Nice pic of the plug strip!

That pic might be a good starting point for another topic: Misguided over-thinking of something in the name of 'safety.'

There's a reason these strips are so difficult to mount securely. After all, how hard can it be to provide mounting tabs?

Well, they don't have handy tabs, simply because they're forbidden to have them. UL made the decision that if you could readily mount the strips, they would become permanent 'premises wiring." As such, you were in danger of placing a forbidden number of receptacles on a circuit, using that 90 watts per receptacle calculation. So, UL won't list one with convenient lugs.

(At the time this issue was debated, UL's own offices were flush with non-listed plug strips, and the maintenance departments were kept busy making others using 4-square boxes).

So ... the pic is what you get.

It's with that particular concern about code violations that led me to create this thread. It's just so out of character for UL to list something that is so difficult to use 'legally.'

UL has been caught short by the changing world many more times. This is not to be critical of UL- rather, it's a warning of the perils of trying to regulate everything.

Another example involves fluorescent light ballasts. These components were listed before UL had such a thing as "recognized components," and decades before there was any requirement that luminaires be listed. With hindsight, ballasts are but components- not a complete product suitable for listing.

And, of course, I've already mentioned the great "classified breaker" circus.

At least UL expects ballasts to power lights and breakers to detect over-currents. I can only wonder at their wisdom in testing AFCI's without there being any requirement, or testing for, the ability of the thing to detect arcs of any kind.

I'm beginning to think of a ship like the Titanic, where the helmsman gets his instructions from a Magic 8-Ball.