Here's what you do when you come back from overseas with an appliance fitted with a US plug


A slight twist to the pins ensures it fits the local socket thus:


The authorities don't like it of course given the obvious result, though given how prevalent this practice is I've never heard of someone receiving a shock. Depending on how soft the plug material is and how well you've twisted the pins you can get more of the plug into the GPO, but the above is a typical example.
Does anyone have other examples of plugs and sockets used this way? I have heard of the Continental 2 pin plug being forced into the UK square pin socket, though I believe it causes damage by forcing the socket pins apart.


[This message has been edited by aussie240 (edited 07-27-2005).]

G'day Aussie, nice photos. For the "Outstanding Plug Pin Molestation" award, I'd like to nominate Sound Engineers for snapping the earth pin off of plugs supplying sound equipment to get rid of "annoying 50Hz interference". LOUD APPLAUSE.

Don't you mean "almost fits" ?


Yep, I've seen that done.

With the basic-style shutters, you just need to poke something into the earth pin to open them. Some of the newer shutter mechanisms rely on equal pressure on line and neutral covers to open the shutters, in which case the plug will go straight in. We now have some shutters which need pressure on all three points to open, which would make it a bit harder to do this trick.

Apart from the obivous contact/damage issue, the two other big problems of course are that a Schuko plug inserted thus will have no earth connection on it and the only overcurrent protection for the cord and appliance is likely to be a 30A fuse!

You generally can't get a schuko (grounded) plug into a UK socket as the pins are *just* too wide and you will definitely damage the contacts.

However, the "europlug" (ungrounded flat plug) has pretty slim pins and is only rated at 2.5amps. I don't really see how it would damage a UK socket's terminals. However, on a ring circuit it's not a very good idea to have an unfused plug connected for very obvious reasons.

There's a pin bending trick done here with those 2-pin europlugs though. The older MK outlets required that you applied equal pressure on the outside edge of the shutters on the line and neutral recepticals.

So, if you bend a Europlug's pins so that they're slightly wider apart than usual it will just slot straight in opening the shutters on its way... makes perfectly reasonable contact too.

-

I have noticed some terrible breeches of safety regulations here in hotel and other kitchens, that were mostly staffed by eastern european chefs. Schuko plugs forced into BS1363 outlets. The socket face actually cracked around the pin recepticals, no earthing.... etc etc all for the sake of a 1.50 adaptor or changing the plug!

On challanging the chef who had forced it in he basically made some comments about the "crazy irish plugs" and couldn't see anything wrong with just pushing a schuko plug in by brute force.

There were microwaves, steam ovens and various other pretty heafty kitchen devices plugged in this way. All of which had stainless steel metal bodies.

I explained it to the manager ... she didn't give a toss. So phoned the Health and Safety Authority as it's a serious shock hazard to both staff and members of the public. Also, because the schuko plugs damage the BS1363's terminals by bending them out of shape it can cause the outlet to get pretty warm and you also introduce a fire risk. AND.. there was no guarentee that some of these appliances wern't rated >13amps either.

It's not normal practice in Ireland to use BS1363 in a commercial kitchen other than for very small appliances (E.g. hand held blenders etc).. You're legally required to use CeeForm for pretty much everything as it's steam / splash resistant and capable of taking a hard knock without cracking.

It's pretty unlikely that you'll come across sockets wired on a ring here though. So the fusing issue tends not to really pose much danger.

Even in my pokey dublin apartment there's a full distribution panel (consumer unit)

Single row:

<Main Switch> --- Main fuse (neozed) --- MCB 6A (Emergency lighting) --- RCD --- 2 X 6A MCB (lights) --- 30A MCB cooker --- 4 X 20A MCBs Sockets.

(1 bedroom apartment!)

[This message has been edited by djk (edited 07-28-2005).]

[This message has been edited by djk (edited 07-28-2005).]

It possibly depends on the design tolerance of the components. I just tried a Kopp brand Schuko plug (fairly solid, not the molded sort where the prongs will flex easily) in an old 1960s BS1363 adapter and it went it easily once the shutters were opened.

