My brother has a 50hz oxygen concentrator he wants to operate on 60hz, he has an adapter for the plug, but I told him it won't make it work. Is there some type of inverter? Thanks
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It won't just run faster?
I don't know what a concentrator is but I know a lot of compressors and such are dual rated are you sure that the components of the machine are 50 hertz only?
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I'm tired of these mediocre "semi flammable" refrigerants. If we're going to do it let's do it right.
Unless we change direction we are likely to end up where we are going.
"It's not new, it's better than new!" Maru.
The machine has a check mark on 60hz vs 50hz, so it doesn't seem to be either/or. It's rated 400VA, everything converter I see online is 3phase.
I would think something important like an oxygen concentrator would probably be designed to work on multiple voltages and/or frequencies. I did a quick google search, and from what I found in my 2 minutes of searching indicates that most are able to work on either frequency and usually anywhere from 100-240V.
Of course if it's an oddball one that he got for cheap off from Ebay, then all bets are off. There might be a phone number on the data-tag, or you can probably look up a phone number of the company, so I guess maybe I'd go that route and call the company if you can't figure it out.
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Besides the frequency being different, the voltage is most likely different too. In most parts of the world where 220V is common, they get it from one hot and one neutral. If you're going to hook it up to the 220V that we're used to in N. America, you aren't going to have a neutral. I don't have any idea if that's a big issue or not, but it's probably worth thinking about.
I guess maybe I'll go with Snapperhead... Only one way to find out!
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Originally Posted by ammoniadog
Besides the frequency being different, the voltage is most likely different too. In most parts of the world where 220V is common, they get it from one hot and one neutral. If you're going to hook it up to the 220V that we're used to in N. America, you aren't going to have a neutral. I don't have any idea if that's a big issue or not, but it's probably worth thinking about.
I guess maybe I'll go with Snapperhead... Only one way to find out!
I could be wrong I'm certainly no electrical engineer or scientist but I don't think the unit can tell if it has a hot leg and a neutral or too hot legs because the only difference between a neutral and a hot leg is that the neutral is bonded to ground at the Transformer or power station or whatever at least I think.
"Is this before or after you fired the parts cannon at it?" - senior tech
I'm tired of these mediocre "semi flammable" refrigerants. If we're going to do it let's do it right.
Unless we change direction we are likely to end up where we are going.
"It's not new, it's better than new!" Maru.
You are correct that the equipment probably won't care if there's a neutral or not. My thought is that it could potentially be a safety issue if the unit is designed to have a neutral for safety reasons.
Years ago I come across this OD unit running off 1 High Leg 230 and 1 Neutral
So it was getting 230v .. but I dont think it was intended to run that way
I was told to "get it running" so I replaced the capacitor and left
Looking back I wish I did more testing to see what amps were
Are you sure it was using a hi leg and a neutral?
Any 2 hots on a 230V 3 phase system will give you 230V, it doesn't matter if one of them is the hi leg or not. If you take the hi leg and neutral it should get you 208V.
It would have to be very intentional for someone to use the hi leg along with a neutral in order to get 208V. If this was really the case it means someone was either really board and trying to do a science experiment, or they were getting creative in order to lower the voltage from 230V to 208V on purpose for some reason.
You are correct that the equipment probably won't care if there's a neutral or not. My thought is that it could potentially be a safety issue if the unit is designed to have a neutral for safety reasons.
Yeah, I thought that was the whole point of having a neutral. You can grab onto it without getting electrocuted. It's why light bulb sockets are supposed to be wired with the neutral going to the metal threaded part, and why some 2 prong plugs have one blade that's wider than the other, so it can only be plugged in one way (with the neutral going to the wider one).
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It would just run faster on 50hz. I have power converters for traveling in other countries - that I bought in US - so if he's really freaked out concerned you can just get him the same thing but for people coming To the US.
Originally Posted by mlock
My brother has a 50hz oxygen concentrator he wants to operate on 60hz, he has an adapter for the plug, but I told him it won't make it work. Is there some type of inverter? Thanks
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I failed to mention that he's in Mexico, nothing is grounded, and everything is pushed to the limit. They run anything on 14awg, don't worry about fires, because everything is concrete. Not as bad as what I saw in Brazil.
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Originally Posted by mlock
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