- #1
Broly
- 1
- 0
Hi,
I'm having a difficult time understanding how voltage is reduced in a circuit. I know the relationship of V= IR, but I still don't understand. I think part of the reason I do not understand is the wording used, and the other part is from experience. For example if I have a fan that only works properly at 5 volts applying more than 5 volts could damage the component, right? Would I use resistors to reduce the voltage? I thought that resistors only changed the current in the circuit. When I have measured the voltage by placing one lead of a multimeter on a resistor and one lead on the power output I didn't see a change in voltage, only current. By changing the current in a circuit do you simultaneously effect the voltage as well? Also I'm quite puzzled over the analogy of water going through a pipe being used to describe voltage, current, and resistance. It seems to me that it is more like water going through a filter in a straw being blown on by a person's mouth. In this case the harder you blow is like the voltage or pressure and the amount being blown by a point is like the amps and the resistance is like the size of the filter. Is this a good analogy?
Thanks in advance for helping me answer these puzzling questions.
I'm having a difficult time understanding how voltage is reduced in a circuit. I know the relationship of V= IR, but I still don't understand. I think part of the reason I do not understand is the wording used, and the other part is from experience. For example if I have a fan that only works properly at 5 volts applying more than 5 volts could damage the component, right? Would I use resistors to reduce the voltage? I thought that resistors only changed the current in the circuit. When I have measured the voltage by placing one lead of a multimeter on a resistor and one lead on the power output I didn't see a change in voltage, only current. By changing the current in a circuit do you simultaneously effect the voltage as well? Also I'm quite puzzled over the analogy of water going through a pipe being used to describe voltage, current, and resistance. It seems to me that it is more like water going through a filter in a straw being blown on by a person's mouth. In this case the harder you blow is like the voltage or pressure and the amount being blown by a point is like the amps and the resistance is like the size of the filter. Is this a good analogy?
Thanks in advance for helping me answer these puzzling questions.