What could be worse than frizzy, tangled tresses? What could possibly stop you from blow drying your hair till that perfect bounce is achieved? Or straightening them till they becomes as smooth as slurpy noodles?

This fact: You end up producing upto 2000 watts of heat energy in the process.

Yes, hair dryers have been around forever. Alexander Godefroy created the first model for his French salon in 1890 and it was many decades later, that the handheld version was created! The basic idea behind a hair dryer is pretty simple. An electric fan blows air across a heating coil. After passing through the coil, the air heats up. This warm air leads to evaporation of water from wet hair. The result? Dry hair!

Making and Working

All hairdryers consist of:

1. A gun shaped plastic shell, divided into two sections for easy assembly.
2. The electric motor and the fan blades.

How do hairdryers produce heat?

By passing electric current through a wire – just like a toaster!

1. The wire, looks like a coiled spring and is made of nichrome (it prevents rusting). It is resistant to electricity and generates heat once current passes through it.
2. It is wrapped around an insulating board made of mica – a mineral that can stand high levels of heat.
3. Two flat pieces of mica form a three-dimensional "x". Notches are cut in the edges of this board so that the nichrome wire, once wrapped around the board, fits snugly into these slots.
4. There is a connection to the circuit at the end of the wire. This controls the power supply.

Safety matters

1. Safety cut off switch: Prevents the temperature of the drier from exceeding 60°C.
2. Thermal fuse: A small metal strip in this fuse melts if the temperature of the circuit exceeds a certain amount. This breaks the circuit and instantly cuts power to the drier.
3. Ground Fault Circuit Interrupter (GCFI): This is built into dryers to prevent electrocution. The GCFI senses how much current is flowing through the circuit and can shut it off if it detects a leak or a short-circuit.