. I think I'll save up and get my electrical system reworked, though. The place is about 30 years old and I would like to make sure it's all up to code.
Personally I love that we in (mainland) Europe use E/F plugs. While technically F is the Shuko-plug, you'll find that many electrical devices and powercubes and -bricks accept both E (found as (older) French, Belgian, Tunesian and somehow Slovakian outlets) and F. The diffence is in grounding:: E adds a third plug, F has the grounding on the side. Both sides, so you can put the plug in upside down or not. And two plugs is simpler to plug in than three. All in all, I love our Schuko-system. And that also means we use Type C if grounding is not needed. Handy for, well, you find these still on 'boomboxes'.Or gameconsoles. Audioequipment. And your tv. But your computer is connected via Schuko, aka F. Thanks for the video! Now I know how good it is! ❤
ahh yes the type f plug most notably known for being cut out and replaced by type h plug
@@plazmaguy13yago9 is it? I'm from Hungary, and the two main types of plugs I see and use are Europlugs and Schuko/Type F (or lately CEE 7/7). The sockets are all type F / Schuko, except in old houses where there are still some ungrounded type C sockets.
Guess the type E in Slovakia is from when Czechoslovakia was still a thing, because it's a standard in Czechia as well
"Like a lil' furnace. But tumbly" is a brilliant phrase
Yep, it is still weird though
@@jamesc4999 We have homes that are still heated with oil (kerosene) fueled furnaces as well. Which to me is even more strange.
@@jamesc4999 I dont see how an appliance consuming power AND gas is weird. That's how water heaters work!
And gas stoves!
What could possibly go wrong?
@@PosranaRegistrace Surprisingly little with all the flame sensors and other safeties.
"To those of you in europe this looks horribly gross and terribly unsafe"
Laughs in brazilian
I remember being a Kid having lessons about how electricity is dangerous and stuff... Here in Minas Gerais we still have TV ads from our electricity company warning about that kind of stuff... And maybe because of that I studied and got a Electronics Engineering degree today :) (Not that I have any use for it these days lol )
Do yall just do the jumper cables off the pole? That's how it goes in Panama
And our president still wants to Go back to the old plugs that are even worse. Like, for fucks sake Bolsonaro, dont you have better things to do?
Laughs in 50A electric shower
"Hue hue hue hue hue"
Came home from a day of low voltage distribution design, saw the title here (working on a primary voltage conversion job, swapping out 50 odd transformers with all the end-user voltages you can make) and just wanted to see where you were going with that. Love the video, man. Keep it up!
I’m glad to have seen your speech. For 32 years my dad worked for Hydro-Quebec The electric company in our province. I loved your simple explanations on voltage amp Wattage,transformers. In Quebec we also have 120-240 voltage and are still naming that 110-220.
That ending fun rant was hilarious (I'm a Brit). Maybe one day we can all get together internationally and produce an IEEE standard for electricity distribution. Based on the age old model of identifying all the best bits given by the available systems, and then implementing the worst bits instead...
Not gonna lie. You had me in the first half
UK has those big ass plugs
The best standard would be a compact version of the UK plug, ditching the switch, keeping the rcd and fuse in plug, keeping 230v, etc
50 or 60hz, one will've to die
you can't throw a pair of dime at the american plug
If people were confused by gas clothes dryers you should do a video on gas powered refrigerators. That'll blow some minds.
That involves finding some place out in the middle of nowhere or perhaps having access to an RV motor-home.
When I was a kid in Iran (1960) we had a kerosene powered refrigerator. Dad had to relight the flame occasionally. I learned the refrigerator used an ammonia absorption cycle... a bit beyond my 8 year old brain.
But.... gas make things hot.......
yeah that took me a while to understand how an absorber fridge works, it blew my mind a little bit
Mmmm. I love the smell of Freon in the morning.
In Australia, we use 3 phase systems but they aren't by default installed in houses: they are usually restricted to commercial buildings.
We also use Residual Current Devices in our switchboards for all the power circuits - to prevent electrical shocks. It doesn't look like they are used in the US.
We use them but they are at the outlet not the panel and electrical code only requires them in rooms close to water sources like bathrooms and kitchens
A ground fault? Outdoor circuits, kitchen & garage.
First off your presentation is informing and entertaining. It did cover a lot I missed or forgot. We are not only coping, but improving in the plug/socket area. Plugs now have that rim to keep the fingers away from the prongs. Appliances are double-insulated and wall adapters by design won't let you anywhere near the prongs. Then again accidentally coming in contact with 120V is the best safety teacher if you live through it.😊
I could listen to Alec ranting about electricity for hours on end.
I was waiting for when he would say "Where did you get that dress? And those shoes and that coat..."
Same. Haha!!
obsoleteUbiquity or the perfect toaster! 😂
same
Steets, your thumbnail animates, but as far as I can tell CZcams doesn't support animated thumbnails. Is that visible anywhere?
As a veteran US Navy Electronics Technician, your presentation, disclaimers and warnings are so ACCURATE!! Great JOB!! Thank you.
Orlando boot and BE&E school in San Diego. Came out of boot in 87.
His British wiring knowledge is spot on too. 👍👍👍
That's among the coolest titles I've ever heard
@@Lambda_Ovine LOL!! Not sure if you're joking.. but yeah the Navy does have cool titles to brag about amongs ourselves ;)
@Kevin Tewey Kindly illuminate your opinion for the world, Sir!
I think you did a good job explaining this. While it's common knowledge to electricians and savvy diy'ers, most homeowners could learn something here.
Just wanted to say thanks for explaining the difference between 3 phase and split phase service. I’ve watched a number of videos and your 30 seconds of this video summed it up for me quickly. Thanks!
lmao the last couple minutes where you're just going off is 10/10
That was spot on. Those uppity foreigners need to shut up and stay in their lane. We don't give a rat's ass what they think.
I laughed so loud just now finishing the video. Like some sort of crackhead at 3:30 in the morning.
