Imagine the panic you could experience when your first morning on your vacation you plug in your hair dryer, and smoke fills the bathroom along with a few sparks from the plug! That strange burnt wire smell fills the room. On top of it all, your hair is still a mess!
You used an adapter, when you needed a converter. What's the difference?
In the United States, Canada, and Mexico, we use an electric grid which provides to our outlets a flow of electricity at 110-120 volts (110v). However, in European countries the outlets are set to 220-240 volts (220v). This means when
Europeans visit the U.S., many of their electronics will not work. The U.S. flow is not strong enough. BUT when Americans visit Europe and plug in their electronics with an adapter (as opposed to a converter), their device will be fried - permanently broken. It takes less than a second to destroy your favorite hair dryer, curling iron, or - like my daughter, her DVD player.
Americans traveling to Europe with devices that are set to 110-120v need a stepdown converter. This plugs into the wall and changes (or converts) the flow from 220v down to the acceptable 110v.
Where many people make a mistake is that they purchase adapters. Adapters DO NOT change the power of the electricity. They simply allow American plugs to fit into European Outlets. If your device is set to accept flows from 110v to 240v (like many laptops), then it's not a problem, BUT if not, your device will be dead in a millisecond.
There is another issue to think about too. Mainland Europe uses a two-prong plug and outlet. The U.K. has a unique three-prong plug. If you are traveling to both destinations in the same trip, it's a good idea to get adapters and converters that are usable in both locations.
You can see our favorite converters and adapters here:
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