Japanese Clothes Dryer, 100 Volt 50-60 Hertz 1300 Watt

[hotgeekus]

Help. Bought a used dryer and just don't want to blow it up by doing something dumb.....

I bought a used japanese dryer, two plug, similar to a US plug without the ground. It has a green wire coming out along side of it which appears to me as the ground. It says 50-60 hertz, 1300 watt, 100 volt.

I have a power transformer which I bought at Siam Paragon which is says T-1000 (leading me to believe it is 1000 watt capcity) which I use for my american things. On the front is 120 plug socket and a 220 plug socket.

Can I use this transformer, or do I need a 100 volt transformer (ie Japanese) and can't use the 120 volt one?

And the next question, any idea where to buy this in BKK, if needed? Also, since I am dumb with electicity, do I need to hook up the ground and how?

Thanks in advance....

[Guest Reimar]

You need a converter with min. 1300 Watts out. But be very carefull: Dryer which running on 220 volts need min. 2200 watts, most Dryers need between 2500 - 3000 Watts!

But may for the donward converting 1300 Watts is enough.

The grounding should be done. You need to buy from an Hardware Store a Copper pile 1.8 - 2 m, stick the pile in the earth as deep as you can and connect the green wirte to it.

By the way, it would be a very good Idea if you also ground your computer and other electronic Equipment, special a UPS which only works right with propper grounding!

You can find Converts in Bamgkok's China Town at Ban Mor!

[solo siam]

Not sure a second hand hair dryer is such a good idea, certainly not one with a different voltage/plugs etc...

[waldwolf]

hotgeekus - I assume what you have is a hair dryer or similar device such as used to shrink-wrap tubing and the like.

The cost for a convertor or drop-down transformer will most likely exceed the cost of purchasing a new dryer. If you travel to Japan or other countries with differing voltages and frequencies, there are hairdryers available which have built-in switches to cover a wide range, typically between 100-240vac and 50/60hz.

DO NOT plug this dryer into your power transformer, as it could cause the transformer to short out, overheat and catch fire or potentially expose you to a lethal electrial shock.

waldwolf

[hotgeekus]

Thank you for your comments but let me clarify, this is a clothes dryer. IE, the thing you put your clothes in after you put it in the washer....

I understand regarding buying hairdryer and etc with a 110v - 220v travel voltage changer, but this is for a clothes dryer, the one that will eat electricity.

[astral]

OK it is a clothes dryer, but the same comments apply.

A step down transformer will be quite a big and heavy beast for that rating.

I also suggest you earth that extra green wire for safety.

[hotgeekus]

What does the transformer cost, 2000-3000 baht no? This is what I am assuming.

Also, where can I get this? Was told down by Suk Soi 71 behind the skytrain stop, on a parallel soi to suk.

Thanks in advance.

Oliver

[waldwolf]

Oliver - My apologies for thinking your clothes dryer was a hair dryer. The wattage (and perhaps the wine at dinner) confused my meager thought processes.

1300 watts for a clothes dryer seems very low, especially at 100vac. Regardless, as Astral stated, all earlier precautions still apply. Keep in mind that with any appliance using an electrical motor, current the motor uses at startup almost doubles, until the motor reaches its designed rotational speed. You may have noted this effect with lights dimming slightly whenever your air conditioner, refrigerator or vacuum cleaner is turned on.

The following website [ http://www.thailandguru.com/cq-grounding.html#transformers ] has some useful information on grounding, etc. which you may find helpful. They also offer (I assume at a fee) assistance with electrical problems. An email or phone call to one of their offices might get you some free professional advice.) Good luck.

waldwolf

(DISCLAMER - I have no financial or business relation with named company nor have I ever used their services.)

[Forkinhades]

cannot beleive some of the comments here, obviously no one is an electrician debating on this. Firstly a clothes drier here in thailand?? why the heck do you need that??

Yes a motor at start up requires a lot of current ' up to TEN times ' the nominal rating, but that is instantainious, and should be dealt with by the type of 'MCB' you have installed in your fuseboard (MCB = Miniture circuirt breaker (fuse)), you have different 'types' of MCB, namely 'B' and 'C' which can handle this, if you have the wrong type in your fuseboard, it will just trip, your equipment will not get damaged!

Grounding, up to you (not needed really!)

ohms laws states V=I x R, so V = 100, R = 1300, therefore I = 13 amps ( which should be the minimum fuse rating)

also P = V x I, so V = 100, I = 13 amps, therefore P = 1.3Kva, which is the size of the transfomer rating required to work efficiently)

I had a couple of beers, but i am sure i am correct!!

[Crossy]

Grounding, up to you (not needed really!)

For some reason the IEE (Institute of Electrical Engineers) and many other organisations would disagree with this statement, something to do with DEATH occurring when people get connected to electricity supplies. Oh well, each to his own I suppose.

To the OP.

You'll need a 100V transformer rated at 1500-2000W to give a bit of overhead for motor start current (the motor power is tiny compared to the heater so you don't need a massively over rated Tx). Do not try a regular 120V transformer, the 20% overvoltage will likely kill your dryer.