@@artcamera5514 True. I travel the world for work, and using plugs all over the place, I can appreciate the smaller form factor of North American style plugs. The UK bricks, forget about trying to plug in more than one or two chargers in most cases. Australia, same thing. And the massive size of those plugs, you damn near need another suitcase to carry them around. EU two pronged- never know if any given combination of plug and outlet will fit together to make a connection, and they always just flop around loosely and fall out, usually have to get a stack of books or something to support the adapters or plug ends. And the switches on outlets.. no labels usually so it's a guessing game of flipping everything on and off to try to figure it out, let alone accidentally bumping them or setting something on them and shutting off the power.
You know this is really just a great example of engineers solving safety hazards through different methods. When analyzing hazards you got two scales, likelyhood of injury, and severity of injury. In america, we decided to tackle the severity part, dropping the voltage and making it less likely to kill you as easily. In britian they tackled the likelyhood part, designing better plugs, leakage current detectors, ect. In both places they felt that these considerations brough the hazard level down to a point that was acceptable and moved on with their lives, not thinking about it much more after that.
Then you have Brazil: even in the 220V parts of the country, electric showers are mostly ungrounded, and we use exactly the same plug both for 127V and 220V.
Not necessarily true. In Europe you have 230V on one phase yes, but pretty much any house has 3 phases coming in, so you can use 380V for higher power devices or for devices like a motor which needs it to function anyway. So using the US system is not really applicable for Europe anyway. Those 3 Phases have the same safety advantages the split phase system has.
Besides I would argue that the severity of injury is not that highly reduced by 120AC, since the things that make AC dangerous are the frequency which the heart still can react to and the body having a lower impedance than ohmic resistance, which means AC can more easily pass through it than DC. So decreasing the likelyhood of injury is the only sensible way to go here.
@@lal12 In the UK and Ireland it's not really common to have 3-phase in a household. Neither is it in Australia or NZ (230V@50Hz, just like Europe). I hear the same happens in France and the Netherlands, though I may be wrong. Also, they get far less amps, which means that even in Germany, where 3-phase supply is commonplace in households, the maximum power is lower than in America. That, of course, comes at the expense of having to spend a little more on wires, but the cost is marginal relative to the cost of a house. Having three-phase for households has many advantages though, but they are related more to the possibility of running more efficient motors (3-Phase Air Conditioners, for example, are becoming very common here in Brazil for residential use, where three-phase supply is quite common for homes, though not ubiquitous as in Germany).
Now, 120VAC is unquestionably safer than 230VAC. Your resistance doesn't change when you are closer to a 230V outlet. U = RI. Hence, the current going through
your body IS nearly twice, which means a much worse shock. The higher the current, the higher the risk.
💯
You deserve an upvote bro. Very great amicable summary of the situation here (compared to whatever argument to which is better)
Can't watch your videos when I'm tired as they're too calm, but when I'm wide awake and interested, I love finding a new one of them to enjoy and learn! :D
I was a home products service (Major Appliance) repairman for 27 years and have been shocked hundreds of times. One day while repairing a Microwave oven the charge in the capacitor stopped my heart. The room went dark. Fortunately the sudden fall to the floor re-started my heart. Rubber gloves is always a good idea around electrical circuits...Great video!
That is crazy!! Did you know that an 240 AC jolt can make your heart stop even hours after? You should go to hospital to be monitored after getting a shock. Lucky man!!
@@Martyz-TV these capacitors are rated up to 3000 volts, much higher voltage
I can feel his frustration at having to explain the difference between "safer" and "safe." LOL
I think "less dangerous" would've been more accurate.
It's almost as if he's deflecting a veritable library of comments on that topic. ;)
@@vibingwithvinyl it certainly does sound better in a sentence relating to high voltage current
I see stuff like this in Techmoan videos as well. Why not just get over the fact some of his viewers are retards? Someone will _always_ complain. Both Alec and Matt would make it more pleasant for sane viewers to just ignore the vocal minority.
The funny thing is, I never saw the complaints they refer to.
@@RicoElectrico I'm not sure I agree. His moans about stupid complaints are themselves entertaining to watch.
"I don't know why you are so afraid of electricity!"
Me: _laughs in Brazilian electric showers_
Seeing the bus bars in the switchboard made me laugh too
Stand on tip toes, use palm of your hand, and pray...
I still install my own showers in Brazil, and every time, i get scared as hell when i am going to test them.
@@TheLuxkywalker I've never done any personal maintenance in a switchboard, so I don't know how they are like. But electric showers, man, they are just a resistor that turns up when you pass water through them.
So those replace the water heater?
What an educational and entertaining video about the US domestic electrical system. Thank you. I knew some of this but your summary made it all make sense.
Great video. Plugs in the UK have a plastic peg finished with the copper contact at the end. When the copper is fully enclosed in the socket even if the plug isn't in all of the way only plastic is exposed so touching a live connection isn't possible. The Earth connector is fully copper as that needs to be stronger as it opens the shutters in the socket but as it doesn't (mostly) carry any voltage, touching it doesn't matter.
"To Europeans this looks horribly dangerous. That's OK, we're coping."
You have the best lines.
Having seen into his fuse box, I would say that his lines are actually pretty bad...
Holy fuck, he wasn't kidding. That looks more than horribly dangerous.
@@vezokpiraka Only if you're fiddle-farting around in the service panel with the cover off. Something he explicitly said *not* to do. Try to keep up, pal.
@@vezokpiraka OK, the neutrals look like a rat's nest, but those are neutrals :P
@hawkturkey I mean. Our wires rlly aren't that thin tho? I'm not entirely sure where you'd have gotten that idea?
And even then our actual breaker panels are way better designed
"I'm showing you mine, so you don't have to see yours." - Put that on a Tee.
And we had a similar sentence at home today - daughter was watching me play a flight sim, and told my wife "He's got his landing gear out." Umm...
