17 Feb
2006
17 Feb
'06
4:07 p.m.
On 2/17/2006 at 10:44 PM ard at p850ug1.demon.co.uk wrote:
What's a typical rating for an electric kettle?
1200-1500 watts would be typical. So that translates (at 120v) to 10A -
13A). Electric broilers are rated about the same. My vacuum cleaner
(Eureka, not Hoover) claims to have a "powerful 12A motor".
Industrial portable power tools are 110V over here,
operated from an
isolating transformer with the secondary centre-tapped to ground. The
idea being that if you accidentally touch a single wire, or the
insulation of the tool breaks down, the maximum voltage you will get
across you is 55V which is unlikely to be fatal. The typical transformer
used for these tools is rated at 3kW (OK, strictly 3kVA). I know my
father has an angle grinder which draws over 20A at 110V....
I assume that you're familiar with the 120v NEMA 2 wire (ungrounded) and
3-wire (grounded) 15A receptacles.
Much beyond that, it's a free-for-all affair, even under NEMA code.
Rather than enumerate them all here, I'll simply direct you to:
http://www.et-sales.com/Receptacles.htm
When I worked in a steel mill as a summer job during my time at the
university, the distribution there was even more bewildering: 25 Hz (110,
220 single and 440 3-phase); 60 Hz (120V, 240V single-phase, 208V, 440V
3-phase), DC (250V and 660V). I don't recall what the large machinery
(rolling mills, etc.) used, but I'm certain it was different from the stuff
available at the wild array of receptacles. I learned early on that a 110V
25Hz motor would run just fine on 240V 60Hz current. Mercury-vapor
lighting run on 25Hz would send one into an epileptic fit, while
incandescent lighting on 250v was wonderfully bright and steady.
Cheers,
Chuck