Hi,
Is it safe to use a 220v UK charger on a 120v US mains supply. Both are rated 50-60Hz. I'm just curious. I know very, very little about electronics. Any advice would be appreciated.
Thanks, Steve
Can I safely use a 220v UK charger on a 120v US supply?
Apr 24, 2006
2 Replies
Examine the product label carefully, some modern appliances with switch mode PSU are rated for a wide range of input voltages which often goes down to
120V. If the unit is quite heavy for its size, it probably contains a conventional copper/iron transformer - this is unlikely to work well if at all on half the rated supply but is unlikely to be at any risk. If the unit is fairly light its probably a SMPSU - if it doesn't say on the label that it can run on 120V then don't do it! Some badly designed SMPSUs can blow if run under voltage!
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if
Yes what IF says is correct. Sometimes they mark the mains input 90-250V or something like that if it will work on both 110 and 240V. Some other devices (ex. computers) have a switch marked 110V-240V. All other devices are either unlikely to work or may be damaged
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