Are we not doing phrasing anymore?
Glad you didn't run down the rabbit hole of the different types of 3 phase transformers (Y, Delta, corner grounded Delta)
Awesome video, I knew about the 240v service and how you wire a 240v circuit but it never dawned on me that the two busses were 180 degrees apart, thus 240v potential.
UK residents have learned after stepping on plugs to leave them in their respective sockets and just flick the switch.
That is just one thing about the square pin plug i wish we had, the ability to switch an outlet at the outlet itself. But i think what people forget is that the american BI plug is older. A lot of other plug standards had the ability to learn from previous plug failings. We didnt really have that chance and since compatibility is a thing we just kinda got stuck with it only modernizing little bits like polarizing the plug with the neutral being bigger and adding the circular ground pin, as an option wheras the square pin a ground lug is required to operate the safety shutters in the plug even if its just a fake pin of plastic, and really the bi pin could be made better by shoving a bit of plastic on the end of the pins and making the recepticle make contact on the tip of the pins, that way compatibility is kept for older plugs but newer plugs are safer, the fact that our pins are to close your fingers could also be negated by making the plug a bit bigger with a more pronounced shield, but like I said its a standard weve had for a while and since japan and china also use the bi pin for residential appliances its not gonna change anytime soon.
Our UK plugs and sockets are designed to last for millions of connection/disconnection cycles and still have a switch to discourage wear.
Every US hotel I've stayed in, the plug falls out if you walk past too quickly.
But for non-UK (or Ireland, Oman, or any of the other 50+ countries using IEC type G) imagine standing on Lego. We're immune to that as the plug is much, much worse.
@@JorgTheElder We rarely buy portable fans as it's just not that warm here to warrant them, and anybody who does buy one realises that they're probably only useful in June and then that's when it's not drastically cool outside due to freak rain storms. After then our small houses are just cluttered by useless appliances and get thrown up in the attic and forgotten about.
@@georgeprout42 I've never had an issue with plugs not holding unless it was a cheap plug the sockets tend to stay fine as long as you have a modern high quality plug.
Meanwhile, there's basically no such thing as a UK plug that is loose. There are simply none made that badly.
- Wait, it's all 240 volts?
- Always has been
LOL
CaptainAmericaReference.gif
also it's all metric
Fantastic! I'm traveling in Australia from Canada and am perplexed by the outlet switches! Thank you for mentioning that!! Also, I've definitely learned a bit more about our power grid back home in North America. Thanks for an awesome video!
We like 'em. To us, the idea that the only way to disconnect something from the supply is to pull the plug seems weird. If the socket is located underneath/behind a TV cabinet, fridge etc., plugging it back in can be difficult. For the nearly immeasurably low cost of having a switch, you get another way to disconnect the power other than the plug or the circuit breaker.
@@mikejosef2470 so you have no way to turn stuff off other than pulling the plug or the switch on the outlet?
@@russellc3251 no 95% of things still have an off button, it's just easier for larger things like appliances that don't have an obvious off button on them like fridges and the like. Plus it feels safer than just unplugging something.
This was one of the best explanations I've ever heard of the standard US breaker box.
Bravo sir!
In this video: The CZcams's most beloved pedant tells people to stop being pedantic.
This might be my favorite techcon comment ever
CZcams's most beloved pedant is, as usual, incorrect.
That's because it's his job. He gaciously does it for us so we don't have to. :-)
He is deliberately incorrect to make it intelligible to people.
I think he's being stupid about the sarcasm about plugs. US plugs are actually fecking LETHAL
And he's wrong about the 240 vs 120 shocks. Both are equally lethal.
So of I want 240 for a welder I just need to put in a double breaker and run that to the welder?? I assumed it was more complicated than that.
The snark level of this video increased exponentially at the end....I love it.
Of all the people, I did not expect HIM to go "full American." I'm dying 🤣
@@bm1747 Sometimes you need to go full American to explain why nannystater comments are dumb.
I've been in the electrical distribution business for about 15 years and this video taught me more than any work training.
i watched that whole end rant and I am in awe. Give 'em hell, Tech Connections!
Note how he does the voltage measurements with only one hand. Standard smart move to prevent his heart from being part of the circuit if he makes a mistake. (I'm sure someone else said this somewhere in the other 12000+ comments, but worth repeating...)
Thats very smart and safe in case there's a shock and avoids placing the heart and internal organs in the circuit.
Also always put right hand to danger. If you use left hand then a leak to earth via your feet will go near heart
I noticed that too. At first I wondered why he was making it harder but then realized it contain the potential shock to just his had.
i actually never though about that, i thought he just didn't want to be blocking the camera too much.
@@r.h.8754 That's why you always put a warning sign on a breaker and/or controls. A simple and effective safety measure your co-worker ignored. Another safety rule: you don't remove a sign if it's not placed by you.
That rant at the end is perfect.
I've got several Aussie friends and we get into that pretty often.
I really enjoyed how you explained this. Can't wait to see more of your videos!
When my apartment building has power issues, it's usually just one phase affected rather than a total outage, so I'll end up with major appliances and half my lights or outlets not working, while the other half are fine. I knew that that state was usually referred to as having lost or blown a phase, but the demonstration of the breaker panel and its busbar in particular made it a lot clearer what that actually means.
The video also explains why it takes forever for my stove/oven to heat up, which is not something I expected and had just attributed to it being a lousy unit.
why is the house angry
The house is angry because it desperately needs a new roof.
@@MoparDan Top-hinged slates/tiles/shingles maybe? So they can lift and let the pressure out during the experiments ..? This would prevent the roof from blowing away due to too much positive internal pressure.
First thing that came to my mind, too. The house looks fierce...
Nobody likes you
If someone connect you to grid you will be angry too or even shocked
With this logic almost all European installations are "400" volts as phase to phase is 380-420 and phase to ground 220-240 volts.