The same plug in an old MEM BS1363 socket just wouldn't go. Well, it probably would if I'd hit it with a hammer......

I've seen that often enough -- except the other way, with appliances fitted with Australian/Chinese plugs twisted so that the pins will fit the American style sockets.


There are plugs out there, made by one of the many "China National" (gov't owned companies), where the pins are on little rotating supports.

This allows you to position the pins so that they are parallel (for American style sockets) or crow-footed (for Aussie sockets).

These are two-pin plugs only, obviously.

I have one of these plugs at home -- they're not sold here in the USA unfortunately. I managed to "coax" it as a sample from the manufacturer.

Construction, however is flimsy. But the concept would be a neat idea. Now if some reputable manufacturer would take the idea nd run with it?

In Belgium, the sockets are CEE7 style with the protruding earth pin in the socket outlet, as used also in France. The trouble is that the borders of Belgium abut also Germany, the Netherlands and Luxembourg, where they all use sockets that have the earth clasps at the top and bottom.

There is no co-ordination for the multi-way adapters. There is no availability of adapters that work either way except for multi-way extension leads bought in Luxembourg or Germany: these do work well and I have several of them. They have nice chunky cable, and they carry 16A at 230V without even getting warm and provide good earth connections.

I often see non-extension-lead ones where someone has "Francocised" a German or Luxembourgoise model using a heated tent peg or a slow drill to pop a hole through the plastic body where the earth pin ought to go, but of course these don't then provide any earth protection, so that's a worry.

Equally worrying are the French adapters that have been "Germanated" to fit a regular Shucko clasp-earth style socket by the wholesale chopping out of lumps of insulation from the plug bit of the adapter, because they also have no earth, and they lose a lot of the benefit of the recessed Shucko design as regards moisture protection, not to mention structural strength.

All else being equal though at least my iBook, for example, which has a europlug-type 2-pin connector has managed to plug in safely in every European country I've tried* without using any adapters at all, except for the UK.

Of the Australian thing. twisting pins on plugs like that sets a bad example, because some appliances won't appreciate the voltage and frequency differences in supply, no? I know that a lot of (especially consumer electronic) kit that uses switched-mode supplies is nice and tolerant, but a lot of it isn't, especially not ones that are a bit older!


* Belgium, Netherlands, Germany, Spain, Italy, France, Luxembourg, Finland, Ukraine, Portugal, Denmark, Poland, Austria, but I believe the 2-pin Europlug is used far more widely.

Jooles:

So I take it that combination French/Schuko plugs like this one are impossible to find in area hardware store?

Most such appliances coming into Australia with US plugs are bought from duty free shops in South East Asia and have voltage selectors so are ok here. Fortunately the manufacturers always seem to have set the mains voltage to the 240V setting prior to leaving the factory. The appliance in the pic is a JVC radio cassette recorder that my mother bought in Singapore in 1986.
I have been occasionally handed a few US or Canadian only appliances to repair. When I see the 117V only rating and the fact that the pins were twisted it's a pretty easy guess as to what's happened. Usually, replacing the power transformer with one having a 240v primary is all that's necessary. For frequency critical things like clocks it can get tricky. These days with clocks being electronic and based around an LSI chip, the chip data will usually reveal that a certain pin has to be taken high or low to select mains frequency. Some chips are even clever enough to make the distinction automatically between 50 and 60 cycles. These and crystal controlled clocks need no modification.
While the twisted 2 pin plug appears to be relatively harmless, the issue I have is when I see the 3 pin US plug used here without an adaptor. The round earth pin invariably gets pulled out with a pair of pliers leaving the appliance not earthed.


Yikes! I'd totally forgotten about the ring main method of power wiring when I first heard this story. Isn't it amazing what people get away with?

That kind of plug is readily on sale even in the supermarkets here.

