So,
here’s something interesting: Italy’s electricity is different from America’s.
First of all, I need this stupid adapter to get anything plugged in and done.
Second of all, I need to make sure that everything I plug in works at 220V. And
why is that? Because if I don’t, then it will fry.
 |
| This thing is so useful, and so necessary. |
Let’s
start with a talk about electrical current. Power is generated either through
the consumption of fossil fuels or through some other source of energy
(nuclear, wind, solar, etc.). This power is in the form of electricity.
Electrical current is the flow of the electrical charge through a medium (like
power lines). Most power lines work on Alternating Current (AC), meaning that
the current cycles (at 50 Hz in Italy, 60 Hz in the US). This is as opposed to
Direct Current (DC), which is much harder to distribute over long distances.
With AC, power is distributed from the power plant to our appliances. Of course,
the voltage is controlled by transformers along the power line, which are able
to use magnetic fields and some simple electromagnetic math to convert
electricity from one voltage from another. It should be clear that the power of
a device is equal to the voltage times the current (considering the voltage is
how much energy is in each particle and the current is the number of particles
per second, this makes sense). This means that if the voltage is too high, the
device will be overpowered and fry.
We all
had to check our devices that we brought on this trip to ensure they were 220V
compatible. Luckily, laptop chargers generally do work at these voltages. Also,
my cell phone charger works here. Sadly, my charger for my electric toothbrush
didn’t, so I had to leave that behind. It’s a sad but true reality, unless you
have what is basically a giant waste of space (a portable transformer that will
step up or down the current for your specific device), you will have to leave
something behind. I hope the people who wanted hair driers were able to find
some way to manage.
So this leads me to an interesting question.
Why is the US 110-120V and Italy 220V? Is there some specific reason? Well,
back in the day, everyone seems to have used the lower voltage, but Europe
realized that it would be smarter and easier to use the higher voltage. Sadly, this
was impractical for the United States, whose residents already had too many
lower voltage appliances. So, the old voltage stands (although it was upped
from 110 to 120 in the 1950’s).
Another
thing: voltage is not what kills you, but rather current. However, with twice
the voltage, a higher current through your body is possible, and currents in
Europe are far more dangerous than currents in the United States. When we see
the blue shocks in the US coming from our outlets, it generally doesn’t mean
much to us. However, seeing it in Europe (which I have), is not something to be
as blasé about as I would think, apparently. It’s serious business, an electric
shock could kill you here. So be safe, have fun, enjoy charging your laptops,
and I hope you were a bit more educated today!
Sources:
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