Amps, watts and volts, what are the differences?

Apparently, our lives would be unthinkable without the availability of electricity. Today, nearly everything in our lives revolves around the use of electrical energy. The growing use of electricity is a decisive prerequisite for a steady and rapid development of the industry, transport as well as agriculture. Maybe a few examples will tell you just how electricity is crucial in our lives.

Without the use of electrical energy, there would be no television systems, broadcasting, telephone communication and even telegraphy. What’s more, your heating and cooling systems, home theatres, laptops, electric ovens and many other home appliances would be obsolete. Simply put, the overall importance of electrical cannot be underestimated.

Anyone who has ever purchased any type of electrical device must have heard of the terms, amperage (Amps), the wattage (Watts) and voltage (Volts). Unfortunately, not every homeowner knows and understands the in-depth meaning of these terms.

Having a clear understanding of watts, amps and volts not only makes you become an informed citizen but can potentially allow you to save a significant amount of cash on your monthly energy bills.

Perhaps that is the primary reason why we thought it would be of utmost importance to explain to you, in excruciating detail, what these three electrical terms mean. After all, not everyone can be an electrical engineer. However, as a dedicated industry leader, we are here to inform and educate you about the differences.

Definitions

Volts – It refers to the measure of the force with which the electrical energy flows through a particular electrical line. A significant number of Australian household devices are rated at 230V, which is the standard distribution voltage. In simple terms, it should be noted that an electrical device with a higher voltage rating can drain more energy per minute compared to one with a lower voltage rating.

Amps – It refers to the measure of how much electrical energy is being supplied through a particular electrical line.

Watts – This can be defined as the overall working capacity of the electrical energy. It is achieved by finding the product of amps and volts. Perhaps it is the most commonly used term among the three.

At the end of every month, your electricity firm provides you with a bill for the total amount of electricity consumed by you. This figure is usually in kilowatts. One kilowatt equals a thousand watts. From here, we can confidently conclude that the more volts and amps your household electrical items need to operate, the higher your monthly energy bills will be.

Now that you know the meanings of these three electrical terms, we will discuss how they relate.

Link Plumbing, a Sydney-based plumbing company, has said to consider the case of a plumbing pipe. Here, the water pressure is equivalent to voltage, whereas the rate of water flow is equivalent to the amount of current, and the size of the pipe is the resistance.

In the world of physics, we do have a basic simple equation that defines these three terms are related. Typically, it states that the current flowing through a conductor between two points is directly proportional to the total voltage across the same two points. In simple terms, it states that the current should be equal to the available voltage divided by the resistance.

Therefore, the equation becomes, I= V/R where I is the Amps, V is the Volts and R is the resistance. This equation is also known as Ohm’s law. It should be noted that the law was named after renowned German physician Ohm Georg, who came up with the whole concept.

So does this concept apply to our plumbing case?

When you increase the water pressure in the pipe, definitely more water will be propelled out the pipe. In our illustration, we equated the water pressure to voltage. This implies that in an electrical setting if you increase voltage, more amount of current will flow out that appliance. On the other hand, if you enlarge the diameter of the water pipe, more water will actually come out of the pipe. This is the same as reducing the resistance inside an electrical component. This will result in an increased flow of electrical current.

If you are still unsure of the differences, fear not. That is why our qualified electricians from Gordon’s Powers are here to help you. Our emergency electricians can help you quickly restore your home power and can attend your site within 60 minutes.