Submitted by Randomhero360 t3_10m3h9j in DIY
Be purchased one of those paper stars with a light bulb in them while traveling in Europe. We were back home in the US, and we realized the plus ends were the European ones. Could I replace the end with an American plug end? it's for a 5w bulb.
I have done this with several European lamps I brought back. Many of the lamp are the same screw bases we use in USA. So it was easy to swap. The latest lamp I used an American LED in the socket.
They must be nice lamps to offset the transportation cost
No transportation cost. I brought them back with me on the plane. They were very artistic and I've never seen any like them in USA.
It had never occurred to me that there are different voltage light bulbs.
The amount of people who have no electrical knowledge but still respond with advice astonishes me
Swap the plug. You've got a very high probability of success with no further action. If the bulb doesn't light or is too dim swap it too but in most cases a European 240v rated incandescent, halogen, or LED bulb will have no issues on US 110v. Rarely, LEDs might not light at all and the others could be dim. So, if you're unlucky you'll need to swap the bulb too.
When going the other direction, US to Europe you need to be a little more careful since running at too high of voltage could pose a fire risk so checking the bulb rating would be prudent. The majority of bulbs are tolerant of the full global voltage range though, it's a lightbulb, not sophisticated equipment.
Yes.
Make sure you use an American lightbulb
As long as the voltage for the bulb is 110v (whether it be from a external brick or not), it will work fine.
edit: corrected voltage
If you dont mind adapters, you can probably get a travel adapter that converts British/European to American
Probably not so easy. We use 230V over here, USA has 110V if I recall correctly
I’ve traveled enough to know that you often can find adapters between American plugs and European/Chinese plugs. A LOT of electronics accept anything 50-60hz 108-240VAC and convert to 5VDC or whatever. A random light may or may not. I probably wouldn’t just plug it in a try, id check if it says what kind of power it accepts.
This is incredibly easy. Ten bucks at any convenience shop in a tourist city
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If it is an incandescent or Halogen bulb it souls just be pretty dim. It would never blow a fuse, because there is no shortage or anything.
The other way around (US Equipment in Europe) it would probably blow a fuse in the equipment (if it is not build for that case)
Yes, you can swap the plugs on the wire.
However, if it is a 5W UK bulb, it will either not light up with US power, or will be dimmer, or might flicker.
There are some led bulbs which are rated for like 90v-240v but these are rare
I have multiple European lamps and a chandelier. All you need is a European to US plug adapter (NOT a power converter) and US bulb. Some bulb sockets are different but usually not. They are widely available online (Amazon, Walmart, Target) and cheap.
If there’s no US equivalent sized bulb, you can sometimes get a socket adapter. I’ve never had an issue with light output being different or using any type of bulb (incandescent, halogen, CFL, LED).
I grew up in Europe and we did the exact same using US lamps. Just slap a plug adapter on and go. Easy peasy.
Does it have a power brick somewhere on the line? Many of those are universal and say input power between 100-240v, 50-60 hz and do circuitry to make the device's power. Check out your laptop power brick.
Its save.. but the lights might not be very bright
That shouldn't be a problem for you. If it doesn't work there won't be enough voltage running to the appliance. If you were trying to adapt an american appliance in most of the rest of the world you would be sending twice the rated voltage to the appliance.
I found this out with a fun little explosion that knocked my power out a couple of years ago.
I traveled to Ireland once. I made sure to check my devices (chargers) and confirmed they were all auto switching/ranging. I brought a plug adapter, and a power strip so I could plug more than one thing in.
Did not think to check the power strip.
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Yes. Will you do it correctly? Not without some research. Incorrectly means the lights won't light and/or a wire that should be a ground connection is hot and thus a shock hazard.
Look up European power plugs and report here the kind or kinds of plug(s) your lights have. Maybe someone will be brave and will tell you how to connect a US plug to the light's wires.
Those paper stars generally just tie over the socket with a couple of strings.
Just buy an American hanging socket with a cord and a plug from Amazon for $8.
Easy and it saves the hassle.
As long as voltage checks out, just by an adaptor and save yourself the splicing.
The adapter is either too expensive or too flimsy and doesn't provide good contact. Not to say it looks fugly.
Splicing the power cord is not a rocket science, it's like five minutes of work.
Best thing to do is swap out the whole fixture. From plug to socket and bulb.
Are you including to change the wiring?
Home insurance companies love this type of ingenuity.
Use the little plug switcher thingy
please don't
Why are you not capable of wiring up a plug socker safety?
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I think it would be easier to get a travelers power converter to get 230 v ac 50 hz to 120 v ac 60 hz for 5 watts .
Technically, double the current will flow through the wire for an American 5W bulb on 120v vs. a European 5W bulb on 240v. It's possible that the wire gauge needs to be bigger for 120v. However, for just a 5W bulb, the wire is likely oversized anyway. You should be fine.
Edit: Wow. ITT people who don't understand electricity but will downvote and say the wrong thing confidently.
I think you have something backwards. A 240v load moved to a 120v circuit should draw half the current or 1/4 the power. Wire size should be fine. You'll have less power than you are used to.
This is true if it's a resistive load. If it's an electronic load (switched psu with 110-240V input), then the load will be the same and the current will be double.
In other words, it's a valid concern for OP, but not necessarily for a low power light bulb.
It's not the same load though. If you cut the voltage in half but consume the same power (because you switched from a European 5W bulb to American 5W bulb) then current needs to double.
5 watts is 20mA @240V, and 40mA @120V
This is negligible.
Yep. That's what I said
The best thing to do with anything electrical is to just dive right in and do it… if you have a notion… just do it…preferably standing in a bucket of water! Good luck!
I think you are overplaying this, it is not hard to wire a plug safely.
That was the point. It was a joke mate.
I'm sure you could. The wiring isnt different, just the connection.
That was my thought just checking. Thanks
Wire is wire but both the the plug and socket are different.
I bought a fancy lamp overseas and had to replace one plug and 9 lamp sockets.
There are adapters that convert from European sockets to north American.
Years ago, my wife bought some cheap chandeliers from Christmas Tree shops and they were set up for European use (not sure it was even legal to sell them in the US, but that's another story).
I changed the plugs (actually just cut them off and hard wired them into ceiling mount boxes). Screwed in some cheap adapters from my local electrical supply store, and now we use regular candelabra base bulbs.
TommyTuttle t1_j60qjqm wrote
You probably need a 120 volt light bulb; European power is 240 volts. The bulb that’s in there may work ok or not, depending on its type. LED is often set up with an internal solid state regulator so it’s pretty likely to work well. Incandescent will be dim. Fluorescent will probably not work.
Totally fine to swap the plug tho. Just make sure you can get a 120v bulb to fit that socket. If you can’t, you might replace the whole cord/socket assembly. They can easily be picked up on Amazon or eBay or wherever.