I was referring to multi-plug adapters, though, not plugs :-)

Those ones either have the classic Shucko design (no point of entry for the earth point in a French/Belgian socket) if one gets them in Germany or Luxembourg, or else one can buy the ones designed for the French/Belgian sockets and people do mutilate those to make them fit in the sockets in Germany if they need to take them over the border.

I use a three-way trailing multi-point extension socket unit that has sockets with the clasp not the earth prong (abnormal here) to accept a plug that has a switch on it and that won't go in the regular CEE7 we have in the kitchen to run a 3kW salamander (it is also used for plugging in an occasionally-used electric whisk or a blender). Thinking about the risks, it works out safer than my chef partner plugging things in and out with wet hands, though in the long run it's not going to stay like that.

I use another that runs the computers because five appliances are there (modem, printer, hub, router, fileserver) and I used a three-way adapter plus a Luxembourgoise three-way adapter to plug into one of them. There is no unacceptable risk there because they are all drawing small numbers of watts each, and they are properly earthed, and I fear a lot more the safety of those "wall wart" PSUs. Those ones will stay as they are for now. Before long the kit will be obsolete, and that's the time to wonder if it needs to be changed.

The hacked-around adapters are not much of a surprise because I think in Belgium a lot of people have a pretty blasé outlook on electrical safety matters.

Makes you wonder why somebody would go to all that trouble when it would likely be much quicker to just fit a replacement plug!


My brother has a small 220V toaster oven with standard LPT type cord (no ground) and U.S. plug. It came back from the Philippines.

Ouch... classic (old-fashioned) single bedroom apartment: 2x20A main fuses out in the stairway, inside: meter on wooden board, below or above 2x 6A Diazed (hot and neutral).
Modern one (just a guess): 3x25A Neozed or maybe Diazed (if retrofit) main fuses, inside: RCD, lights room, lights kitchen, 13A each, sockets kitchen 16A, sockets room 16A, maybe refrigerator and microwave on dedicated circuit, but not likely, if yes, probably 13A each, cooker (if not gas): always 3x16A. Two rows, that's a legal (though stupid) minimum for main panels (single row are only sold as subpanels).

aussie240, your not seriously proposing this as acceptable?

there is a reason all new plug tops and appliances have sheathed pins and that stacking piggy back plugs etc is screamed at, exposed conductors pins just love having bits of metal dropped across 'em, have even heard of one case where a steel rule was used to reach behind a desk in a cube farm.

Grab a replacement appliance lead from Dick Smiths or similar.

I'm sure Aussie just took the picture for illustrative pictures only; and then later changed the plug on the radio's flex.

I'm just illustrating a common practice. I can't say I've ever heard of someone receiving a shock from it though.
I certainly don't approve of removing the earth pin of the US 120v 3 pin plug to get it to fit. Removing the earth connection to anything makes me rather uncomfortable.

One thing that does surprise me is the bureaucrats who like to ban everything haven't done so with the incandescent light socket. Just take the bulb out and there's 240V exposed for anyone to touch. After all, someone might remove a bulb and put their fingers in....I'm just waiting for a lawsuit to appear from someone lacking in common sense there. I know HPM make what they call a 'safety lampholder' which works on the principal of no connection made to the pins unless they're pushed in. But someone can still push the pins in by their fingers if they so wish. And what of the E14 and E27 light socket that is permeating Australia in Chinese and European light fittings? The screw base of the light bulb is often uncovered just below the glass...easy to touch, with say a coin, a key or a paperclip. There's no guarantee that it will always be connected to the neutral.

Spock,

Welcome aboard!



That's something I've pondered over here. We've had shuttered sockets ever since BS1363 was introduced. The latest revision to the plug standard specifies sleeved line and neutral pins, and some trading standards departments in the country are even now trying to enforce a ban on the sale of even second-hand goods which are not so equipped (whether the law actually allows them to do that is another matter).

Yet we still have the humble BC lampholder, which could be on a desklamp, easily accessible, where you just take out the bulb and there's 240V staring at you from the exposed pins.

Not very consistent, is it?

