It might not have occurred to you at first, but when you travel abroad, one of the differences that you can note between countries is in the electrical appliances and devices they use. Of course, most of us do not even realize this one point until we search for an outlet to plug our phone or computer charger into, but it is something important that you need to be aware of – especially if you are travelling for long term purposes, such as relocation or for educational or work purposes.

The first difference you will notice is most definitely in the electrical sockets: these will differ in their shapes from region to country. If you fail to research on this point, you might end up inserting your plugs into sockets that seemingly look no different from those of your own country, and which will damage your appliances. There are 13 different types of plug types used by different countries. These are:
 
•    A (i.e. Mexico)
•    B (i.e. United States and Canada)
•    C (i.e. France)
•    D (i.e. Sri Lanka)
•    E (i.e. Denmark)
•    F (i.e. Lithuania)
•    G (i.e. Bahrain)
•    H (i.e. Israel)
•    I (i.e. Argentina)
•    J (i.e. Madagascar)
•    K (i.e. Maldives)
•    L (i.e. Chile)

As a general rule, the European countries use the C type of plugs for their mains, whereas North America almost exclusively has the B and A types. Australia and most of Oceania uses exclusively the I type, which is not used by other countries most of the time. Asia, South America and Africa tend to use a variety of different plugs. Don’t worry though – most countries often employ two or more different types of plug types in their mains and sockets.

The other main difference is in the voltage and frequency that the electricians North Shore Sydney and circuits support. This difference cannot be spotted, and you have to be aware of it beforehand to prevent plugging in devices that won’t support these particular voltages or frequencies – you can either overload the circuit or damage your appliance quite seriously if you are not careful. The most common setting for most circuits throughout the world is 230V at 50Hz: you can find this voltage and frequency in most of Europe, Australia, Asia, Africa and Chile and Argentina in South America. Once again, North America differs from the standard by using 120V at a frequency of 60Hz.

You can check the voltages and frequencies supported by your electrical devices by checking the fine print that is engraved onto them (for example, the white small print of any charger). Most chargers and power adapters nowadays are set to support both frequencies and voltages, but do not make this stop you from double checking before plugging in your devices! Contact best electrician in Chatswood, at http://www.precisionpowerelectricians.com.au/chatswood/