Everything You Need to Know About Voltages, Plugs, and Adapters Worldwide
We have often been told in our physics class that electricity, current, voltage and electrical appliances are not a matter of joke. However, some of us learn this the hard way for instance, by accidentally frying our camera while on a vacation in a different country.
Packing your bag, checking your to-do list, renewing your passport are matter of grave concern when you are about to travel, however a good look at the voltage used and plug configuration of the country you are going to stay in might also save your day (read: save your device).
Voltage
Most of the American manufactured appliances work at 110 volts. The Asian countries (with the exception of Japan) use 220–240 volts. Japan, North America, parts of South America and Caribbean countries use 100–125V. The user manual that often ends up in the garbage bin is of significance here. A thorough reading of the manual or checking the label of the appliance would tell you the voltage range suitable for the appliance. Manufacturers these days try to ease the traveling by making dual voltage devices — device that function on both 110/120 V and 220/240V. Mostly devices like laptop, smartphone, tablets are dual voltage devices.
But what if it is not a dual voltage device?
Let’s say you are a careless traveler coming from America to India who plugs in the device without reading its voltage range, you will end with a destroyed device (and a few tears, I guess!). if you are lucky it is only the few, but then it can always be the circuit too. In the opposite case, if you have gone from India to America your device won’t be able to juice up as it will not get the due amount it requires. Needless to say, you will need some help. `So, if your device uses a particular range of voltage to function then you will need a “voltage converter”. It’s a device that is capable of actually changing, manipulating the voltage.
While light electronic equipment are not much of an issue, heavier ones need to be used with more caution. The latter like coffee makers need higher power. The lighter ones could make use of 50 watt converter in contrast to the heavier ones which might require a 2000 watt converter. In case you are carrying both the type of devices you should take a combination converter that fulfills the need for both heavy and light appliances.
Wanna check your device voltage?
The label on the device would read something along the lines
INPUT: AC 100–240V ~ 1.0A 50/60 Hz
Here we are taking the example of a dual-voltage device. It is the upper limit of the voltage reading that is of primary importance. So, if you have imported a device from America to India and it does not read 240 or 220 V then do not plug it in as it might end up destroyed. The one with the A and Hz represent the amperage and the Frequency respectively. In India, we have 5A and 15A sockets while globally the common standard is between 10A and 16A. This is not an issue until you are using a heavy appliance. The frequency is related to voltage. So if your device falls under the accurate voltage range then frequency is also taken care of.
Shape
Say you happen to be in a country which operates the appliances on the same voltage like you have gone from, say India to South Africa. This still does not assure that your device would get proper supply of current as the outlet might be of a different shape. Each country has its own well defined voltage standards and plug configuration. There are a variety of of Plugs (Please look here for different type of plugs used globally — https://www.worldstandards.eu/electricity/plugs-and-sockets/). Asia, Africa and Latin America in particular use numerous Plug Types. Diverse as we are, it also reflects in the type of sockets that we use. The Type A and Type C are the most frequently used plugs worldwide.
So what if you have a charger of a different type?
That’s where an adapter comes in. It will fit your appliance into the outlet by changing the prong configuration while not affecting the electrical voltage at all. Hotels these days use what we call “universal socket”. These allow the people to plug in their devices which often make them believe that the device will be compatible with the voltage range used in the country as well. That is not true. The shape of the socket and voltage are different scenarios which must not be confused as this might lead to some accidental, irreparable damage to your device.
As said earlier, if you want to adjust the shape of your socket, you should go for an adapter. In case you need to adjust the voltage then buy a voltage converter. However, if your charger is of a different shape and functions on different voltage range then instead of buying two different devices, you can buy the dual purpose adapter that fulfills both the needs.
Thinking that you will need adapter and converter? Don’t worry as these are easily available at most travel stores and are mostly inexpensive. If you are done with the shopping and want to take some rest before you hit the road then the adapters and converters are also available online at the likes of Amazon so you can order them there and get those home delivered.
Originally published at Chip-Monks.