Shuttered sockets on wall mounted GPO's have been available here since the 1950's when flush mounted accessories became standard, but they've never been compulsory.
The sleeved plug pins are now compulsory since last year. The initial idea was to give us recessed GPO's as per European practice but that died very quickly because many existing things wouldn't fit (eg. plugpack transformers). So we got sleeved pins instead. Extension cord sockets are however of the recessed type as of the last few years. The side cutters come out when the older plugpack won't go in of course.

It isn't compulsory to have sleeved pins on the plug (yet) for 2nd hand equipment, but the plug cannot be one that's held together with screws. Anyone who works with vintage equipment would know that the screws holding together bakelite plugs can loosen over time, eventually leaving the plug in the power point with exposed terminals when the top finally comes off. Of course we would always keep them tight but the general non technical population can't be relied on to do that.


That's exactly what I was thinking of. It's also a likely scenario if the bulb filament has gone open circuit and it's assumed the lamp is switched off. How many of us have been caught changing a light bulb to find the replacement lights up as soon as it is inserted?

The live bulb-holder terminals in a light fitting with no bulb in have always been a big shocker. I think that is why RCDs are compulsory for lights & sockets in houses now.

Aussie, I always change bulbs with the switch on. That way I know straight away if its going to work or not. Man I'm lazy.

Incidentally, has anyone ever received an elecric shock and tripped the RCD ? What does it feel like ? Does it hurt ? I've never done it.

kiwi,
Mate,
I'd never do that, the thickness of the glass on imported lightbulbs is getting thinner as we speak.
I've had so many bulbs break while I've removed them, that I always wear a leather glove when putting them in and removing them now.
Also, I've had the glass envelope come away from the metal base the odd time or two as well, twisting the Phase and Neutral lead-in wires together.
Not the sort of thing you want to have happen with the lampholder live.

First time I had it happen, it seemed to take a while to trip...perhaps the current flowing through me was just below the requisite 30mA. The shock was the result of slightly leaky power transformer insulation in a valve radio. I was holding the aerial wire and touching an earthed switch. Strangely, that was 26 years ago and there has been no sign of leakage from that particular radio since.
It felt like the normal kind of shock until it tripped of course. In more recent times the tripping has been so quick that often I'm not even aware that I've caused it. But then I've been right across the live and earth or neutral in those cases. Maybe the modern RCD's are also quicker to respond.


OK, I own up to doing that too, more so with fluorescent tubes but in that case I know the switch is on and I'm expecting a handfull of light . It's when you think the switch off it can be a bit startling.
Good point from Trumpy that's got me thinking twice about changing light bulbs. About two years ago, the one and only light bulb factory in Australia closed down (the usual story of why make them here when we can pay someone a bowl of rice each day to make them somwhere else instead....)
I used to only buy the Aussie bulbs but now we have no choice but to use the imports. It is unbelievable that some of them don't even have the fuses in the stem! I know of at least one case where, because of no internal fuses, a surge on the mains resulted in a pile of broken glass on the dining table beneath.
Given the pressure required to insert a light bulb into a bayonet socket, the thin glass issue is worth keeping in mind.

Aussie,
I ripped my left hand to shreds about 5 years ago on a light bulb.
It cut so deeply I lost a tendon in one of my fingers.
I can't use the pinkie on my left hand properly because of it.

OK, I confess to having done these two things simultaneously:

1.) Blown up a bulb in my hands
2.) Tripped the RCD

Situation: I worked in an electrical store when a customer walked in with some unusual lamp. A 230V lamp with small lampholder. I started going through the boxes with obscure sizes. I soon find a couple of 12V bulbs but not any 230V ones. Finally, I find one among the 230V ones. I don't check the rating, plug the lamp in, screw the bulb in and... BOOM! (Guess why? )

The whole store goes dark when the main RCD is knocked out. I try to stay cool in front of the customer and go look for the RCD...


[This message has been edited by C-H (edited 09-08-2005).]

