Job Discussion Forums

[MixtecaMike]

I was looking for a 110V kettle and couldn't find one, then when I got home I checked and found my iron and TV are rated 220V but work fine on the 110V supply. My adaptor board has a voltmeter and it shows the current is 110 (close enough).
Can I just continue to use the 220V appliances or should I get a step-up transformer? Also does the fact they are running at 1/2 voltage and I assume drawing double the usual current mean I should be more careful about plugging many things into the same socket?
Advice from electrical engineers posing as English teachers specially welcomed.

[Cleopatra]

One of the annoying things about life in KSA is that while most outlets in houses are 110v, it is hard to find appliances with this voltage, at least outside of the larger electrical shops like Saco.

[scot47]

Where we are in Eastern Province we have dual voltage - BOTH 220v and 110v !

[007]

[Cleopatra]

In my experience, many appliances that claim to be 'dual' or 'multi' voltage are in fact 220v - but will 'sort of' work at a lower speed/efficiency on 110v. This is the case for appliances like irons, hairdryers, humidifiers, fans etc. However, if we're talking about appliances that are either on or off - like TVs or DVD players, they will not work at all on the wrong voltage.

If you want to check that an appliance really is dual voltage, look for a little switch where you can change the voltage from 110 to 220 and back again. If this switch is not there, it's likely that your iron/hairdryer/kettle/whatever will take at least twice as long to do what it's supposed to do if plugged into a 110v outlet.

[veiledsentiments]

It sounds like Saudi is the place to learn how to use a voltage meter. While 220 items will work... sort of... at 110. Going the opposite way, using a 110 item in a 220 system will give you a very fast lesson in small appliance frying. You will be unable to get the plug out fast enough to save it... even if you are standing right there.

Don't ask me how I know.

VS

[Cleopatra]

I've always said that you can't say you've truly lived in KSA until you've experienced the popping sound and burning smell which signify one more 110 appliance going up in smoke.

[veiledsentiments]

An experience one can also experience in Egypt and Kuwait... and anywhere else one's jet-lagged self forgets what one is doing. Outside of Saudi, one just needs to be more guilty of not paying attention because you at least KNOW that all is 220...

VS

[Cleopatra]

I always wonder why they have this silly 110v system in most places in KSA - after all, most of the world uses 220v, as evidenced by the appliances on sale in Saudi shops. The usual explanation is that many properties in KSA are/were built by US companies, but that's lame. If they can design homes adapted to local sensibilities - with strategically placed doors which can partition off the 'women's section' of even the smallest apartments - then they can install 220v outlets.

[Pollux]

You live in a third world country and you wonder why things are strange?

[veiledsentiments]

That is actually a foolish comment Pollux and shows a lack of knowledge of the Gulf, which is definitely NOT Third World even by our lame American interpretations of that term.

The fact is that most houses in the US already have a 220v hookup because that is what is needed to run the clothes dryer that we think is a necessity. But few Americans are aware of that. Actually an electrician told me that all power arrives at the homes at 220 and the power box steps it down to 110. A separate breaker at 220 is needed for the dryer.

I suspect that it does have something to do with American contractor built construction - done with the typical Gulf laborers who didn't quite understand their instructions. Many of the people that I know who lived in Riyadh mentioned having US 110v refrigerators and cookers. So, I expect it goes back to old contracts.

Do those living in new construction have this problem or is this mainly in the older construction? Or has the "system" just become ingrained...

VS

[Stephen Jones]

There are American standards for wiring. Basically the current is split in half, and things that use 220v get connected to two circuits. This is not that easy to set up!

The reason for 110v is American contractors. It is simply a choice whether a country has 110v or 220v. As has been pointed out, with 110v at the socket at least you are not going to blow things inadvertently. The rule of course is that you should always set the appliance to 220v; particularly if you ship things back home! The power supply of a computer of mine blew when a Sri Lankan friend plugged it into the socket without checking what it was set to.

A 220v appliance in a 110v socket runs at a quarter of the power by the way.

[Longton]

Aramco and its offshoots were the first major users (and providers) of electricity in Eastern Province and used US standards which were 110 V. In Jeddah where Aramco didn't have operations most sockets are 220 V and in Riyadh a mixture. I taught in Eastern Province many years ago and a lot of the classrooms had both voltage systems which only added to confusion. I managed to burn out a few cassette recorders when I placed a 110 V recorder plug into a 220 V socket!

[Cleopatra]

Thanks for that, Pollux, it was really informative.

Obviously I can't speak for other posters, but when I need original insights into life in the Gulf, I always turn to residents of the European third world.

[007]