Comments by "⃠" (@U20E0) on "Why don't Americans use electric kettles?" video.

  1. ( do not quote me on this ) In the US, two-phase 240V AC is used. This means that each house gets two 120V AC lines, which are 180° out of sync. Between those two lines you have 240 AC, and between either line and nil you have 120V AC. Outlets will use one line and nil, but with different wiring you can get a 240V circuit for ovens and such, and those use an outlet/plug with one L-shaped prong, and the other prongs at an angle. As for why, mostly historical reasons. Changing the grid to anything else is practically impossible due to it’s size. In Europe, three-phase 400V AC is used, with three 230V lines 120° out of phase. These are split such that one household gets one 230V line ( you can get a direct 3φ400V connection too, but a regular household does not need that ) Both use three-phase in the grid itself for longer range transportation ( iirc, but that makes sense, 3φ is very efficient for that ), but at much higher voltages.
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