If I took this small variac home and tried it at home on everything that's plugged into the wall for 1 hour...

Question

If I tried it on everything plugged in for 1 hour at 140% voltage, what kinds of things would I see?

http://s223.photobucket.com/albums/dd78/floodtl/?action=view¤t=SmallVariac.jpg

I want specifics:

toaster
fan
lights
etc

Desired goal?
To see what happens.
.

Answer 1

Well, that's definitely not recommended, because the appliances were not designed for it. But you knew that already.

Incandescent lights: They would shine brighter, but they will not last as long.

Fluorescent lights: For a moderate voltage change, you will not see any difference. If you raise the voltage too high, you will damage the light and it will go out. This is because these lights normally use some electronic circuitry to raise the voltage even higher, and to regulate the current flow. That circuit likely will not increase its output voltage in response to an increase in the input voltage.

Fan: You will not notice any difference, unless you raise the voltage so high that you damage the fan. That's because fans usually employ a synchronous electric motor. In that kind of motor, the rotation speed depends on the frequency of the AC input, but not on the voltage. Actually, the motor would show an increase in available torque, but that effect would not be visible.

Toaster: It will get hotter. Raise the voltage too high, and it will either melt itself, start a fire, or fail electrically.

Answer 2

Smoke.

Most electrical devices are designed for a nominal voltage plus 10%. Supplying a 40% over voltage will likely damage some of the electrical components. While surge arresters claim to protect equipment, they can only handle spikes that last a fraction of a cycle.

With the variac you'd be supplying high voltage for a long period of time. Also, 140% of the nominal voltage is probably below the pick-up value for most surge protection devices.

Answer 3

One point not mentioned, is the variac capable of operating the things that you mention. If it isn't, then it will be the item that goes "poof". Heating appliances will get hotter, but might fail unexpectedly, the fans will run faster, but you run the risk of burning out the wire in them. 140% is far higher than what any of the devices were ever designed to handle. What is your desired goal of running these things at such a high level?

Answer 4

Dude Your bored

Answer 5

rainbows and butterflies