Thats right Trumpy. I've gashed my thumb badly on a cheap no-name imported bulb when it cracked when I was putting it in. I was quite surprised how thin the glass was. I'm used to our bulbs being quite robust here, not egg-shell thin, and normally you'd have to squeeze mighty hard to break it in your hand.

At your advice Trumpy I'm going to stop changing light bulbs with the switch on. I've just imagined having a cheap bulb smash in my hand at the top of a high ladder, and as I plummet to a broken neck, wondering which hurt more; the 240 Volt shock or the laceration to my hand ?

I can't find any requirements in the standards for bulb glass thickness. Can anyone else help here ? It seems that bulb glass only needs to be thick enough to withstand its operating temperature. No mechanical strength requirements whatsoever.

One thing I have been wary of is ordinary incandescent bulbs used outdoors with nothing to cover them from rain. Typical examples of this are those strings of 'festoon' or party lights...you know those light sets where the lampholders are installed along a length of 2.5 twin by having their connection pins peirce the cable when the lampholder is screwed together. The bulbs fitted are just of the normal 25 or 40W BC domestic coloured variety. Then we have those IR sensor lights which are meant to take a 150W (or now 120W) PAR38 screw in bulb. Problem arises here when the thick glassed PAR38 bulb is replaced by either a normal GLS bulb or an R60/R80 reflector bulb. The we have the clowns who do things like mount a BC batten holder on an exterior wall fully exposed to the weather.
The point is if the bulb is on and it starts raining, the sudden cooling weakens the glass. If the wattage is high enough, the bulb will sometimes shatter. Don't be fooled by cool running bulbs either...the first bulb I had break in my hand was only 25W and it was thick glassed Aussie made.
Going back to those party light sets; they do seem potentially unsafe the way some people use them. On my trip to work I see a set wound around a steel balcony railing with some of the bulbs touching the railing and the concrete...what if one breaks (they are only at railing height and exposed to the weather)? I can just imagine the live filament support touching something.

Interesting point with the festoon lights, now that the earth and active have swapped in tps, vampire tap would no longer work, they didn't tap earth as well did they?

No Spock those festoon "vampire spike" things didn't tap the earth. They were cleverly designed to work with twin cable only.

Honestly haven't noticed any egg-shell thin lightbulbs here in Ireland yet.

The vast majority of bulbs are still Philips, Solas (Ireland's own bulb manufacturer which im sure will vanish), Osram, GE, Mazda and increasingly supermarket ownbrand bulbs, which to be fair to the supermarkets, are quite good quality.

Pretty much the same here. My usual supplier carries Osram, G.E., Philips, Mazda, and Crompton. I can't say I've noticed any particular problems.

had a bad batch of GE bulbs where 2 out of 4 purchased blew out of the metal bayonet fitting leaving it in the socket. Rang GE and they were sending out some fancy replacement bulbs. 5 Years later and still waiting?

quote:
Going back to those party light sets; they do seem potentially unsafe the way some people use them.
:unquote

Even worse are the 240v rope lights. People string them anywhere and the insulation is much softer than a lead. I know of a toddler receiving a shock when he thought it looked yummy enough to chew on. I haven't seen any for a while so maybe they finally banned them.
BTW, how do you quote a previous post?

Going back to the original post (twisting a parallel pin plug to fit an Aussie powerpoint), I offer this:



Yup. The pins are on movable "bases" so you can set them for American type or Aussie type sockets (both are commonly used in People's Republic of China).

I can't understand why china uses both Aussi and US-style plugs simultaniously

Surely at this stage they should drop the US-style connector and move to 2 pin crowfoot for class II appliances.

Adaptors for older chinese sockets could be made available pretty easily.

It's very odd to have 220V presented to you via a NEMA 110V outlet.

Well, same with Thailand and the Philippines. I have some Thai equipment (namely Super Nintendo and Sony ghetto blaster)... the appliances are rated 220V 50 Hz, but all the NEMA plugs carry a 125V rating.

Weird.

Wonder if there's anywhere using Schuko on a 120V supply?

