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Help with voltage USA>Scotland

Hi everyone! I've found great info on here so far, so thanks for that. Still confused about this next part. I'm from the USA and will be traveling in Scotland. I have severe insomnia so I need my sleep machines. I have reliable Dohm ones I've used for years. Luckily, I found that they make a EU model, so I bought those. I guess this plug is more of a France/Belgium/etc. plug vs. a UK one. I can't seem to post pictures on here, darn. What I have are both UK adapters as well as a converter. The bottom of the Dohm machine says "220-240" volts, so it's not dual voltage. Ostensibly/hypotheically, since both a EU plug and a UK plug both seem to be 230-240 volts, I can use my UK adapter on this Dohm machine EU plug, and be fine, right? No need for my converter in this situation?

I'm just always trying to avoid an electric burn out or fire or whatever the issue would be if I were to do this wrong. But my sleep machines are a necessity so I can't mess with that, and I want to do it correctly. Thanks for everyone's time!

Posted by
3294 posts

Correct.
I have a euro hair appliance that I use in the UK with just a plug adapter.

Posted by
19642 posts

Specs look a little bit out of date. There was a time when the British Isle was 240V and the continent was 220V, but the EU, when Britain was still in it, settled on a compromise of 230V. So, your EU unit should work.

You say you have a French/Belgium plug, Type E, a grounding plug, not a simple two pin, Type C, plug. These days, most European "Schuko" plugs, Type E/F, have both grounding clips on the side for German Schuko, and a metal socket for a extruding grounding pin in the French receptacles, and will work almost anywhere in Europe except for, possibly, Switzerland or Italy. Get the right grounding UK plug adapter and you should be good to go.

A proper UK adapter should have two metal conducting prongs, AND a longer metal (that's important) grounding prong to provide a grounding means and open the shutters on a UK receptacle.

@Carrie, if the OP's plug is really only a French Schuko, Type E plug, the adapter you show, which has only side clips, would not work with it.

Posted by
18964 posts

What you need is an EU to UK adapter. If you can't find one before you leave, there will be plenty of places in Scotland to buy one. Even at the airport. Every gift shop, every pharrmacy, every supermarket will have them.

You will not need a converter.

The device calls it an EU plug, not a French/Belgium one. All UK plugs have three prongs which includes a grounding one. (Look at your device, it if has two round prongs you'll be fine. That's the standard EU plug.)

Don't worry about all the complicated talk, just buy yourself an EU to UK adapter.

Posted by
106 posts

AC voltages delivered across networks to end users are not absolute precise values, 220-240 is the standard range of a nominal 230v supply. Actual value from day to day will depend on various factors, even the weather. Equipment suppliers normally ensure their products work safely across the range. In the USA a range of 110-120v should be expected.

Plugs are a different matter, although much of the world uses 220-240 there are various different plugs. The UK system (also used by Ireland and a few others) has a lot of inbuilt safety, search Youtube for UK plug reaction to see various americans who, having seen how and why our plugs are how they are, now want them in USA!!! If the Dohm machine is certified 220-240 it will work quite happily in the UK, if it has one of the continental european designed plugs it will work in a EU-UK adapter. The key point when searching for one in a store is that the staff understand you really do want one intended for EU tourists not Americans! And be aware that the reverse direction is more common in stores (UK devices going to EU). The price can vary quite a bit based on how likely desperate tourists are to be in that store. Today I can find them at Boots for £6.50 (branches in shopping areas everywhere) whilst Amazon UK has 2 packs for £2.49 (but of course you need a delivery address.....).

Posted by
3 posts

Thank you, everyone! I'm super grateful for your responses and the level of detail and info in them. I really, really appreciate all of them!