3 ms·
It's dirt simple to add, as the garage is usually where the distribution box is anyway. And lots of tools (and now, electric cars) can take advantage of 240.
by Baeocystin 9y ago
It's dirt simple to add, as the garage is usually where the distribution box is anyway. And lots of tools (and now, electric cars) can take advantage of 240.
- azinman2 9y agoBut the theory was that it's easy to charge when visiting friends/family because they'll already have it.
- Baeocystin 9y agoOf the houses I've lived in, and the ones of my friends, I'd say ~75% of them have 240 outlets in the garage that were there from the start, usually for the dryer. FWIW.
- Lio 9y ago> And lots of tools (and now, electric cars) can take advantage of 240. Off topic: That's interesting to know. In Europe (UK) where 240V (well more like 230V these days) is the standard, it's not uncommon to see professional workmen using step-down boxes and 110V power tools for safety reasons.
- jakobegger 9y agoReally? I have never heard of that in Austria. All power tools use 230V. I've never seen or heard of a 110V tool that's on sale in Europe. I could imagine that some professional might use a specialized tool in a niche where only a 110V version is available -- but I've never heard of that either. The safety aspect sounds odd -- 230V is not that dangerous, especially considering that ground fault circuit breakers are mandatory. Accidentally touching a live 230V wire doesn't really hurt that much.
- Lio 9y agoI guess it might just be a UK health and safety thing. Like you I've touched 230v a couple of times as a kid but can't say it's exactly pleasant. This blog post lists the reasons professional builders in the UK could use 230v and an RCD but generally dont. https://www.its.co.uk/blog/buying-guides/what-is-110v-do-we-need-it/ https://www.its.co.uk/blog/buying-guides/what-is-110v-do-we-...
- jakobegger 9y agoThanks for the link! It looks like there's another important safety feature: the center of the output side of the transformers is connected to ground --> this means that you have two phases that both have only 55V to ground. I imagine that accidentally touching an exposed wire with a voltage difference of 55V is a lot less dangerous than 230V. I love HN. You learn new stuff every day.