Local power company put 220 through the house . I noticed it when a power strip was smoking. My house is a 60's era no ground system. Should there be concerns about the house ?

You shouldn't have any problems with the house wiring the breakers are there to protect it,as for appliances like your plug strip,could be toast.I had a similar incident happen a tree branch fell and knocked off the ground on the pole the voltage went up and down I checked it with a meter when I saw my lights burn bright and then out.anyway lost my comp. TV,sterio,printer,etc.but the house wiring was fine.220v is just two 110v legs on one circuit.the power company must have energized your neutral leg.

The wiring is fine, since due to Ohms Law, amperage is low when the voltage is high. The wiring can handle up to 600 volts, the amps was lower than the wire can handle.


Check every appliance for proper operation, any damaged or questionable should be reported to your insurance carrier, and possibly the utility.

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Originally Posted by tkrussell

The wiring is fine, since due to Ohms Law, amperage is low when the voltage is high.

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This is try only if the devices that are plugged in are smart enough to draw constant power regardless of voltage. But items like light bulbs and electric motors aren't that smart - they can be thought of as resistive elements, and hence obey Ohm's law V = iR. So if you double V (voltage) you get twice the current 'i' and the items draws 4 times the power (P = V^2/R).

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Originally Posted by tkrussell

The wiring can handle up to 600 volts

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Yes - this is the important point. The wiring should not be affected by carrying 220 volts.

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Originally Posted by tkrussell

the amps was lower than the wire can handle.

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Maybe, maybe not. However if the current was too high in the branch circuit then the circuit breaker should have tripped, which is what protects wiring from excessive current. If the breakers didn't trip I doubt that the wiring was adversely affected.

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Originally Posted by tkrussell

Check every appliance for proper operation, any damaged or questionable should be reported to your insurance carrier, and possibly the utility.

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Agreed! I would be concerned that appliances such as microwaves, TVs, etc may have been affected, although most modern electronic appliances have internal voltage regulators that can handle 220v. But I would bet things like light bulbs and electric motors that were on at the time of this event may be burned out.

Thanks for the response.

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Originally Posted by kryostar

you shouldn't have any problems with the house wiring the breakers are there to protect it,as for appliances like your plug strip,could be toast.I had a similar incident happen a tree branch fell and knocked off the ground on the pole the voltage went up and down i checked it with a meter when i saw my lights burn bright and then out.anyway lost my comp. tv,sterio,printer,etc.but the house wiring was fine.220v is just two 110v legs on one circuit.the power company must have energized your neutral leg.

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Thanks for the response.