Skip to main content
Live chat will not be available on Monday, September 7th in observance of Labor day. We will reply to your request as soon as possible.
Help Center Community Shop

220 Volt appliances?

NeoBlackdog
I know that in Europe the standard wall plug voltage is 220 but on this side of the pond most everything is 110.
My wife and I are going to be building a new house in a couple years and I was wondering if there would be any advantage to wiring the kitchen appliances (fridge, microwave, etc.) to run on 220? I see lots of places to buy them on the interweb so purchasing the units shouldn't be a problem. Is it more efficient to use 220 over 110 for appliances? Energy cost savings? Pros/cons?
0

Comments

6 comments

Date Votes
  • Sam06
    Cost of wiring and outlets would be more.

    I think 110 is more economical in the long run but I am not an electrician. I know when I wired my barn for 220 to run a big air compressor and 2 welders the wire was very expensive as were the outlets.
    0
  • jimdeere
    No advantage.
    0
  • buschmaster
    oh no, it's 220. the electricity costs twice as much for that.
    0
  • Hessian
    You might want to also check what the Hz is on the appliances you are looking at. 50 or 60 Hertz makes a difference, on some appliances more profound than others. 50 Hz is around 15% more amperage, the converse is true, 60 Hz around 15% less for the same resistance. Some motors may overheat if you get the Hz wrong and/or run less efficiently. Reading the rating tag usually tells the story, you want it rated for the proper Hz and rated for the actual peak line voltage. Cheap 220-volt appliances may be rated for the wrong Hz or even the wrong voltage 220, 230 or 240 is possible. 220 is just a kind of shorthand, what you actually have in the lines may vary.

    The main reason for using 110 (120) is it is safer. 220 is actually marginally more efficient. IMO the difference doesn't really count for much until you get into higher amperages or you are thinking in large electrical grids.

    Many houses are wired for 220 (240), mainy for the clothes drier, sometimes for the oven.

    Volts X amps = watts. Wire size is rated in Amps. Two-phase 220/230/240 is two phases of 110/115/120, in effect two smaller wires instead of one big one.
    0
  • serf
    I have been told large motors or compressors run more efficiently on Three Phase 440-480volts. Most Office Buildings Building's large equipment runs on this Current directly. Depending on where you live and how Big your load would make this viable or not. Most 220 volts motors are required for soft starts now because of peak loads too.

    serf
    0
  • NeoBlackdog
    Thanks, Gents! Looks like it'll be put in with 110.
    0

Please sign in to leave a comment.

Recent Activity