Welcome aboard briselec!




Just cut-&-paste, then use QUOTE and /QUOTE tags (each enclosed by square brackets).

There's a summary of UBB Codes which can be used in the forum here:

What is UBB Code?

My guess is that since China makes the majority of items exported to countries that use US type plugs, and they already have the technology to manufacture these things....why not?

The outlets there are usually combination. If you have a double-socket, you will get the top part as a round pin & parallel-pin combination socket. The bottom one will be the Aussie style connector with three pins.



from http://www.kropla.com/china_power.htm

I assume these sockets fit British size boxes and the plate around the socket just snaps on after you fit the thing into the box?

[This message has been edited by SvenNYC (edited 12-30-2005).]

Sven,
I saw one of them "movable" pin plugs on a Night-Light here recently and believe me mate, it not only looked flimsy, but the fact that the pins seemed to be really loose, didn't instill a lot of confidence as to it's safety.
Regarding your picture of the upside-down AS/NZ socket, are you sure it's not an Argentinian version?.
They have the earth pin at the top in their configuration.
(And no, we don't want to get into the ground up/down debate here either )

Briselec,
Welcome to the group mate!.

Mike, that's a socket from the PRC ("Red China").

I got it off a traveler's assistance website:
http://www.kropla.com/china_power.htm

Sven,
It could be two things.
An upside down AS/NZ socket.
Or the Argentinian socket, the phasing being clock-wise from the left, Phase, Earth, Neutral.

For a while, Clipsal during the late 40's-50's were into the upside down configuration. This was when we had adopted flush fittings based on the US style separate fitting and wallplate idea. After a few years the wall plate and fitting became the one item. (The wallbox sizing is the same as the US incidentally). Timber block surface mount fittings were on their way out.
I believe this doesn't comply with present regulations where the earth must be at the bottom. Nevertheless this is sometimes overlooked for the sake of being practical; eg. some GPO's are mounted is stupid places (eg; floor level ducting) and if you want to insert a plugpack transformer into them the only way is to have the GPO installed upside down...however the switch action is then confusing.
Who remembers the HPM GPO's from the late 60's that had the pin configuration rotated 90 degrees? Their idea was they could be used vertically or horizontally.
Speaking of switches, that Chinese GPO would never be approved here having no switch.
I've also seen one of those plugs with twistable pins on a travel adaptor. You wouldn't want to draw much current through it with only those flimsy rivets holding it together. And as the pins get twisted back and forth you can imagine the whole thing loosening up.

I would bet that the use of American-style parallel-blade devices is a legacy of WWII-- Japanese, not American, influence. Not sure how they got the crowfoot, though.

I agree it would make sense to standardize on the Aus/NZ configuration, since that is reportedly the most common in China. It is an enormous and increasingly affluent market. We're not talking some small island here. At least the voltage and frequency are the same all over the country.


[This message has been edited by yaktx (edited 01-03-2006).]

So there are no unswitched versions in Australia then? I hadn't realized that.

Although it's just become convention in Britain for regular outlets to be the switched type, there's never been any requirement for such, at least not on A.C. systems (the IEE Regs. specified that outlets on D.C. must be controlled by an integral or adjacent switch).

Unswitched BS1363 outlets are available widely, although most often only used these days in inaccessible places, like under kitchen tops for a washer, fridge, etc.

Paul,
As far as I know, both Clipsal and PDL make an unswitched version of thier socket outlets.
Only used for fridges and other appliances where the socket would be in-accessible later after the appliance is installed.
Here's the PDL version:





[This message has been edited by Trumpy (edited 01-03-2006).]

Those plugs I showed are usually designed for small things that don't draw much power: electric blenders, radios, fans, etc.

The one I have at home is rated to just 10 Amps, I believe....and I doubt anyone that uses these ever runs them anywhere near that.

The pins are actually held in little plastic holders that pivot (and they're geared together, so they moved together and stay aligned). They're actually very easy to shift from one position to the other.

I'll take apart the one in my box-o-junk and put some pictures sometime later.

