hair dryers

[6zfshdb]

It's hard to tell in the video, but there may be slope involved. He could be going slightly down hill.

 

[PCeBiker]

Ever try to use your stove with the burner only set to 100% the entire time?

Yeah, when I boil water.

That can take 20 minutes at full blast for a few liters of water.
I can start burning a in 5 minutes at full blast.

I never use the presets... Same goes for my air fryer toaster oven.

Me either.
I just use the microwave at full blast.

I "reset" my toaster oven all the time.
It's just three simple dials that show everything and are easy to read.

Yes basically that's how it works... But by adding time and adjusting duty cycle legnth the end results in a microwave are drasticly different.

But it's such a PITA to learn and remember how to adjust things that I never bother.
I know that I could study the owners manual but I don't want to bother and it bugs me that I have to.

You do realize that a gas stove is a totally different thing and I use them in two totally different ways.

My stove and old-school microwave are so stupid simple to operate that I'm adjusting the throttles all the time.

This it the wind up timer I'm using to charge my vape pipe,..

There's no scale, I don't need it.
I can tell for lookin where to set it to shut off at 70% charge.

 

[spokewrench]

I checked a 1600 W hair dryer. At 117 V it pulled 11 A and used 1300 W. If it could be fed a full 125 VAC, it would pull about 12 A.

The power factor was 1.0.

 

[Chazmo]

I checked a 1600 W hair dryer. At 117 V it pulled 11 A and used 1300 W. If it could be fed a full 125 VAC, it would pull about 12 A.

Maybe a 1600W dryer would work if it’s really only pulling 1300W, spoke.

My electrician friend told me that a 15A breaker is really only adequate for about 1400W sustained — even if the math says they should operate to 1800W at 120VAC. In any case, all the dryers on the shelves in Wal-Mart were advertising 1875W and they were blowing the 15A breaker within less than 5 minutes of operation at high power.

Bottom line, I got a Conair 1200W model (which I had to order online) and that is no longer tripping the 15A breaker.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

A 1600 W hair dryer draws less than 7 A in Europe. You people in the North America should "thank" Edison for convincing the nation 230 V was unsafe...

 

[Gionnirocket]

At that time it was very much indeed.
The only reason you use 230v is Europe is you're too poor to afford copper required to do it safely.
And you should thank the USA that we allow you to use our inventions... Electricity, GPS, Internet... etc, etc, etc...

 

[PCeBiker]

You people in the North America should "thank" Edison for convincing the nation 230 V was unsafe...

I haven't done it in about a decade, but I used to have a few drinks, then lick my finger and stick it in a light socket for shits and giggles and to freak people out.

I'd probably need half a case of to try that with 230 V, then I'd probably pass out and maybe never wake up.


These things are fun to play with too,..

You don't have to be drunk, but it makes it funner, you laugh louder, and it doesn't hurt as much.

 

[6zfshdb]

At that time it was very much indeed.
The only reason you use 230v is Europe is you're too poor to afford copper required to do it safely.
And you should thank the USA that we allow you to use our inventions... Electricity, GPS, Internet... etc, etc, etc...

Don't forget the transistor!

 

[PCeBiker]

Don't forget the transistor!

I'll never forget vacuum tubes.
And I think we should bring back Morse Code !!

They brought back cursive writing, so they should do the same thing with Morse Code.

Sundials too.
They're much more accurate, unless the sun starts to wobble.

 

[Stefan Mikes]

The only reason you use 230v is Europe is you're too poor to afford copper required to do it safely.

Yes. And America is Great Again.

Need some eggs? US$3.83 for a dozen.

 

[spokewrench]

Maybe a 1600W dryer would work if it’s really only pulling 1300W, spoke.

My electrician friend told me that a 15A breaker is really only adequate for about 1400W sustained — even if the math says they should operate to 1800W at 120VAC. In any case, all the dryers on the shelves in Wal-Mart were advertising 1875W and they were blowing the 15A breaker within less than 5 minutes of operation at high power.

Bottom line, I got a Conair 1200W model (which I had to order online) and that is no longer tripping the 15A breaker.

