This is a short post, because I don't have a lot to say about electricity in Switzerland, but I like their home outlets. I'd rather the world adopt our 110 volt system, for safety reasons, but if I could I'd change our plugs to the Swiss type. See how sturdy the prongs are? No worries about accidentally bending them when you stretch the cord too much, straining to get the vacuum cleaner to reach to the far corner. Some outlets are combined with light switches, and many are recessed—a neat safety device that makes it impossible for the prongs to be connected to the electricity and touching your fingers at the same time.
I think we already talked about this, but I don't remember the outcome.
I've always heard it said by electrical-type folks that the European system is way safer than the American system, for the simple reason that the frequency of the alternating current is not in phase with the human body, so you won't ever have frequencies that would flat line, or cause huge spikes in your body's electrical system.
From a purely engineering point of view, apparently a 60 Hz, 230 V system would be best, because it would lose less during transport. I hadn't heard about the frequency matching up with the body; in my recollection it was the German AEG that decided that 50 Hz was just a much nicer number. Since they were first on this continent, everyone followed. I do recall that it's the current and where it flows that matters in killing a human, so it would depend on the fuses or breakers you have installed - but usually they're on a few Ampere, which I think is plenty plenty to kill a grown man.
Are your breakers only a few amps? 15 or 20 amps is what is used here.
6 and 9 amps, I think, if they're just fuses; our breakers are for 13 or 16 A, but they're RCDs set for 30mA residual current.
Are breakers just for big things, like dryers, or is that for a regular outlet? I guess if you are getting enough current to blow a breaker, it is probably too much in the states anyway, but your breakers are a lot higher due to the voltage doubling.
Laws are starting to be passed to require GFCIs in more places - right now kitchens and bathrooms require them. And new bedrooms outlets require arc-fault interrupters in some places, though I haven't figured out the real different between the two.
The breakers are for a set of outlets. There's one for the bathroom and hallway, one for the kitchen and stove, one for the dishwasher we don't have, and one for the main room. The trick with the RCDs is that you don't need to get 13 A to blow them, but that they cut off power also when there's a difference of over 30 mA between incoming and outgoing current.
Yes, I know what RCDs are, wikipedia says they are the same thing as GFCIs, which trip at around a 3-6mA difference. (I just had to replace one because it failed inspection at our rental property. It tripped at 5mA, but apparently the inspector's testing device lets in less current than mine does.
