Correct power supply for 240V x 13 amp fuse for studio table lamps?

<p>I have just received my table top studio lights to take pictures of my textile art.<br>

The voltage on the plug says 240V with a 13amp fuse. I live in UK and want to know if it's OK<br>

to plug into the mains? Or do I need other equipment to safely use these lamps.<br>

Replies will be much appreciated. Thanks<br>

maggie</p>

<p>Holy mackeral. What does the product say it's using in terms of actual WATTS? Are these lights continuous quartz/halogen, fluorescent, tungsten, or are they strobes?</p>

<p>Well, do your lightbulbs say 250V or near there?</p>

<p>I think most of Britain etc runs 250V as household voltage. What about the 13 amp fuse? That is the safeguard to not burn the house down. The lamps probably do not use more than 5 or 6 amps continuous. What wattage are they rated at? 1000W - 2000W would be quite ok in a house.</p>

<p>Where did you get those lights? From somewhere in GB? Call back!</p>

<p>Why not plug them in and let the light shine ... Or any friends with a bit of physics sense?</p>

<p>Instead of looking on the plug, please look at the lamp housings themselves. A label there will indicate what the lamp will require. When looking at a plug, you are probably seeing what the PLUG, not the lamp, is rated for. The values you post come out to 3120 watts. That seems high for incandescent lamps of any kind, even halogens.<br>

While it's been a long time since I lived in the U.K., mains voltages there are 240V at 50 Hertz. Relate this to what the label on the lamp itself says.</p>

 

<p>Well if the plug is the same as your wall outlets, plug them in. Sounds like the normal rating on a UK mains plug. The bulbs may use much less current, depends on the wattage.</p>

<p> </p>

<p>The voltage at the main in the UK and Europe is within 10%<br />or 230V. Most household outlets are wired to the switchbox via a fuse or circuit<br />breaker, likely 15 amps, some higher. Your devise is protected by a fuse rated at 13 amps. A fuse is a thermal protection devise. Should the appliance draw too much power the fuse will "blow" disconnecting the appliance from the main. You may safely plug this appliance<br />into the main. </p>

<p>You need to look at your fusebox or circuit breaker box and see what the circuit you are using to power the lights [ the circuit you intend to plug the light into ] is rated at. I would expect that 'power' plug/circuits would be 15 Amp while a lighting circuit would be 5 Amp.<br>

Another consideration is how old is the building and more importantly the wiring in the house[?] you are working.<br>

You look at the lights themselves and they should have a lable indicating how many 'watts' they use.* You divide the wattage of a bulb by the supply voltage [ UK 230<250V] and the answer is the amperage of each bulb. So a 1000watt bulb is using approximately 4 amps depending on the supply voltage. *just as if you look at a household bulb you see something like "100w 230V' engraved on it.<br>

That plug's fuse [13Amp rated] should not blow if you use three bulbs [12 amp] but should blow if you used four 1000w bulbs [16amp]<br>

But the critical and important aspect is the state of the building's wiring to handle the current you want to use for any period of time.<br>

I would hope that the plug fitted is more than adequate to handle the load from the lights it came fitted to. <br>

A related aspect ... if you usually run a two bar heater off that socket it is likely a 2400watt heater which is using about ten [ <10.4 ] amps of power. Again look at its lable to confirm that.</p>

<p>Maggie, you can rest assured that the lights have been sold in a form which you can use safely in the UK. Your mains supply will be 240 V. Other respondents - quit guessing! We do things differently in the UK! All electrical devices have a power cord which is sold with a plug already fitted - this has an internal cartridge fuse rated at 3, 5 or 13 amps. All power sockets are wired into a ring main which is protected by a circuit-breaker rated at 30 amps. The number of sockets per ring main can vary, if you know you will be using electricity heavily, it makes sense to have as few as 2 sockets per main, otherwise it can be up to 6. The effect of this in practice is that the plug-top fuse almost always blows before the circuit-breaker, which means that other devices are not affected but on the other hand means you have to find a screwdriver and replacement plug-top fuse. British safety regs tend to be conservative going on nit-picking - for example, all electrical fittings in a bathroom have to be splashproof - very entertaining for us Brits to go to, for example, Germany and find unshuttered mains sockets in bathrooms right next to the washbasin!</p>

<p>The United States is another country were I have encountered pretty hairy electrical set-ups, no earth connections on circuits handling 'power' uses, yes I know the newer instalations are correcting this over-sight with an 'earth' pin and hole..<br>

There is a difference between what should be and what has survived from pre-regulation days, As a UK dweller I was suprised to find here in New Zealand I was not permitted to do simple electrical work ... and still have to get anything done AOKed by an electrician, all in the name of safety.<br>

I believe that my approach covers the possibility that all is not as it should be. I am suprised 30Amp is permitted for a circuit as even hot-plates and ovens here operate on 20Amp circuit breakers and rarely trip.. 30 amp is quite scarey to my way of thinking. 60amp being the normal house fuse to cover numerous smaller circuit breakers for power and lighting circuits. The 'ring' system is designed to make it easy for the electrician to work and definitely was not used in either of the houses I designed and built, there are better and safer circuit designs.<br>

As for the un-skilled changing fuses ... how archaic and potentially un safe ... that is what circuit breakers are for in this modern age.</p>

<blockquote>

<p>You need to look at your fusebox or circuit breaker box and see what the circuit you are using to power the lights</p>

</blockquote>

<p>You don't need to do this. The standard UK plug is fitted with a 13 amp or a 5 amp or a 3 amp fuse. It is the fuse in the plug which provides the protection. The sockets will be on a ring main rated a lot higher - 25 amps being common.</p>

<p>I have just noticed that David has written the same as me but has managed to explain it much better!</p>

<blockquote>

<p>The 'ring' system is designed to make it easy for the electrician to work and definitely was not used in either of the houses I designed and built, there are better and safer circuit designs.</p>

</blockquote>

<p>I don't like the idea of a ring main either. At any time either a neutral or live link in the chain could be open circuit which would then halve the capacity of the circuit but you would never know (until the remaining cable overheats).</p>

<p>When I re-wired my flat many years ago I put in unbroken ring mains. The cable was looped through every socket rather than cut to length. Therefore there was no weak link if one of the sockets worked loose.<br>

I am sure the OP will have no problems with the lamps from an electrical point of view as long as they were sourced from a reputable supplier. However if they are used as part of a business it would be wise to have them periodically tested by a competent person as part of the Electricity at Work regulations.</p>