I think the word is not "sustained" but "planned." Watts depend on voltage and power factor as well as amps. Breakers and fuses care only about amps. The NEC is about planning. It says a home circuit shouldn't be intended for more than 80% of the breaker or fuse rating. That gives the homeowner leeway to plug in something more powerful than the builder anticipated, or to have more devices pulling current than anticipated.

Fuses were another reason to plan to use only 12 amps (80%) in a 15 amp circuit. Did you ever have to replace a fuse in a car or house and find no possibility that there had been an overload? At 15 amps, the resistive element of a 15 amp fuse will get almost hot enough to melt. Cycles of heating and cooling can cause fatigue. Eventually, the element will break, with or without evidence of blowing. Limiting usual current use to 12 amps would reduce heating by a third, which would reduce fatigue.

Instead of guessing that a hair dryer uses more than 12 amps, why not get a meter and measure? I already had three when I bought this one. It was so cool that I bought another.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0D5QMK3BP

Homes I've seen with fuses have had fewer 120 V circuits than those with breaker panels. Fewer circuits mean a greater risk that when you turn on a hair dryer, there will be other stuff pulling amps through the same fuse. That may have been the problem at your mother's house. A 1200 W dryer looks like a good solution.

 

[Chazmo]

I think the word is not "sustained" but "planned." Watts depend on voltage and power factor as well as amps. Breakers and fuses care only about amps. The NEC is about planning. It says a home circuit shouldn't be intended for more than 80% of the breaker or fuse rating. That gives the homeowner leeway to plug in something more powerful than the builder anticipated, or to have more devices pulling current than anticipated.

Fuses were another reason to plan to use only 12 amps (80%) in a 15 amp circuit. Did you ever have to replace a fuse in a car or house and find no possibility that there had been an overload? At 15 amps, the resistive element of a 15 amp fuse will get almost hot enough to melt. Cycles of heating and cooling can cause fatigue. Eventually, the element will break, with or without evidence of blowing. Limiting usual current use to 12 amps would reduce heating by a third, which would reduce fatigue.

Instead of guessing that a hair dryer uses more than 12 amps, why not get a meter and measure? I already had three when I bought this one. It was so cool that I bought another.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0D5QMK3BP

Homes I've seen with fuses have had fewer 120 V circuits than those with breaker panels. Fewer circuits mean a greater risk that when you turn on a hair dryer, there will be other stuff pulling amps through the same fuse. That may have been the problem at your mother's house. A 1200 W dryer looks like a good solution.

Spoke, FYI I was referring to a 15A circuit breaker(s) in a home that was built in the 1960s in New England. Not fuses. While I could measure the power draw, the problem is/was obvious when I did the math. In any case, the 1200W Conair dryer seems to be working fine without tripping the15A circuit breaker. It just annoys me no end that all the dryers on the shelf are 1875W, which seems ridiculous (to me).

 

[spokewrench]

Spoke, FYI I was referring to a 15A circuit breaker(s) in a home that was built in the 1960s in New England. Not fuses. While I could measure the power draw, the problem is/was obvious when I did the math. In any case, the 1200W Conair dryer seems to be working fine without tripping the15A circuit breaker. It just annoys me no end that all the dryers on the shelf are 1875W, which seems ridiculous (to me).

When you opened this topic I understood you to say the bedroom was on a fuse. That's what fooled me.
Did your 1800 watt dryer have a plug like this? I'm sure it's against the National Electrical Code for a manufacturer to use a plug like this on a device that draws more than 15 amps. Even if on 20-amp circuits, household receptacles are rated at 15 amps.
If your dryer was tripping a 15 amp breaker, the simplest explanation I see is that there was something else drawing amps. When homeowners started buying electric fryers, coffeemakers, microwaves, and dishwashers, a lot of kitchens had that problem.

 

[Chazmo]

When you opened this topic I understood you to say the bedroom was on a fuse. That's what fooled me.
Did your 1800 watt dryer have a plug like this? I'm sure it's against the National Electrical Code for a manufacturer to use a plug like this on a device that draws more than 15 amps. Even if on 20-amp circuits, household receptacles are rated at 15 amps.
If your dryer was tripping a 15 amp breaker, the simplest explanation I see is that there was something else drawing amps. When homeowners started buying electric fryers, coffeemakers, microwaves, and dishwashers, a lot of kitchens had that problem.

