ECN Forum Forums General Topics of the Trade General Discussion Area Extension cords

During the cold winter I always see a fire on the news that they say was caused by a space heater. I could imagine a dumpy old building with poor heat. So to stay warm the tenant uses a space heater on an out dated electrical system.

I believe a better solution would be for UL to require manufactures to use 20 Amp plugs on anything over certain amperage. Say anything over 12 amps for continuous use and 15 amps for non continuous use.

This would eliminate the use of extension cords unless they are made for 20 amp circuits.

This would also eliminate plugging in an appliance or tool into a circuit not designed for that load.

It could create work for us. Adding a 20 amp circuit in a bedroom for a hair drier, treadmill, or space heater. They would call because the plug does not fit in the receptacle. If this is done now it is because they were tripping the breaker.

We might also be busy changing out 15 amp devices that were put on 20 amp circuits.

Customers might better recognize when an electrician runs a 15 or 20 amp circuit (or at least which device he uses.

There is always a way around safety measures. Someone could put a 20 amp device on a 15 amp circuit. The plug prongs could be bent strait. They could make a custom extension cord or adapter. I could imagine one of these for sale on the internet.

Buying devices I don't know why I spend the extra $ for 20 amp devices when it is not required, customers don't know the difference, the competition does not use them, and I never seen anything around a house with a 20 amp plug on it. I just want to be better then the other guys and maybe someday things will change.

Tom

safety is a noble aspiration in our trade, yet it remians a quagmire for us due to free trade. Mexicans are now loosing jobs to China, who owns a good chuck of us via a 100Bil trade deficit. The advent of portable factories is here, allowing manufactures to relocate easily and prostitute the cheapest slave labor...

what does this have to do with an extention cord you ask?

plenty...

as manfacturers opt to pump out a widget for a lesser amount, that product genreally suffers a decline in quality.

if one testing lab refuses it here, there are 16 others that can be given a shot

clue....who owns the labs??

probably the best local example of this phenomenon is the big orange palace, as most here are familiar with electrical products slight differences can be found there vs. those same goods your supplier may carry.

plastic parts are substituted for what was metal, etc, etc...

through sheer quantity, a lesser degree of quailty is demanded (not to mention that a 5% per annum cut is also prerequisite)

oh, the problem could be addressed, don't get me wrong, but the motive will institute fear as premis for marketability, with heavier 3-prong cords packaged touting firemen carrying soot clad little girls out of burning buildings...

~S~



[This message has been edited by sparky (edited 01-03-2004).]

It is difficult to believe that many extension cords are fires waing to start.

Looking at my shop, my house, and my wife's business ...

We use a lot of cheap extension cords and we use them with space heaters.

7000 people died everyday in the US from one cause or another. Electrical fires are way down the list.

Unfortunately, (no 'fense to my brethern, but often due to lazy investigators) "electrical" is listed as the origin of a disproportionatly high number of fires every year.

Had a house fire two years ago - about a week before Xmas. Occupants awoke to dog barking and house full of smoke. Got out as fire broke out. House burned to the ground.

End result of investigation (and home occupants admissions)?

Owners had replaced 15a fuses with 30a (the little ones burn out too often), and had liberal extension cord usage throughout house.

And unfortunately, since the NEC is a standard, not a law, China Electric (or Taiwan, India, Honduras) will keep making cheap stuff for the dollar stores... including the fake UL stickers.