That's actually true and acknoledged, here in Australia all live electrical hazards are labelled as "danger 415 Volts"
Yeah, it's called '3-wire' power and is good for 400V.
I just found out that while most of modern Belgium has three phase with 400V between the phases and 240 between phase and neutral (as most of Europe has), some older installations have 240V between phases. And this can sometimes differ per house in a street.
Yes, here in Sweden we have 400 volts phase to phase and 230 volts phase to ground. We also have all 3 phases in our homes instead of the split phase system.
I just wanted to say the same thing :)
Great video. RCD or MCBO are now mandatory on every single circuit in Australia. I’ll never be convinced electricity isn’t a big deal.
why would some person suggest to you that " electricity isn’t a big deal.". i am utterly baffled? does this happen a lot in Australia?
As for the dryers, its 120/240v and 120 is for the... Control board, any lights, and a motor to spin the drum. Ranges use 120/240 for controls, and a fan motor if it's a convection oven. Same for wall ovens, too. As an electrician, I'm required to provide a 4 wires connection to these appliances, from NEC 1996 to now.
Pre 1996, the ground was also permitted to carry the small current from a light or timer motor, on account of the larger wire being less likely to be damaged.
The circuits were typically ran in type SEU cable, where the neutral is wrapped around the hot wires under the jacket. Modern large 240v circuits are often ran in aluminum SER cable, having three insulated wires and a bare ground.
"But first, a quick reminder of what transformers do. They're more than meets the eye."
GOD DAMMIT! XD I love you and hate you for that joke lmao
Can't believe I missed that. Fucking love this guy
I didn't even catch it until I saw it written out. I facepalmed SO hard... :P
@Francis Hubert neither do I. Slap the nerds
@Francis Hubert It's part of the transformers, cartoon theme song
@Francis Hubert czcams.com/video/nLS2N9mHWaw/video.html
The whole "it's not the volts that kill you etc. etc." always annoyed me. That's like saying it's not the fall that kills you, it's the sudden stop at the end. The higher the fall, the more likely the stop is to kill you. They're kinda dependent on each other.
Really that's not true. Is worst a fall from a 3rd floor than the 10th floor!!!!
it's actually the frequency that kills you
qflux the frequency of how many times you fall off a building
@@Snix121 You could certainly break the velocity of the falling mass down by running it through a fourier transform. In which case, higher frequencies would (roughly) represent greater accelerations. In which case, the higher frequencies would be worse for you.
@@bobthebuilder609 I think he is trying to say that at least the 10-story fall will kill you instantly and not leave you alive but mangled and most likely suffering from the resulting damage the rest of your life like the 3-story fall would.
This is the best video on electricity I have ever seen. Such a good explanation of voltage and amperage that explains more than most electricians know
I've TURNED ON many friends to this channel whom are now very well CONMECTED. They always make sure to stay up to date and CURRENT as to the most recent video.Its awesome to see how AMP'D they get when a new video shows up. WATT can I say other than this channel is awesome and you will never get any RESISTANCE from me!!
the amount of shade in this video is incredible
Given the amount your average American gets from nannystaters a day, it does not even come close to balancing out.
The switches on UK wall outlets are for people to turn things off at the wall in order to mildly annoy other members of the household.
There's some outlets in the United States where it's like that it's just the power switches are usually next to light switches intend to get confused with them all the time because they are normal Power switches that are wired in between the breaker and the outlet. I knew somebody who had their Wi-Fi router on one and somebody turned off the light switch knocked out the internet for everyone in the house.
@WindowsLogic Productions the UK has flaps covering the neutral and live terminals so no its not for safety.
@@stonedsavage7814 It was when they were first designed. They've been kept because that's what people expect. Australia has automatically shuttered outlets (eref.se.com/au/en/clipsal/product-pdf/2025S-WE) as well, but not many houses use them. They'd be seen more frequently in child care centres. They're also a pain in the arse if you're using double insulated appliances in them, as they need an earth pin in order to actuate the shutter.
& for those with timer adapters plugged in, to annoy me after I've set them correctly!
I'm in Australia and we sometimes use your 240 work around to supply 480 volts. We use it if we don't have three phase supplied to our farms. I on the other hand live at the end of a SWER line, which gives me occasional power during storm season.
We have 3-phase at work and 208 on most of our equipment but there's a few that distinctly don't like it. They are large capacitor-start motors that will occasionally trip their internal breaker if the motor fails to rotate properly at startup.
I’ve had more problems with 208V. Would a small step-up 208 to 240 transformer help you? That’s what we used for a high end laser system.
@@amadeo262 Perhaps. We actually do have 480v transformer in the facility with extra capacity on it, it's just on the other side of the building and would take a lot of wire to re-route. However it's on the list of things we're going to do when we have down time.
My question is why is that electric motor not a 3-phase motor. If you have a 3-phase supply and you're not using 3-phase motors than then you're just being incredibly dumb (when I say you on talking to whoever decided that two-faced motors are the best for that application)
On the subject of weird gas dryers, I'd love to see you cover gas fridges.
or gas air conditioners
My RV has one. No clue how it works lol
Those are really niche and normal [electric] fridges are much cheaper to operate.
or gassy people
@@kabj06 en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Absorption_refrigerator
*laughs in 3 phase, 30A × ?, 240V electricity*
In all seriousness tho, this is quite informative and has cleared up a lot of things I was wondering about when it comes to US electrical systems
We laugh in minimum 380V 3PH 16A in our houses. Most often in 25A.
@@Pentti_Hilkuri 16A is actually really low… in order to be selective that means you can only run 10A circuit breakers. I'd hope you get 25A minimum.
@@arienh4 AT my country most houses have 20A inlet which then is only split intro "lights" and "sockets" lol At least we got current leak protection onto the system. Chile btw 220v
@Cr0Lar I mean we can get three phase installed. A lot of people have 3 phase in thier sheds or garages for things like mills and lathes
Most houses in Germany have 3 phase 240V 50A or 63A .