View attachment 190710

Hi spoke,

No, all the dryers I’ve seen in recent memory (last 15 years??) have two pronged plugs emanating from a crappy, rectangular box that has some sort of circuit breaker button on it… Kind of like GFI sockets do. But, no 3 prong plugs.

 

[spokewrench]

Mine's a 2-prong, too! I should pay better attention. It's an NEMA 1-15 plug. When grounded plugs came out, the NEMA standard was the 5-15, as pictured. The 15 means a 15 amp limit.

Harvey Hubble invented the plug with two parallel blades in 1910. Before there was a manufacturer's code, a manufacturer might use that plug on equipment that drew enough current to blow the fuse or damage the receptacle. The NEMA standards date back to the 1940s. If a device draws more than 15 amps, the manufacturer must use a plug that won't fit a standard residential outlet.

For countertop kitchen appliances, I did what you did with hair dryers. I preferred models with less wattage so that maybe I wouldn't trip a breaker if two were running on the same circuit. I thought my breakers were 15 amps. Now I see they're 20. I should pay better attention. That explains why it's rare to trip one.

 

[Gionnirocket]

I disagree with the current d_bag in charge.. America has never been... not great.
... and then some wonder why/how stereotypes become a thing.
10 is not 12 or even 13 as in the case of a baker.

 

[PCeBiker]

You people in the North America should "thank" Edison for convincing the nation 230 V was unsafe..

We are all 240 VAC in North America, we just do if differently.

Just like an e-bike motor, there are 3 phases involved in our house current, they are named A B and C trunk at the Hydro pole.

EVERY Breaker panel is fed two of those trunks.
Each trunk has 120 VAC across to neutral and ground but the two trunks have 240 VAC between them.

That's where we get our 240 VAC from to run high power devices like AC or electric heat.

The two trunks are separated in the breaker panel where half the 120 V breakers (or fuses) are running off one trunk and the other trunk feeding the rest.

It really is a smart and safe way to do things.

I disagree with the current d_bag in charge..

So do I.

We need a new d_bag to run things, and I'm nominating you for the job.

I will support your campaign for leadership, but I don't want the job even though I am a fully qualified JackAss.

 

[kevinmccune]

I'm using my hair dryer as a boot dryer and melted the insoles because I kept bumping the temperature switch, so I taped over the switch.

Shoe Goo would work better

try wadded up news papers they will dry a pair of boots overnight.

 

[kevinmccune]

My cat Hated the blow dryer more than the bath.

I had to dry her though cause she woulda got sick if she was soaking wet for half the day,..


View attachment 189825View attachment 189826


She seemed to be OK with the industrial dryer but I wasn't gunna give her a test ride.


View attachment 189827


I remember back in the 80's when some old lady tried to dry her cat in the microwave.
It didn't end well.

That might still work for me?
I'm tall but I'm low mass.

My jet pack isn't portable though, so I'd have a 50' tether and a circular orbit around the outlet.
I'd have to lube up my wheel bearings with high tech low friction space lube too.

I've been dreaming of something like these since I got my first real pair of rollerskates in 1979,..


View attachment 189835

I had been running the crappy steel wheel clamp on version since I was 7 years old,..

View attachment 189836

I remember dreaming about her thinking she can use My Key Any Time She Wants !!!

suspect she has many miles on Her by now.

 

[kevinmccune]

My cat Hated the blow dryer more than the bath.

I had to dry her though cause she woulda got sick if she was soaking wet for half the day,..


View attachment 189825View attachment 189826


She seemed to be OK with the industrial dryer but I wasn't gunna give her a test ride.


View attachment 189827


I remember back in the 80's when some old lady tried to dry her cat in the microwave.
It didn't end well.

one of my neighbors used nail polish on a tick on her poodle,it apparently wasn't working fast enough,she tried to light the tick off,didn't work so well.