I'm surprised the place that sold you it didn't try to sell you the Tx as well, maybe worth a trip back.

As to where to get, sorry, but I've never seen a 100V Tx on sale anywhere

Still not sure why you need this machine though, my wife uses the great big dryer located outside, works wonderfully and it's free.

Edited May 5, 2007 by Crossy

[Naam]

Firstly a clothes drier here in thailand?? why the heck do you need that??

according to my wife our clothes dryer is used to dry clothes after they have been washed.

[hotgeekus]

thank you for the reply, with the basic answer. I'll head to japan-town (Ekamai) and find one...thanks.

btw, I also have an oven, even though they don't install them in most kitchens.....

[Forkinhades]

For some reason the IEE (Institute of Electrical Engineers) and many other organisations would disagree with this statement, something to do with DEATH occurring when people get connected to electricity supplies. Oh well, each to his own I suppose.

According to IEE regualations, which was ammended in March 2004, and the NICEIC website, nothing within a kitchen needs to be earthed anymore!, up to the contractor and individual, but they do recommend installing an RCD device.

If the appliance is running at 100V, then you only have a potential of 50V, which is considered not high enough voltage to give a fatal electrical shock!!

[Naam]

If the appliance is running at 100V, then you only have a potential of 50V, which is considered not high enough voltage to give a fatal electrical shock!!

the techno-clowns have taken over again

[Naam]

http://www.physics.ohio-state.edu/~p616/sa...al_current.html

[lopburi3]

1. I have great difficulty in accepting a dryer only using 1,300 watts of power. Is this a mini size unit or something? A normal dryer will be in the 4k range I suspect. I know my unit is large enough that it must be hard wired rather than use a normal plug/outlet. Or is this an air dry unit of some kind? If it creates heat don't know how it can use only that amount (a hair driver uses that much).

2. A dryer is not a kitchen appliance. It will be used around water/wet and should most assuredly be grounded.

3. If it really needs only 1,300w the voltage will not change that requirement (it will require less amperage at 220v).

4. A normal 220v - 110v transformer should work and I do not believe the extra 10v will cause a problem. There are adjustable units available but most would be in smaller size or expensive if large size.

5. There are days when the sun does not shine and for those in apartments often there is no place to sun dry.

[Crossy]

According to IEE regualations, which was ammended in March 2004, and the NICEIC website, nothing within a kitchen needs to be earthed anymore!, up to the contractor and individual, but they do recommend installing an RCD device.

If the appliance is running at 100V, then you only have a potential of 50V, which is considered not high enough voltage to give a fatal electrical shock!!

Please quote the Clause in the IEE regs so I can look it up These regs. are notoriously convoluted which is why we have a plethora of 'IEE regulations explained' books.

AFAIK any metal cased equipment still needs a ground, there are some special case (double-insulated) exceptions but since the OPs dryer has a ground lead I would suggest that it is not a member of this group.

Where do you get the idea that the 100V is balanced about ground? If you're using a proper 'site' isolating transformer (the yellow things) then you are correct, but a regular cheapo Tx (which will be an auto-transformer) most definately is not.

Yeah, agreed Lop, the OP may well get away with a 110V Tx (not 120V) 10% over voltage will probably be OK although a friends Japanese wife tried a 100V rice-cooker on a 110V tx, it died after a couple of months.

BTW a UK dryer is usually about 2000-2500W.

Edited May 6, 2007 by Crossy

[lopburi3]

Too lazy to pull my unit out but paper specs require a 30 amp breaker at 240 volts. Expect Europe and Japan are probably more energy conscious that my US export model.

[Forkinhades]

http://www.physics.ohio-state.edu/~p616/sa...al_current.html

They are talking about direct current you fool, NOT AC!!, direct current is very fatal, a 12Vdc car battery can kill you!!

on all building sites in the UK, all power tools have to be 110V, which is provided by a transformer which is centre tapped, therefore not giving any voltage greater than 55V, 55Vac is 'generally' considered not enough voltage to kill.

230Vac is used because it is much cheaper to install, ie half the cable size, you do thge math!

Even if you earthed your appliance and you got shock between phase (live) and neutral, how is the earth going to save your life!!!, it wont, only an RCD will protect you!!!

[Forkinhades]

Please quote the Clause in the IEE regs so I can look it up These regs. are notoriously convoluted which is why we have a plethora of 'IEE regulations explained' books.

It is better explained on the NICEIC site www.niceic.org.uk

I do not have my regs to book to hand, but basically kitchens are not considered to be locations where there is an increased risk of shock, which is covered in part 6 of BS 7671, and there are no requirements to provide supplementary bonding (sinks etc), i think speaking from memory it is regualtion 413-02-01,

[Crossy]

It is better explained on the NICEIC site www.niceic.org.uk

I do not have my regs to book to hand, but basically kitchens are not considered to be locations where there is an increased risk of shock, which is covered in part 6 of BS 7671, and there are no requirements to provide supplementary bonding (sinks etc), i think speaking from memory it is regualtion 413-02-01,

I think your reference is in the correct ball park (my copy of the regs is in BKK and I'm in Delhi), but grounding the metal casework of an appliance is not supplementary bonding sir. I do agree that the recent penchant for equipotential bonding of every bit of metal in kitchens was starting to go over the top.