100A is not as common but gets used too.
It is common to have a "400V" 32A (5p CEE) outlet in the garage/workshop,
the bigger garages/workshops will also have a "400V" 63A outlet.
Gets used mostly for: air compressors,, grinding wheels, saws and welders
I work in electric wholesale.
Glad I watched, had no clue the volts running through my POE cameras so high. I have taken off countless panel covers on homes when I worked as a site surveyor for Solar City. Electric knowledge is amazing when you truly begin to understand how it works- great video even made me laugh
If you think that is high... You should see the voltage of your pots phone line when ringing :)
@@frankgay5595POTS phone lines run AC when ringing at about 100 V RMS 20 Hz
I have been on the internet for a very long time. This is one of the most interesting and informative videos I have ever watched.
I'm proud to say I've been shocked by 240UK and 120US. 240 hurt more. I have also stood on a UK plug. Being shocked by 120V hurts less than stepping on a UK plug (in the common case)... I don't think anyone has died from stepping on a plug, they just wish they had.
Say no more, I've been shocked by 120AC, 240AC, 400AC and 570DC... Nothing in the whole world compares to stepping on a UK plug!! It's a horrible sensation!!
@@TiagoAlmeidalive
I have never stepped on a UK plug ever. I know no one who has. I have had these around me all my life.
@@johnburns4017 so?
Avoiding electrical shocks is much easier and less costly than avoiding using more copper or aluminium to make thicker wires to carry more current in low voltage.
@@iamnormal8648
Also, fitting RCBOs and RCDs keeps people alive.
"A spark from inrush current won't hurt anything"
Electroboom: "Hold my beer..."
the guy who managed to blow up a UK plug
next level
It doesn't hurt the device any more than a power outage would, but the spark can char the terminals.
I read this sentence as he actual spoke it, like a subtitle, lol.
I was surprised that he didn't mention his previous video where he showed the fact that there is a spark inside of the switch, so there will be a spark regardless.
It'll hurt a room full of hydrogen.
UK resident here. Switches on sockets is crazy - whenever I've replaced any, I've replaced them with the non-switched type. They're freely available here. I don't know if there's "code" here which forces their installation by builders but as you can get non-switched ones from B&Q (retailer) I doubt it.
The UK plug is quite ingenious. Aside from the fact that the cable exits parallel to the wall which makes for the "foot hazard" if left lying around unplugged, it also means you're less likely to be able to trip over a cable when it is plugged-in as it immediately falls downward. Or, if you do trip over a cable, then less likely to rip the plug out of the wall. And if you rip the cables out of the plug, the Earth cable will be the one pulled out last, so maintains the "safety" element. Also, the earth pin is longer, which opens the shrouds inside the sockets for Live and Neutral (which are normally closed to prying baby-sized fingers), and both Live and Neutral pins themselves are shrouded so that you cannot touch the contact point while it is actually connected to the supply while you are plugging one in (or unplugging).
But yeah, they're a bastard if you tread on them and they are larger than most other countries' plugs.
Ring mains circuits comes from the post-war era, and was a cost saving measure at the time. It was dressed-up as another safety mechanism but doesn't really hold water APART from the fact that you have two paths for earth which is a technical win... not sure how often it's tested in practice though.
Plug-based fuses was originally intended to ensure no single device could draw more than the 13A max and therefore overload the ring, but these days they're irrelevant because, in the event of an overload, the plug fuse will not fail before the consumer board RCD trips anyway.
Thanks for the video - it's a fascinating insight into the US system which has always baffled me.
I actually wonder if we're due some regulations changes over here to accommodate the low-energy devices we are starting to see. My house is less than 2 years old so has LED wiring everywhere. Running that off 240V seems a bit odd and I wonder at what point (size of house/cable runs) you need to get to before a DC lighting system wasn't preferable.
Thank you for clearing up the misunderstanding. I'm an electrician in New Zealand and always heard America is 120 volts. Your explanations are very accurate.
Erich from New Zealand 😁
The common American voltages are 120V, 208V, 240V, 277V & 480V. . . There are others, but these are the common ones found in homes and small offices and factories.. . .
120V is almost always Single-phase L-N .. . . 208V can be Single-phase, 2-phase L1-L2, or 3-phase L1-L2-L3. . . . . 240V can be Single-phase L-N, 2-phase L1-L2, or 3-phase L1-L2-L3. . . . . 120/240V is actually 2-phase, but the Americans will not call it that, it uses L1-N-L2. . . . 277V is almost always and only Single-phase, L-N. . . . 480V is almost always 3-phase L1-L2-L3... . But much of the rest of the world uses 230/400V That is 230V Single-phase L-N, or 400V 3-phase.. . 230V is the natural Single-phase from a 400V 3-phase 4-wire supply, L1-L2-L3-N
My grandfather died in the AC/DC Wars; he was Thunderstruck.
That joke was a touch too much.....
LOL
such a shocking sense of humor
On the Highway to Hell?
@@sujimtangerines no, shockingly it was on electric avenue...
Alec: *draws eyebrows on house*
My smooth brain: haha house angery
no talk me angey
The house is mad because it only has 120 volts :)
I studied electrical engineering in France, here we just have 230V in house. The transformers output three phases and a neutral, the neutral is grounded. Each house in a neighborhood is connected to one of the phases and to the neutral conductor, so we have 230V between neutral and a phase. For bigger installations (industries or big buildings), we have the three phases and neutral, so depending on how we make the connections, we can have 230V or 400V (between two phases) for each circuit. But 99% of our devices are made for 230V.
It's really intersting to see how it works in other countries, so thank you so much for this video, and thanks to all other people posting details about theirs countries in comments! :)
I'm also really surprised to see such big powers for a single house. My house has a 3kW subscription for two people, and here 3 to 6 kW is really enough for most houses/families, except for really big houses or for people using a lot of machine-tools...
