Living in America, you end up fixing most things yourself. After ten-plus years of raising kids and running a household, you slowly get better at things like mowing the front lawn, hanging curtains, and fixing leaky faucets. One thing leads to another and you end up doing a bit of electrical work now and then, and you have to be careful, because electricity can seriously hurt you if you get it wrong. (When in doubt, call a pro.)
Current/Ampere [AMP] is written as “A.”
If you think of it like a waterfall, current is the flow of water, or the width of that flow. You can picture it as how much water passes through in the same amount of time, depending on how thick the pipe is. When you use an adapter, it’s not a problem if the adapter’s current (amperage) is higher than what the device needs. On the other hand, if the adapter puts out less current than the device needs, the device can get hot, not work, or break.
Voltage [Volt] is written as “V.”
In waterfall terms, voltage is the height of the water. If you use an adapter with a higher voltage, the device can overheat or get damaged. But if the voltage is lower than the device needs (under voltage), the device usually won’t be damaged, though a speaker might sound weaker.
Resistance [Ohm] is written as “Ω.”
In plumbing terms, resistance is like a valve.
Watt is written as “W.”
In waterfall terms, power is the total amount of water hitting the ground. Width A x height V gives you the total, W.
