A household uses an electric iron, a refrigerator, and an LED television simultaneously. What key factor must be considered to ensure safe operation without overloading the electrical circuit?
The total current drawn by all appliances must not exceed the circuit's rated capacity.
Household appliances are connected in parallel, so each one draws its own current \(I = \frac{P}{V}\) from the supply, and the current in the main line is the sum of all these currents.
When the electric iron, refrigerator and television run together, the total current rises. If it goes beyond the current rating of the wiring, fuse or MCB, the circuit is overloaded: the wires overheat and can cause a fire. So the deciding factor is keeping the total current within the rated capacity of the circuit.
The wire thickness is fixed when the wiring is installed and is not changed for every new appliance. The order of switching on does not change the total current once all appliances are running. In a parallel household circuit every appliance already receives the same supply voltage, so that is not the deciding factor for overloading.
Hence, The total current drawn by all appliances must not exceed the circuit's rated capacity.
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