Our plugs in New Zealand used to be metal all the way up the pins. We use the same plug as Australia. Half the plug pins being non conductive till you get closer to the tip I think stared in the 90s. We have some old devices like old lamps and a old electric frying pan with the older style all metal pin plus on. In China they also use a AU/NZ style socket for some devices but they mount it upside down so the earth pin is at the top. China does however also use the US style plug that but at 220 volts. That socket tends to be a hybrid socket that will also take a 2 pin European plug. old house here in NZ I used to live in used a bigger version of the British style plug for the stove/oven. This was due to that socket being higher Amperage than the 10 Amps of a regular socket.
Lot of the sockets at my work also have 3 phase plugs with 4 round plugs (3 small - one big) they need to supply higher amperage or voltage for industrial machines. They can be 380 to 440 volts and the sockets are rated to handle up to 500 volts.
I'm an electrician from Australia and I thoroughly enjoyed this video haha cheers mate
Greetings, fellow Aussie! I recently had a sparkie install a new oven in my kitchen. He also fitted an isolator switch in-line with the conduit which is required by law. However, with the oven installed in its recess in the kitchen cabinet, the switch ends up being concealed behind everything and is completely out of sight / reach.
I suggested that he fit the switch to the wall outside of the cabinet where it would be accessible so that it can be turned off if necessary. But no, apparently he wasn't allowed to do that... The switch 'had' to be behind the oven specifically. Gotta love the nanny state. :o)
@@razeezar Im sorry mate but that is total bullshit and he needs to fix it as he has not followed the standards.
The cooking appliance isolator needs to be within 2 meters but also easly accessable without reaching across the cooking surface. If you need to you can tell him to double check AS3000:2018 Section 4.7.1
If you have any issues with getting it resolved I suggest you call your state licencing registrar.
I hope it is sorted for you. Peace.
@@dcaonoek Cheers Dane, I'll check that out.
razeezar Australia honestly seems like regulations gone mad.
It looks like section 4.7.1 pertains to open stove tops. I haven't found any specific info regarding an isolator required for built in ovens, but cursory reading of discussions on whirlpool indicate that an isolator is required for a stovetop but, confusingly, not for an oven. It'd be nice if the standards code stated this specifically either way!
Jeez, that strong roast at the end was harsh, I love it.
The thing is about the switches on sockets: wall warts, phone chargers, laptop chargers, etc. consume a not insignificant amount of power even when not charging/powering anything, and yer just unplug it, but wasn’t already covered that plugging in/unplugging can be a danger (before you get to wear and tear)? Yer I know the standard was created before wall warts were a thing (and actually you can buy sockets without switches here too).
It wasn't a roast, it was whining in the face of a clearly superior solution. Switches on outlets FTW.
Not a roast. Envy and jealousy at our clearly superior electrical system. Enjoy those sparking cables in the street too when the storm blows over the poles that carry it to your home. Ours; underground unless on pylons for long distance.
On that switch near the outlet: they sell mini devices at Amazon to cut power selectively which I use on things that don't have switches on them. For things like a blender, they do have an off switch but once I had a blender that had a trace of liquid that slid into the buttons (or had some electrical issue with it). One day I was sitting at the other side of the room, the blender just started sparking... if I had that switch by the outlet, I could've ensured no power went to it. Fortunately I was home.
I like the switches on UK style plugs. Its easier to switch on and off than unplugging/plugging the entire cord in tight/hard to reach spaces. eg, a Smart tv that is on standby when powered on...if the tv hangs and you want to do a cold startup and the cord/switch is hard to reach, using the switch is easier than unplugging it and fumbling trying to plug it back in just by feeling it.
For anyone commenting on how “bad” his panel is, I’ve seen WAY worse when old buildings upgrade the circuits without upgrading the panels. My parents 97 year old home had so many wires in in before upgrading to a full 200 amp panel it was literally dangerous.
Dual circuit breakers (yes they are real) WITH two wires in each circuit because there was just no room for more breakers being a 100 amp panel.
Oh and nob and tube wiring which often was wired incorrectly and electrified the device instead of grounding it! In the US older homes can be an electrical fire waiting to happen.
Yeah I would consider his panel damn near pristine compared to.... well almost any house I've ever lived in. I mean, you can tell what runs where, it's labelled, wires run in logical lines! Mostly all installed in the last 50 years! No immediately obvious fire hazards! I would be downright pleased to have a panel that clean.
I've lived in a house with 3 distinct generations of wiring systems - the original knob & tube with cotton sheathing, then some rubber-sheathed/cotton wrapped, then some 90's rubber sheathed/rubber wrapped, all fed haphazardly into a semi-recent 100A panel. You can tell that the skill of the person doing the wiring went down with each generation of wiring too - the original stuff was actually installed decently. The later stuff was a bloody nightmare.
It's really common to see houses with a mix of Aluminum and Copper wiring, or with the original knob & tube running into the original fuse panel, which was unhooked and then fed from a 60A breaker on a new panel - leaving the old stuff as is and just installing anything new into the new main panel.
Yeah it honestly looks like a pretty normal 200 amp panel, just with more circuits than most single family homes have. I've seen MUCH worse wiring jobs. And honestly, how much does it even matter if the wiring in the panel is kinda messy? It's covered for a reason, and you shouldn't be messing with that shit unless you really know what you're doing anyway. In which case you'd probably know enough to kill the main before digging around in there.
Oh yeah, because folks love to get electrocuted in the morning by touching their toaster.
@@real_joshua I'm very glad that according to NEN (Dutch DIN) the entire fuse box must be replaced to be up to code on any significant change.
In my panel everything is ground to the neutral lead, the house doesn't have a grounding rod. Yay 1920s electrical code (or lack thereof)!
Interesting point regarding the UK plug switches: Yeah, a lot of our stuff that's not pure electrical does not have an off switch (generally electronics just.. don't) as you're expected to interrupt the circuit at the wall.. however: We have the switches for a different reason.
