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I am trying to understand how amps work exactly. I see variations of the following in various online sources.

From here:

[...] A standard household circuit that supplies your outlets and switches carries 15 or 20 amps (15,000 or 20,000 mA).

And:

This gives you an idea of just how much danger there is in the home wiring system we take for granted, where wires carry 15,000 or 20,000 mA.

Also, from this question (only the wording in the title is relevant for my question):

Is lithium battery charging speed proportional to the amps provided from the power source?

To me, this means that a power source has a fixed number of amps that it provides, similarly to how it has a fixed voltage that it provides. This number of amps is always there, like the voltage is always there.

However, from here:

[...] For example, if you have a 100-watt light bulb in a lamp that is plugged into a 120-volt outlet, it will draw 0.83 amps.

 

[...] For example, if you plug a 40-Ohm dryer into a 220-volt outlet, the appliance will draw 5.5 amps.

So this makes it sound like if you plug the above dryer in, the wires won't carry the full 15A mentioned in my first link, but will only carry 5.5. The 15A is an upper limit, not what's always there.

Which is it? is the 15A always there, or is it just an upper limit, and what's there is only what is being drawn by a consumer at any given moment?

If it's the second, then, although I am aware that it's dangerous and I have no plans of trying it out, I don't have a clear idea about HOW dangerous exactly. How much would a human body (let's say with a dry finger) touching the wires draw? 100mA? 1A? the full 15A?

I am trying to understand how amps work exactly. I see variations of the following in various online sources.

From here:

[...] A standard household circuit that supplies your outlets and switches carries 15 or 20 amps (15,000 or 20,000 mA).

And:

This gives you an idea of just how much danger there is in the home wiring system we take for granted, where wires carry 15,000 or 20,000 mA.

Also, from this question (only the wording in the title is relevant for my question):

Is lithium battery charging speed proportional to the amps provided from the power source?

To me, this means that a power source has a fixed number of amps that it provides, similarly to how it has a fixed voltage that it provides. This number of amps is always there, like the voltage is always there.

However, from here:

[...] For example, if you have a 100-watt light bulb in a lamp that is plugged into a 120-volt outlet, it will draw 0.83 amps.

 

[...] For example, if you plug a 40-Ohm dryer into a 220-volt outlet, the appliance will draw 5.5 amps.

So this makes it sound like if you plug the above dryer in, the wires won't carry the full 15A mentioned in my first link, but will only carry 5.5. The 15A is an upper limit, not what's always there.

Which is it? is the 15A always there, or is it just an upper limit, and what's there is only what is being drawn by a consumer at any given moment?

If it's the second, then, although I am aware that it's dangerous and I have no plans of trying it out, I don't have a clear idea about HOW dangerous exactly. How much would a human body (let's say with a dry finger) touching the wires draw? 100mA? 1A? the full 15A?

I am trying to understand how amps work exactly. I see variations of the following in various online sources.

From here:

[...] A standard household circuit that supplies your outlets and switches carries 15 or 20 amps (15,000 or 20,000 mA).

And:

This gives you an idea of just how much danger there is in the home wiring system we take for granted, where wires carry 15,000 or 20,000 mA.

Also, from this question (only the wording in the title is relevant for my question):

Is lithium battery charging speed proportional to the amps provided from the power source?

To me, this means that a power source has a fixed number of amps that it provides, similarly to how it has a fixed voltage that it provides. This number of amps is always there, like the voltage is always there.

However, from here:

[...] For example, if you have a 100-watt light bulb in a lamp that is plugged into a 120-volt outlet, it will draw 0.83 amps.

[...] For example, if you plug a 40-Ohm dryer into a 220-volt outlet, the appliance will draw 5.5 amps.

So this makes it sound like if you plug the above dryer in, the wires won't carry the full 15A mentioned in my first link, but will only carry 5.5. The 15A is an upper limit, not what's always there.

Which is it? is the 15A always there, or is it just an upper limit, and what's there is only what is being drawn by a consumer at any given moment?

If it's the second, then, although I am aware that it's dangerous and I have no plans of trying it out, I don't have a clear idea about HOW dangerous exactly. How much would a human body (let's say with a dry finger) touching the wires draw? 100mA? 1A? the full 15A?

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IVlad
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Are amps provided or drawn?

I am trying to understand how amps work exactly. I see variations of the following in various online sources.

From here:

[...] A standard household circuit that supplies your outlets and switches carries 15 or 20 amps (15,000 or 20,000 mA).

And:

This gives you an idea of just how much danger there is in the home wiring system we take for granted, where wires carry 15,000 or 20,000 mA.

Also, from this question (only the wording in the title is relevant for my question):

Is lithium battery charging speed proportional to the amps provided from the power source?

To me, this means that a power source has a fixed number of amps that it provides, similarly to how it has a fixed voltage that it provides. This number of amps is always there, like the voltage is always there.

However, from here:

[...] For example, if you have a 100-watt light bulb in a lamp that is plugged into a 120-volt outlet, it will draw 0.83 amps.

[...] For example, if you plug a 40-Ohm dryer into a 220-volt outlet, the appliance will draw 5.5 amps.

So this makes it sound like if you plug the above dryer in, the wires won't carry the full 15A mentioned in my first link, but will only carry 5.5. The 15A is an upper limit, not what's always there.

Which is it? is the 15A always there, or is it just an upper limit, and what's there is only what is being drawn by a consumer at any given moment?

If it's the second, then, although I am aware that it's dangerous and I have no plans of trying it out, I don't have a clear idea about HOW dangerous exactly. How much would a human body (let's say with a dry finger) touching the wires draw? 100mA? 1A? the full 15A?