Plants will arrive tommorow and i have no light!

[Satsumas]

I'm not sure where this post should go but i here it goes.

I have just recieved my Current USA Satellite Light Fixture from the US and it obviously comes with a US plug socket. Me being the braniac i am totally forgot about that and went ahead and ordered some plants the other night. Now the plants will arrive and i can only really float them in my other tank while i figure out how i can actually use my new light strip.

Do i need a US to UK adaptor?
i searched around for an answer but found nothing helpfull.
I'm pretty sure that the only way around the problem is by getting an adaptor but just to get some more info i thought i'd ask for your advice.

TIA

 

[7Enigma]

Yes you just need a simple adapter. It will convert the 220v you folks use to the 115?v us dumb American's use. Never have understood why we don't use the higher voltage.....

 

[jbarr]

Well... is the voltage necessary? Obviously it's not, if we've been making it w/o it. Or is it just 115-220v for light fixtures? Cause then I'd understand you're concern.

 

[7Enigma]

Voltage is just a part of the total current. Amperage is what kills people. Higher voltage with less amps (UK) will give the same current as lower volts with higher amps (US). So you have a safer electrocution when it happens. I think everyone here can admit to at one time or another getting an awful shock from a socket/fixture. Higher voltage is also more efficient over longer distances (high powered lines that travel across the country using several hundred thousand volts because the amount lost in transit is much less than lots of amps and low voltage). Think of voltage as the speed the energy (electrons) are moving, and think of amps as the amount of them that are present. You can either have a ton of them moving slowly, or a small amount moving quickly and you'll get the same amount of current. Ok that's it.

Clause: I'm drunk.

EDIT: If my ranting makes no sense:

http://science.howstuffworks.com/question501.htm

 

[Lonewolfblue]

Here's an idea of what to look for. Also, look on your fixture for total Watts so you know what size to get. Should be able to find something like these at a local electronics store like Radio Shack if you have them, or some place similar.

http://www.voltage-converter-transformers.com/step-down-transformer.html

 

[Satsumas]

I can only find US 110v to UK 240v transformers (Like this one: http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/MAINS-VOLTAGE...4QQihZ015QQcategoryZ96942QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem)

So do you folks use 110v?
What wattage should this light fixture be? I can't find any indication of this on the light strip, box it came in or paper's the came with it.

 

[7Enigma]

110v is the right one. We have a sometimes odd rating system over here because all electricity fluctuates some. You might be getting anywhere from 105v to 120v but all of the equipment should still work fine. Because of that some of our equipment is rated at 115v some at 120v, etc. Bottom line is, the one your looking at is fine.

 

[Satsumas]

Right. I've ordered one of those then.
Hopefully i'll get the plants on the same day as the voltage transformer but they'll probably arrive tommorow with the transformer arrving on friday.

Thanks for the help.

 

[rkilling1]

I can only find US 110v to UK 240v transformers (Like this one: http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/MAINS-VOLTAGE...4QQihZ015QQcategoryZ96942QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem)

So do you folks use 110v?
What wattage should this light fixture be? I can't find any indication of this on the light strip, box it came in or paper's the came with it.

Be careful. That transformer is only rated for 45 watts max and your light fixture is rated for 96 watts.

7Enigma, I do not know why america uses 110v's vs 220 (for most appliances), but I can tell you 220v is more dangerous. The higher the voltage, the more likely you are to die from being electrocuted. The higher the voltage, the more amps it can push.

 

[cabezon]

we do use 220 in the US, but usually only for the big appliances like the dryer or AC.

but that doesnt help this problem.

 

[Lonewolfblue]

This is the bare minimum you would want. The 45W one may not be enough. This is rated at 100W.
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/AC-Electricit...oryZ1280QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

Here's another....
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/UK-240V-to-US...2QQihZ006QQcategoryZ14968QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

And here's a 300W one....
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/240V-TO-110V-...6QQihZ014QQcategoryZ14968QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

 

[tropicfishman]

some pro guitar rigs and stages use up to 480 or 44o volts to run the lights, amps, PA, and guitar rigs, pink floyd uses an awesome setup where semi trucks with trailor sized generators produce all there power, but anyways yes all you need is a step down converter

 

[Satsumas]

Damn, i did ordered this... http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/MAINS-VOLTAGE...4QQihZ015QQcategoryZ96942QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

It should come today aswell. So thats more money wasted!

 

[Shubunkin01]

Rkilling, the third prong in a Uk plug is the earth wire. This is a fail safe for whenever something goes wrong. The electricity travels into the ground, not into a person or the appliance again. So, three prong plugs are safer than the ones americans and european people use . Also, 7Enigma is right. 220V CAN push out more current, but it doesn't.

We've just been doing this in school, so I should be pretty good at it!

 

[JRagg]

Voltage is just a part of the total current. Amperage is what kills people. Higher voltage with less amps (UK) will give the same current as lower volts with higher amps (US). So you have a safer electrocution when it happens.

Voltage is a part of power, not part of the current.

Yes, amperage (current) is what kills people. Amperage is current.

Higher voltage with less amps will give you the same Power as lower volts with higher amps.

Lower total voltage (also knows as electrical potential) is safer if you stick your finger in the outlet.

P = I*V (power = current * voltage)

goes with what I was saying and I think what you were trying to say.

V = I*R or I= V/R

Your body's resistance can be considered relitavely constant (unless you melt or drink a lot of gatorade or something). With a higher voltage, the current going through you will be higher, therefore more dangerous.

@Shubunkin01

Some US appliances have a third prong as well. It's generally not used on small appliances like lightbulbs, cd players, alarm clocks, etc., but when you get into larger appliances (power tools, large TVs, my aquarium lights, etc.) they will have a third grounding prong as well.