Smart plugs are devices that connect to the WiFi network of our home, and allow us to turn on and off different appliances, floor lamps and anything that we have to connect to the light in order to work. These devices have a series of limitations that you must take into account when using them, because otherwise they could “burn” and even catch fire due to the use of the appliance in question. Today in this article we are going to tell you where you should not use a home WiFi smart plug.
What is the maximum plug load
The power (W) and the maximum load of a given appliance is determined by multiplying the voltage (V) by the current intensity (A). In Spain we use a voltage (V) of 230V in homes, that is, it is a value that remains constant. What varies from an appliance that consumes more, or consumes less, is the current intensity (A).
In smart plugs we can see in the technical specifications what is the maximum load that it supports . In the cheapest smart plugs it is 10A , which makes a maximum load of 2300W or 2.3kW, however, in the somewhat more expensive (and better) models this maximum load reaches 16A , which makes a maximum load of 3680W or 3.6kW. Depending on the type of appliance you are going to connect, you should assess the purchase of the 16A model to avoid problems when supplying power.
There are smart plugs that through firmware allow us to automatically turn off the plug in case of exceeding a specific power, this is done in order to protect both the smart plug itself and the appliance that we are going to connect. It is very important to enable this functionality so as not to have any kind of “scares”, since it could perfectly burn out.
Where you shouldn’t use smart plugs
There are some electrical appliances that by their nature require a great deal of power to start working. If we connect these appliances to a smart plug, in the long run it could cause us problems because the smart plug is at the limit of its maximum load, or very close to it. That a device supports 16A does not mean that it can work continuously with this level of load, since it is most likely that its temperature will increase a lot because it is not prepared for it.
Next, we explain to you in which appliances you should never use a 10A or 16A smart plug (in the latter case, we have more margin):
- Oven : the oven is one of the appliances that demands the most instantaneous power, especially when it comes to heating it up to the typical 200ºC. In these cases, the oven can consume about 2.5kW without many problems. When we are heating the oven, the smart plug will “suffer” due to this demanded power.
- Ceramic hob : whether it is a typical or induction ceramic hob, if we light several “fires” we can demand a power of up to 3kW and even more, depending on the size of the ceramic hob, energy efficiency, etc.
- Washing machine : although the washing machine is an appliance that does not have a very high consumption, if we choose a hot water plan, it will use a resistance to heat this water, which will make it consume approximately 2kW, although it depends on the temperature that we have selected, energy efficiency etc
- Dishwasher : we are in the same case as before, if we select the typical automatic program, the water needs to be at 65ºC to properly clean all the food remains. When the water is heated we can have consumption of approximately 2.5kW.
- Hair dryer : although it seems that the dryer hardly consumes energy (because we use it for a few minutes), generally hair dryers have a power of 1200W and even 2200W, so we do not recommend connecting it to a smart plug.
- Pool water treatment plant: if you have a pool water treatment plant, these devices also have very high consumption peaks, especially at start-up, which can last a couple of minutes. In these cases, we could reach up to 3kW of power demanded.
What happens if I use a smart plug with these appliances? By not being prepared for it, little by little they will be damaged, if it has high temperatures we can see that the plastic casing can melt, and the differential could even jump due to a short circuit and burn. A smart plug is aimed at very low consumption, although its specifications state that they support up to 3600W.