Our plugs are so big and over-engineered for safety that insertion cycles becomes a problem so they're actually there to save a pile of plugging in and removal causing work hardening/loosening of the contacts in the socket - flick the switch rather than break the receptical by having to over-use it..
Yeah, here in the US we don't worry about stuff like that. Our plugs come pre loosened.
I will still never get over Tom Scott's video on British plugs where he explains that in the olden days, British appliance manufacturers weren't required to put plugs on their products, so most appliances came with a bare wire that the customer had to attach a plug to themselves.
Also it means we can remove the foot hazard caused by having dangly plugs everywhere 😎
Sammie1053 Ironicly in the US, you can still buy an appliance without a cord, so you have to buy the cord and wire it up. I think it is mostly on stuff like refrigerators and washing machines, tho.
Edit: What I meant to say was ovens and dryers. Sorry about that.
@@Sammie1053 We still commonly teach students how to wire plugs in physics lessons in school - incidentally it's quite useful because it means plugs can be removed and added to cables so we can change cable lengths etc ourselves without wasting perfectly good plugs 👍
In Europe it is 240V standard for 1-fase connections. 400V for 3-fase connections. You can have both in 1 home, the cable from the the electricity company is always 400V 3-fase compatible, but a lot of homes are only connected on 1 fase 1x40A . When you have L1, your neigbour has L2 and the next one L3 and then back to L1. The other connection that you can get is 3x25A 400V, it can handle both 240V or 400V
This is true (although since about 40 years its 230 V in all of Europe, Turkey, Russia, India, Australia...).
But this is also an important point, when Alec points out that the US system is 240 V - then the European system is 400 V, compare apples with apples.
Hi Guy! I'm from Argentina, and here we use the Type I plug (the same one used in Australia), which is more secure. Formerly we used the European Type C plug, but since it was more insecure, this current plug began to become popular. Type C is still used in some applications, but most homes in my country use Type I, and they make mixed plugs for both types.
I agree that the American Type A and B plug is very unsafe.
When I connect an appliance that came from the USA, the electrical spark that it gives is greater than with the plugs that we use there (since we use 220-240 V).
Type I is definitely better for any devices that are not double insulated and need a protective earth pin, which Type C doesn't have, but I wonder why then Argentina moved to Type I for that and not Type F (Schuko). Type F is arguably safer than the Type I plug, which has the same issue as the American plugs where things can touch live prongs on half-inserted plugs. Type F sockets prevent that since they're recessed. Especially puzzling to me since sockets for Type F would have had the additional benefit of also fitting existing Type C plugs for devices that don't need the third pin for PE.
@@ska042 About type F plugs, I don't know why they weren't adopted. What I did see in some older houses that used type L plugs (which is like type C, but with a third pin to ground), which could have been suitable, and we would not need to adopt a different system. But hey, these are things I will never know.
Fun story, I once accidentally dropped a nickel off the end of my bed and it fell on the two plug posts in that tiny gap between the plug and the outlet. I saw a huge flash of blue light a flame and puff of smoke. Luckily it tripped the breaker but when I found the nickel it was black had two slots melted into it about halfway down. The plug posts were melted pretty bad too. Kind of terrifying really. All because that plug just happened to be a couple millimeters away from the wall and that nickel just happened to perform a one in a million shot. I'm glad my apartment didn't burn down.
That can't happen with UK Plugs, the pins are protected from such a short condition.
That's one reason power outlets are often installed with the ground pin on top. But if your plug has no ground pin, it has no effect. I suppose power outlets could be installed landscape-style.
@@Johnny.Fedora First, UK live pins can not be touched even by a nickel or knife blade, when they are in the Outlet far enough to actually be live, and that is without the Earth pin at the top further protecting, , , I believe all American installations since about 20 years ago, had to be 3-pin Outlets, OK, there are many 2-pin plugs still in use in America.. . . Actually I have always installed American double Outlets in landscape-style.
@@hughleyton693, you are correct -- my post was U.S.-centric (and the electrical code has required AC sockets with ground (earth) pins for a lot more than 20 years).
Welp, that image is going to stick with me forever, any time I see a plug which is even slightly loose. I now have a newfound appreciation for "upside-down" grounded outlets with ground at the top.
"To those of you in europe this looks horribly gross and terribly unsafe"
Laughs in hanging brakers
It looks idiot proof. And should be. We still use fusible copper wire here
It makes a lot of sense where you have a huge variety of distribution situations. In the UK we have 3-phase, 440/240v (delta/star voltages). Most households are 240 unless a 440v is specially run for a workshop etc. I love 3-phase as on a 'star' connection, if you get all phases balanced out there is no return current and therefore no return current volt-drops. I think our choice of voltage goes back to wartimes when copper was in short supply. For the same reason our house power sockets are wired in a 'ring' format where the wiring comes back to the fuse board completing a ring for each conductor. Again, you can cut copper size for the same volt-drop. Nothing unsafe about your setup though, although you have to be careful you don't find a socket outlet connected between the two phases.
Maybe not being idiotproof isn't a bad idea at all. I mean, natural selection should do its thing right?
@@brianmason9803 Yes but our plugs are so much beefier to take the current at our disposal, rather than the thin little blades. Beside,stepping on one of our plugs with bare feet is just painful, their's must actually slice into the sole of the foot...
@@Alexander-jr8nw We have GFI, usually limited to individual lines in kitchen, bath and outdoors, mains are available but very rarely ever used.
Superbe video!!! In Argentina we use one main breaker outside the house and another inside, 240v of course. Cheers from an engineer.
