If a wire carrying current produces magnetic field around it, why its not attracted to nearby metals ? In a general household.

Question

If a wire carrying current produces magnetic field around it, why its not attracted to nearby metals ? In a general household.

In: 477

Answer 1

Generally it’s because household cables always consist of more than one wire, and the current that goes through one returns through the other(s), creating opposing magnetic fields that cancel each other out.

Also, the attraction for a single wire is very small even with several amps of current flowing, which is why electromagnets have coils with lots of wire, in order to add together the magnetic field of every turn.