I can't be bothered to hunt through the NICEIC site to look for the reference, maybe you could post a link, particularly the reference to grounding of class 1 appliances (such as dryers, washing machines etc)

[Crossy]

Even if you earthed your appliance and you got shock between phase (live) and neutral, how is the earth going to save your life!!!, it wont, only an RCD will protect you!!!

INCORRECT!!!!! An RCD will NOT protect you if you get connected between phase and neutral, you'll look just like any other load!! The RCD will only trip if there is a path to EARTH from the phase (via you).

True that having a grounded case won't save you if you get directly connected to live-neutral, but it should reduce the chances of that connection happening to pretty near zero by pulling the breaker should a phase-case fault occur.

EDIT We have digressed well off the original topic. What are your opinions on our OP using a 110V auto-transformer (not CT grounded) type converter.

Edited May 6, 2007 by Crossy

[Forkinhades]

EDIT We have digressed well off the original topic. What are your opinions on our OP using a 110V auto-transformer (not CT grounded) type converter.

yes that would be ok, just get one rated 3kva, or change the motor inside the machine to a 230V,

[Crossy]

yes that would be ok, just get one rated 3kva, or change the motor inside the machine to a 230V,

Do you think the 10-15% overvoltage will affect the life of the machine significantly if you just use a US style 110-115V Tx?

If you change the motor don't forget to do something about the heater (which will suddenly be 2860W) and the indicator lamps (which will get very bright) and possibly the 100V rated switches

To be honest, when you consider the cost of a clothes dryer the purchase of a transformer is going to be on the margin of being be cost-effective, I am of course assuming that this machine is a 'tumble-dryer' type beast not some exotically expensive kimono drying mechanism with built-in kinky sex-aids and hot-wax dispenser

[Naam]

http://www.physics.ohio-state.edu/~p616/sa...al_current.html

They are talking about direct current you fool, NOT AC!!, direct current is very fatal, a 12Vdc car battery can kill you!!

i know who the fool is my friend. amps are amps whether AC or DC and amps can kill. period!

[Naam]

info for self appointed experts:

Estimated Effects of 60 Hz AC Currents

1 mA Barely perceptible

16 mA Maximum current an average man can grasp and "let go"

20 mA Paralysis of respiratory muscles

100 mA Ventricular fibrillation threshold

2 Amps Cardiac standstill and internal organ damage

*Contact with 20 milliamps of current can be fatal. As a frame of reference, a common household circuit breaker may be rated at 15, 20, or 30 amps.

of course i expect some techno-clowns to surface and claim "50Hz is completely different!".

[HAL9000]

Actually, I don't know why no one has thought of the obvious, to install a 110v outlet instead of going through a transformer.

I am getting married in Thailand, probably July, and I am exploring the cost of shipping all my household goods. My friend in Australia has multi-compatible outlets which have both Aussie style 220 outlets and American style 110v outlets on the same outlet piece.

As I understand it, power from the power plant comes into the residence on two 110 volt lines. Attach on to each side of an outlet, and you get 220 volts. Attach one to one side of an outlet and the other side of an outlet to earth, and you get 110 volts.

The one issue brought up here that I have not considered is that of 60 Hz versus 50 Hz. I belive my US appliances are 60 Hz. What is the standard in Thailand?

Are there Thai codes that will prevent me from using my idea of installing aussie style outlets with 110 and 220?

Thanks,

John

[Naam]

Actually, I don't know why no one has thought of the obvious, to install a 110v outlet instead of going through a transformer.

I am getting married in Thailand, probably July, and I am exploring the cost of shipping all my household goods. My friend in Australia has multi-compatible outlets which have both Aussie style 220 outlets and American style 110v outlets on the same outlet piece.

As I understand it, power from the power plant comes into the residence on two 110 volt lines. Attach on to each side of an outlet, and you get 220 volts. Attach one to one side of an outlet and the other side of an outlet to earth, and you get 110 volts.

The one issue brought up here that I have not considered is that of 60 Hz versus 50 Hz. I belive my US appliances are 60 Hz. What is the standard in Thailand?

Are there Thai codes that will prevent me from using my idea of installing aussie style outlets with 110 and 220?

Thanks,

John

wrong perception John. electricity supply in Thailand is different from that in the Greatest Nation on Earth™.

[Naam]

Are there Thai codes that will prevent me from using my idea of installing aussie style outlets with 110 and 220?

most outlets in Thailand take a variety of plugs (except some "uncivilized" british plugs). but that does not mean you can get 110V without a transformer.

[lopburi3]

As said there are two wires coming into a Thai home. One is 230v and the other neutral. To obtain 115v you would have to use transformers; however they do not change the frequency. The AC is at 50Hz here. This will case 60Hz AC motors to run slow and probably overheat. Timers will not work right. Fans will be slow. Many transformers will overheat.