Unswitched sockets do exist, but as far I know it is not legal to have them directly connected to a permanently live circuit. In other words you couldn't just wire up a house with unswitched GPO's instead of normal switched ones. I don't have the book here, but I think the rule was that it has to be controlled by a switch within 1 or 1.8 metres (something like that) from the socket. As Trumpy says, they're used in out of the way locations but also on things like inverters or generators where the switch is elsewhere.
There is also a Clipsal GPO that is self switching; as the plug is inserted it pushes the contacts to the side where they make with the live connections. We have them at the back of our laboratory benches, behind locked panels but I have never seen them used for domestic use and not sure they would be approved for that.
I do recall something about home made multi outlet powerboards years ago which weren't legal because they had no switches. The first commercially made generation of these powerboards I recall (made by Kambrook in the late 70's) did indeed have one switch per socket but for quite a while now switches have been non existant. Has the regulation changed, or are they relying on the fact that the mains lead on these powerboards is actually less than the legal distance between socket and switch, and thus rely on the GPO switch into which said powerboard is plugged into?

Aussie,
You're right, Section 4.9.4.3 of AS/NZS 3000:2000 calls the maximum distance as 1.5m from the socket.

There's absolutely no requirement to have switched sockets here in Ireland. However, like in the UK, they're popular.

They're by no means the norm though. Maybe 50% or so.

Shutters are very much compulsary though.



[This message has been edited by djk (edited 01-03-2006).]

Hmmm...... Unswitched outlets aren't permitted in some countries and are the norm in others. It's a funny old world, ain't it?

On the subject of power strips, surely as these are not part of the fixed wiring of the house they wouldn't be covered by the rules anyway?

What's the reasoning behind requiring wall sockets to be switched in Australia?

I don't know the official explanation, but I can think of two reasons. Firstly, from a historical perspective, years ago portable appliances often had no switches and some still don't. I'm thinking of things like electric jugs and old toasters with flip down sides.
Radios also didn't have switches, the reason being that because double pole switches did not exist as part of the volume control potentiometer and it was illegal to have a single pole switch in a portable appliance. This is because with no live/neutral polarity guaranteed in the GPO at the time, an appliance could still be live with the switch off. Switching by the GPO only would guarantee the live is switched.
The second reason I can think of is it is far safer to insert and withdraw a plug with the power off. Think of gradually removing the plug of a 2.4KW radiator with the power on and the arcing that will occur between the plug pins and socket contact. Worse with inductive loads. It may not be such an issue with 110V, but with the 210-250V that has been used here it is far more safer and sensible. Australians have often been horrified at some overseas electrical safety practices...non earthed domestic wiring, live chassis radios/televisions and live train tracks are some of things that come to mind.

OK, as promised, here are inside views of that combo US/Australia plug:

These pictures are on a photobucket account Hopefully the moderators can save the pictures on ECN so they don't get lost if I dump or lose the photobucket account.

{ Copied to ECN server - Paul }

These are links you have to click on. They are large pictures:
https://www.electrical-contractor.net/PC/MVC-798F.jpg https://www.electrical-contractor.net/PC/MVC-799F.jpg https://www.electrical-contractor.net/PC/MVC-796F.jpg



[This message has been edited by pauluk (edited 01-05-2006).]

That's a neat design, so long as when you wire the plug you reassemble it with the teeth intermeshed properly and the blades parallel.


That was common here too, although I wonder whether they were made that way because switched outlets were common. (Chicken & egg?)

Some British kettles, irons, and so on in the 1940s/1950s came with a big connector on the appliance end which had an integral switch, often a heavier version of the "pushbar" type of switch you could find on lampholders.

At one time MK made a BS1363 plug which had an integral switch. As I recall, it was virtually an extra "layer" inserted between the basic plug base and the cover, making the plug pretty bulky. I think they even did one with a built-in neon indicator too.


