Recent content by Flakca

I suppose the most important thing is to discern the motive behind the question. The answer is YES both wires can carry current. You can be shocked and seriously injured by a circuit with the breaker off, if an unbalanced condition exists in the house and is returning on the neutral. So...

Some people learn better through stories. I am one of them. The real answer is that if a circuit is balanced, then the neutral is not needed. However I think you would find that a domestic appliance requires a neutral to operate. Actually the neutral may not go back to the last transformer...

The purpose of the neutral wire is to carry the "unbalance" of the load back to ground. I used to work as an electrician in the state of Alaska. There is an interesting story that will illustrate the first sentence. I went to a house where the owner complained that his TV had blown up and...