autoformers for dummies (me)
Hi all, I've heard folks saying autoformers "steal" power from the campground and hence from other campers. Here is my understanding of what happens. The total wattage remains the same less abou...
Forum Discussion
pianotuna wrote:I don't make myself clear enough. I posted the argument to justify the "stealing" claim, then attempted to say it's a bogus argument. For instance:
Hi road-runner,
Unfortunately 120 volt AC motors draw more and more amps as voltage drops. It damages the motor and the damage is cumulative. So that part of the "stealing" is incorrect.
Camper A has an autoformer and runs air conditioner. Air conditioner draws more power as a result.
Camper B has no autoformer, runs the air conditioner, it uses less power, but he takes a lot of showers using electrically heated hot water and uses more total power than camper A.
The "stealing" argument says camper A is stealing and camper B isn't, even though camper B uses more power!
(I'm using the term "autoformer" which I believe is a marketing term. An autoformer may or may not be implemented using an autotransformer.)
