How Do Power Outlets Work (+ What to Do When They Don’t)

There’s an advantage to being an end user of things: you don’t need to go down to the nitty-gritty of how they work.

Or is it an advantage?

Take electricity, the lifeblood of all of our gadgets, nay—our lives. While you are reading this blog, your phone or laptop is likely plugged into the power outlet, drawing electricity. If it isn’t now, it’s bound to be in an hour.

These outlets or sockets are something we can’t live with, but many of us don’t know—or care—how they function. At least not until the point when they stop working.

If you ask me, understanding the fundamentals of something so vital in our daily lives is important. So here’s a quick look at how a power outlet works.

And then we’ll talk some more about when and why it doesn’t!

How Does a Power Outlet Work?

Let’s start with an interesting piece of trivia.

There are as many as 15 types of domestic electrical outlet plugs used across the world. In Australia, the electrical system runs at 230-240 V and 50 Hz.

The power plug type I is used as per the standard AS/NZS 3112. It comes with two angled flat pins and a vertical grounding pin that is slightly longer.

But what difference does it make in practice? It’s not just how anguished they look!

If your electricity demands are higher, the socket’s design has to change. In a 20 A outlet, the slots will be wider. For a 25 A outlet, the earth pin will have an inverted “L” shape. In a 32 A outlet the same pin will be shaped like a sideways “U”.

Once you plug in the device, the current starts flowing through the completed circuit. That might make you think, how does the power come into the outlet?

The amount of electricity travelling to each socket in your home is controlled by the service panel containing the circuit breakers. While the power company feeds electricity, the outlets help channel it further into various devices. In other words, the sockets connect the devices with the electrical grid. And they have to do it in a way that suits those devices!

The slots in the sockets may look simple from the outside, but that couldn’t be farther from the truth.

Each socket has dual metal slips that are connected to the electrical lines and conduct the electricity to the plug. These slips can flex and hold the prongs of the plug in place when it’s inserted. When the plug is pulled out, the pressure is released and they return to shape.

The result?

An incredibly simple yet highly effective mechanism. These outlets are extremely reliable and can function for years without failure. Eventually, the metal strips will lose their ability to grip the plug as they age and corrode. So yes, changing the socket will become necessary with time, but not very soon.

Note that the prongs in the plugs are matched with the hot, neutral, and ground wires inside each opening of the socket. If you pull out a socket, you’ll find multiple wires coming out from it.

The live wire or the positive connection is brown in colour, while the neutral, or the negative connection is blue. The third wire is the ground wire, which is either green or yellow. The ground wire is an important safety feature that prevents overload of electricity.

By the way, if you want to “smartify” your home a bit, you can use smart plugs with your regular power outlets. They are cheap and convenient for remote control of your devices.

How Much Power Can a Wall Outlet Handle?

A typical 3-pin 240V power outlet in an Australian home is rated at 10 amps. That means it can deliver 2400 watts of power.

In practical terms, it means you can plug multiple devices into one outlet as long as you don’t cross this 2400-watt threshold.

However, if you connect, say, a 1500W hair dryer and a 1500W kettle to the same outlet, the line is likely to trip. Overloading an outlet basically means overloading the circuit.

Remember the circuit breakers we mentioned?

They are what stands between you and overloading. Once the current exceeds the safety limit, they’ll stop the electrical flow.

If you are connecting multiple ones to a single outlet using a power strip, make sure to check the total power consumption of the devices. It all comes down to basic maths. Simply add up the total wattages of all the devices you will be using.

That said, it’s wisest and least risky to distribute the appliances across multiple outlets.

Why Did My Power Outlet Stop Working?

Even if the breaker is not tripped, a power outlet can stop working. Why? Here are several reasons, but note that the list isn’t exhaustive.

• With repeated plugging and unplugging of devices, an outlet can get loose, disrupting the electricity flow. Easy to fix, but risky nonetheless! A loose outlet can deliver a nasty shock.
• Old wiring can come loose and stop the outlet from working.
• Excessive heat buildup from overloading along with regular wear and tear can cause the circuit to burn out.
• It can be a GFCI (Ground Fault Circuit Interrupter) outlet and might have tripped due to a problem with the circuit. Pressing the “reset” button to make it start functioning.

A few words of caution: if you see any signs of burn damage or charring around the outlet, or feel it to be overheated, do not try to fix it on your own. The safe solution is to get in touch with a licensed electrician. Quite simply, a wrong step with a faulty electrical connection can maim, or even kill. One moment of lost focus and it can even happen to professionals.

How Do Power Outlets Work: FAQs

Do electrical outlets use power when nothing is plugged in?

When there is nothing plugged into the outlet, there’s no flow of current. So even though the voltage is there, the outlet will not consume any power.

Is it safe to leave plugs on overnight?

While safety should not be an issue when a device is turned off, there is the issue of “phantom load”. When certain devices are plugged in, turning them “off” does not really mean that they are “off.” Devices like phone chargers, televisions, DVD players, microwave ovens, and coffee makers keep consuming small amounts of energy even when in an “off” state. Disconnecting them will help you save power.

Why do outlets have 3 holes?

The two holes on the top are the hot and neutral lines. The third one at the bottom is the ground slot to protect against electrical shocks.