ECN Forum Forums General Topics of the Trade General Discussion Area Power your 220 volt equipment using ordinary 110 volt outlets

The FAQ txsparky posted leads me to believe that the plugs are not energized until both are inserted with the correct polarity. (Some electronics could do that for you.)

I smell lawsuit.

Especially from some tom-fool who doesn't know to pull both extension cords out of the wall sockets at the same time and/or disconnect them from the inlets on the device first and then gets bitten.

Someone on a USE-Net newsgroup said a similar device was marketed in Canada years ago and was later BANNED and RECALLED by the government there.

Hey....one last note! I notice this is made by an outfit called "Diamond H". I hope there's no relation to that turn-of-the-century Diamond H company that used to manufacture those surface-mount brass & porcelain "turn key" switches for lights.

[This message has been edited by SvenNYC (edited 10-24-2003).]

A little electronics could certainly arrange switching so that if one power lead is left unconnected its pins would not be energized.

I wonder what the difference is between the 15 and 20A versions. Heavier relay contacts for the switching and a 6-20 receptacle instead of 6-15 maybe.

It's hard to justify the $80 extra on the 20A model for that. Still, $130 for the basic model is a waste of money.

I notice they neglect to inform potential buyers that they're going to have problems if one or both circuits are GFCI protected.


[This message has been edited by pauluk (edited 10-24-2003).]

sven, I thought that was H&H?

Hart and Hedgeman, then Arrow Hart and Hedgeman, now Cooper?

[This message has been edited by sparked (edited 10-28-2003).]

I have seen home made versions of this before.

Roadies or stage hands what ever you want call them use a home made version.

Usually 2 NEMA 5-15 male cord caps running into a 30 amp 3 wire dryer outlet or a 50 amp 3 wire range outlet.

This will power a dimmer rack and the roadie just does not crank up all dimmer banks at once.

I have seen DJs, and small rock shows use this method.

If you open the box I imagine the only "electronics" will be for the indicating LEDs.

Can you imagine the problems with back-feed if one of the breakers were to trip?

Blessings, Mark

Look at this device.


and then go here to read up on it.
http://www.mobile-mart.com/dogadapt2.htm

This one will make your hair stand up on end. You have to scroll all the way down to the end of the page.

It's intended for use by people who drive RVs (caravans).

[This message has been edited by SvenNYC (edited 10-27-2003).]

I've seen those cheater boxes in RV catalogs before.

Safety issues aside, $78 seems a bit steep for a receptacle in a box and two short cords and caps.

I wonder how they handle the neutral in the box: Paralleled, or the receptacle just connected to one incoming grounded conductor?