How does voltage and wattage work?

Watts refer to “real power,” while volt-amperes refer to “apparent power.” Both are simply the product of voltage (V) multiplied by amperage (A). Thus, a device drawing 3 amps at 120 volts would be rated at 360 watts or 360 volt-amperes.

What is the difference between voltage and wattage?

Watts is the SI unit of Power (P). Volts is the SI unit of potential difference and EMF. Watts specifies the rate at which energy is transferred. 1 Volt is defined as the difference in electric potential across a wire when 1A current dissipates 1 Watt of power across the wire.

What happens if wattage is too high?

Using a light bulb with too high of wattage can lead to overheating of the light bulb. This heat can melt the light socket as well as the insulation of the wires. Once that happens, you put yourself at risk of arc faults, and this is something that could even lead to property fires.

What does it mean when a speaker has a wattage?

There are several points of confusion here. First, speakers do not “have” wattage. A watt is a unit power and, unless your speakers have power amps built in, they don’t have any. Non powered speakers may have wattage ratings, but this is only to indicate their ability to handle power.

Why do you need to know the wattage of an appliance?

Understand why watts matter. The power in watts is the rate at which energy is generated or used. Many utility companies will bill you based on how many watts of energy you used. The watt is basically how much energy an appliance uses. Rated watts are the amount of watts needed to keep an appliance running.

What’s the difference between wattage and unit power?

First, speakers do not “have” wattage. A watt is a unit power and, unless your speakers have power amps built in, they don’t have any. Non powered speakers may have wattage ratings, but this is only to indicate their ability to handle power. If your speaker is rated at 200 watts that means it can handle 200…

How is wattage used in relation to charging?

It is used to quantify the energy used or needed for an electronic device to function. Now lets look at a few examples to help explain wattage. Many times I have seen posts on the forums that start like “My new charger says it can do 10A but it only seems to be charging at 3A …”