this past spring we needed to replace our hot water tank. I was looking for a specific brand which seemed to be sold out everywhere in the U.S. There was a marine supply that had the brand, the inlet/outlet configuration we needed but was wired European 50hz. The sales person did not know what would happen, no one in his office knew what would happen, so I talked to the electrical department head at the technical school I work at and asked what would happen. His response was that we would have one heck of a fire. 50hz appliances, battery chargers, refrigeration, water heater elements, inverters, etc and 60hz items are not interchangeable.