It seems that Australia has been pretty strict on this for a long time. Live-chassis radios and TVs with single-pole switches were very common here, and in those days many were fed via reversible two-pin plugs. In D.C. areas, those in houses fed from the negative pole had to have set running with the chassis live and, usually therefore, the switch in the neutral.

There were at least some manufacturers here who used potentiometers with double-pole switches though.

Yeah, it's quite the interesting little device.

However, it is too flimsy for my taste. Also, the pins are thinner (in thickness of the metal) than most other plugs I've used and so the plug has the nasty habit of slipping out of some sockets that don't grip as tight.

The concept is good. It would just take someone to make a better quality version and market it.

That is an interesting plug, I can see issues with the cord wearing out though, given the twisting.
Wow, someone else remembers them. We used to have them on all the 'electric fires' in our house due to not having switched sockets. My dad (an electrician) was insistent that the fire was turned off at its own switches, then the plug, and only then unplugged.

Does anyone else remember the very odd (large diamond shaped) plugs that would pretty much fit any available (UK) socket? You had to do various things like move plastic slides and 'screw out' the pins etc. Kind of like a large and well-built version of the travel adapter plugs, it also contained a BS1362 fuseholder. We had several on inspection (trouble) lamps. Most ingenious, but of course without sheathed pins, probably illegal now.

There were many ingenious workarounds for the anything but genious system that was the old british round pin system!

Having at least 3 types of 3 pin sockets and a couple of different 2 pin sockets none of which were remotely compatable made absolutely no sense at all.

Thankfully BS1363 arrived!

Somewhere around here I have a 5-amp BS-546 plug from Hong Kong with a switch and neon in the cover.

Pretty neat device. I assume switched plugs are still found in the UK. I've seen them displayed on manufacturers' websites....usually located in China.

You can still buy switched plugs (BS1363). They're available in our local B&Q and Woodie's DIY stores.

I know people who like them for lamps as it's easier than digging around for the switch on the cord / fitting itself.

Not the best of pictures I'm afraid, but here's one -- The "Fit-All" plug:



You move the slide at the bottom which exposes the appropriate pins, then when you turn the plug over they drop out ready for you to lock them into place:



Configured for BS1363:


For BS546 5 amp:



And for BS546 15 amp:


The earth pins for BS546 5 and 15A are actually concentric, so the 5A pin drops out from within the hollow 15A pin.



[This message has been edited by pauluk (edited 01-08-2006).]

The few appliances that didn't have integral switches here had connectors like Paul described. We never had switched outlets here and I don't really see a problem with it. The old toasters had an integral switch, at least ours and the few I've seen elsewhere.

Paul:

What, no 2 amp???

Here's some examples to show that the present 'earth pin at the bottom' configuration has not always been so.

This HPM power point is the first of the flush mounting post war designs, ca. 1948. This particular one is fitted to a 6VDC-240VAC shaver inverter. You can just see the BC socket beneath the GPO to accomodate shavers not fitted with the three pin plug.

Here we have a GPO from 1956,(the age of the building it came from)which is now in my garage. It's based on the American wallbox dimensions which became standard here. Most such GPO's were like the one above, but this one requires a double width wallbox as the switch and socket are quite separate items.

Here we have yet another HPM powerpoint; this one being from 1967...the house I grew up in was fitted with these throughout.

As we can see here the above was intended for horizontal or vertical mounting. 99% of the time it was horizontal with the switch in the correct position and the socket 90 degrees out. Certain things like plugpack transformers or time switches always looked awkward plugged into these and depending on the weight distribution of the internals, didn't always stay in properly.

You just use a couple of old matchsticks for 2 amp!

Looks like your switches have the "down is on, up is off" configuration, as in the UK (opposite of ours).

Are Aussie devices still made to fit in American type boxes or have you moved on to using European or British type boxes now?

I bet the screw threads are metric, right?

That's a problem we get here with a combination of old and new fittings. The original 4BA (British Association) threads were changed to metric around 1970. The screws look almost the same, but the threads are just different enough to result in either a half turn and then jamming or going in but then not tightening due to the threads just pulling out.