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Volt Dual
Traveling With Dual Voltage Appliances
Dual voltage appliances are great for travel because all you need is the correct adaptor plug (or plugs) for the country that you are going to visit.
So just exactly what does "dual voltage" mean?
They are appliances that are designed to operate on voltage anywhere between 110 and 240 volts without damage. They can be used almost any where in the world, and the beauty of it is they eliminate the need for voltage converters or transformers. Dual voltage appliances should be clearly marked as such at the power connection point.
Some accommodate automatically... my spouse's curling iron does. On other appliances you may need to flip a switch, I need to change the setting on my electric razor. You might want to change that setting as you pack so you don't forget to change it once you arrive.
If your shaver or curling iron isn't dual voltage, you'll probably need a voltage transformer or converter so it will work. And so you won't burn it up or worse... like blow a fuse in your Bed and Breakfast or something.
Here's a little story... My spouse's old curling iron was not dual voltage. She used to plug it in and unplug it in short intervals as she used it. That wasn't optimal, but it worked. When we were traveling with a friend in France, I told her about the scheme. She tried it too... only she didn't unplug her curling iron as soon as she should have...
She didn't burn up her curling iron, but you should have seen how she fried her hair.... and it was in the FRONT!!!! It took her weeks to grow it out. The good news is we're still good friends, and the moral to that story is get an appliance with dual voltage or use a voltage converter!
How do you know if your appliance is dual voltage? Look on the box when you buy it, or on the appliance. Somewhere on that electronic gizmo, it tells you what the electrical input requirements are.... Look on the back, or the bottom, or the handle. If it says something like 110/240 volts, the appliance is dual voltage. You won't need that transformer/converter but you may still need an adaptor.
Most modern electronic equipment like laptops are multi-voltage, meaning they will operate on voltages ranging from 110-240 volts. So you will be OK with just an adaptor... You can go ahead and charge your computer, cameras, and camera batteries and even your MP3 player.
Look for dual voltage appliances when you're preparing for your trip. That way you won't have to buy and pack a converter or transformer.... just pack your adaptors and you'll be ready electronically anywhere in the world.
Of course, if you were looking for NSW Central Coast accommodation, then you could be confident that you wouldn't find any problems with power conversion particularly if you started your trip in Australia. Find out more at websites such as BookCentralCoast.com.au.
About the Author
This travel tip is brought to you by Stuart Hely of BookCentralCoast.com.au, the specialists in Avoca accommodation and Avoca Beach accommodation. Check us out for the best NSW Central Coast accommodation deals on Avoca accommodation, hotels, resorts, apartments and holiday houses.
what happens when you use only half the windings of a 3 phase dual voltage motor when connected to low voltage?
My 3ph , 7.5 hp dual voltage 230/460 volt motor of my home lathe, is more powerful then I need and it needs more current then I can feed it. It will be powered by a VFD which will need to be derated to operate my motor.To change the motor to a smaller one is not easy, so I would like to find a way to operate the existing motor in a derated capacity if possible
The current drawn by the motor is mostly determined by the load. The most important thing to do is be careful not to cut too aggressively. The motor will draw 30% of nameplate current or more with no load at all. However, most of that current will be supplied by the DC bus capacitors in the VFD. You are apparently using an over-sized VFD so that you can use single-phase input even though the VFD is designed for 3-phase input. The input current to the VFD will be determined by the actual power used by the lathe plus losses. The motor's magnetizing current will not be reflected in the VFD input. The difficulty that you might have with the VFD is that current will flow into the VFD to charge the DC bus capacitors only at the peak of the input voltage waveform. Instead of a sine wave input current you will have narrow pulses of input current. That could cause your circuit breaker to trip. Voltage distortion could cause problems with other electrical loads in your home, but if you don't run the lathe heavily loaded for long periods of time it will probably be ok.
It will probably be better to use the normal 230 volt connection rather than only half the windings. The motor will be more efficient and using half the windings won't have much effect on the current drawn.
Re-Volt Neighborhood1 Dual Wide-Screen with WolfR4 and Horizontal Span
One Comment
some battery chargers are fire harazd so be careful when using one`::