Haha, love the rant on UK switches on the plugs. They really are insane. Other fun fact that even less people know, the US split fase 240 power can also still be found in older area's in for instance the city of Amsterdam. (Netherlands) although this system is being fased out. (Pun intended) another fun fact, in the Netherlands we have something called pirilex. This also combines two circuit brakers. For example, an electric furnace will need 240V and about 16 Amps two run two plates. But a stove might have for plates. That makes a wiring with one neutral, two times a fase from two different brakers and an earth, thus four wires and even so interesting plug as the one you showed for the dryer. We also can opt for three fase. That's rather interesting. It will let you create 400 Volts. That way the four plates of the furnace can be powered at ones. But this comes with different breakers, and extra heavy power plugs. But, for safety, most "high consumers" carry an earth lead. So not just bathrooms and kitchens are secured for earth leakage. Every circuit in our modern standard house is secured.
Technology Connections: "A quick reminder on what transformers do: They're more than meets the eye."
Me: *grumbles while I look for the TC Patreon*
And over here they do not meet the eye in such an awful way!
Transformers are housed in small brick buildings with a steel door, found on street corners usually.
The cables are buried under the pavement, not strung along those awful poles.
@@Rob2 Underground is a lot more aesthetic, but a lot more hassle and costlier. Needs way more insulation, and way more armor for when those brainless waterworks dudes go digging and put their shovel into the power line.
i don't get this
@@paulmichaelfreedman8334 That happens, but it does not appear to cause any problems apart from a blown fuse and donwtime on the power.
On the other hand, we do not have power outages caused by a storm or blizzard...
@@Rob2 Agreed, it's more robust against the elements. Both have their perks and downs.
The best warning I've ever heard is "It will kill you, and it will hurt the whole time you are dying!"
The Thought Emporium re microwave oven transformers if I recall.
Awe... That's not true... Only hurt for a second... Lol.
Just saw that warning the other day. It was on a 3 phase hydraulic pressure pump. Someone appears to have some free time because is also had signs on 5 sides... might have been one under it, couldn’t tell.
AvE for the win!
we all have 240 volt in the UK
good general description. My Electrical engineers description. the two 120v amplitude transformer output taps are 180 degrees or opposite phase. combining both phases adds to a 240 peak to peak voltage power line. this is why big air conditioners, water heaters, welders, etc just tap off the two (180 deg phase difference) hots on the rails, and sometimes dont bother with the neutral!
AC voltage is expressed in RMS, not peak-to-peak. 240V RMS is 679V peak-to-peak.
Cool video! It was much more entertaining than I expected.
Anyone else now want a shirt that says "Like a 'lil furnace, but tumbly." ?
I was about to write a comment about how adorable that line was.
You're weird!
That runs on natrual (sic) gas. :)
Yesssss!!!!
czcams.com/video/1TqBSI8ZBzQ/video.html
"Transformers are more than meets the eye". Solid. Also, props for using only one hand when measuring across the 240V at the top of the panel. SMART!
Mentioned the one hand rule to a dude a while back and it turned into a whole thing about how much of an idiot I was for believing that, I grew up in an electronics classroom, my stepdad used to do TV repair on CRTs, one hand rule saves lives, sucks for my stepdad though he's left handed, the proper hand is the right to lessen the chance that it goes through your heart.
@@travismason2811 Pardon my ignorance: who is the real idiot then? Is the one hand rule false?
I'm glad I checked for similar comments prior to posting mine. I had the same two observations. Covering WHY we do a one handed voltage check would be nice for another video!
At first, I thought using one hand was more dangerous, too. If your dexterity isn't too good, you could cross the probes. But then I realized that if both hands came in contact with the contacts, you would have 240V, 120V, going from one had to the other, with your heart in the middle. With one hand the current flow would just be from one finger to the other.
When I was young I grabbed both leads of a 120 circuit with both hands. It felt like somebody kicked me in the chest. I jumped back about six feet.
@@travismason2811 Why would that lessen the chance it goes through your heart? I'm pretty sure that's not actually true.
the way he went off at the end was so insanely cathartic
I love the way you caption your outtakes
Well, when we combine two phases we have 400 V ;)
And since we get three phases into our house (in Germany), this is quite common to have a 400 V outlet somewhere.
And in case you wonder, usually you get 63 A on each phase.
I'm from Germany and I still know many places without 400V outlets, but mostly, those houses are older than 30 years.
And by the way, the showed service panel looks quite messy, compared to a new panel here in Germany and other countries in Europe.
Russia, the same. Rural areas have 400v too. Switched from 220/380 to 230/400 some years ago.
@@ilyacheladin1 Probably that changed with the fall of Soviet Russia. I think the GDR had 220/380 too.
You can also get 400v in the USA if you need it. Usually most houses have natural gas so they don't need anymore than 240v my heating is natural gas so it s very cheap I pay like $45 in winter -10c to heat my house super super cheap. So I don't need to waste money for 400v panel.
@@Skyliner04s In Spain we had 127 (1-phase) and 220V (3-phase), then we changed to the European 220/380 (so we could still use 220V-rated appliances), which with time was finally raised up to 230/400.
Just a minor addendum because you stressed the "see, we have 240V too" point a few times in your video.
In Europe we have 400V just like you have 208V, with the same 3 phases and stuff. And many residential homes are supplied that way, not only large buildings.
I wrote this comment not because "nanana, Europe is still one ahead of you" (who even makes that point ugh), but because I missed that parallel between the two electrical systems in the video, which at least makes them a bit more alike.
Exactly!
480v 3 phase systems are also fairly common in the US. So we've got 80 more volts. ;)
I came here to write that comment
Not only pretty much all houses have 3 phase power, but, if there's no gas supplied, flats also typically have 3 phases used mainly by electric/induction cookers.
@@BenjaminSahlstrom you know that 400V is the effective voltage, while peak Voltage is 530V on European 3 phase?
AC voltages are weird, European AC voltage (single-phase) actually peaks around 330V, IIRC.
15:55 that happened to me recently! i was trying to unplug our oven because we were replacing it and i grabbed the plug the wrong way. got a huge fright, but thankfully i was ok. i'm very thankful that nothing bad happened