DIY Legality

[Steve Walker]

Maybe I'm being misled by a shadow, but the flex from the plug looks just slightly thicker and darker to me.

SteveW

[Steve Walker]

In reality any half decent socket will easily exceed those figures. Random samples are regularly tested at full load in heated, humidified cabinets for extended periods. In other cabinets, plugs are repeatedly inserted and removed on load or switches repeatedly operated.

SteveW

[Tim Streater]

[Lieutenant Scott]

How come there are so many pointless safety regulations about, yet anyone could plug two 3kW fanheaters into a double socket (picture a central heating breakdown and an old person warming her living room) and overload it?

[dennis]

Well to put it into the words of the "experts" "if anyone is stupid enough to do something like that they deserve to get what they get". It appears that every old lady should know all the rules so they don't do anything stupid, its a shame they keep the rules hidden and don't tell anyone that they even exist unless you buy a copy.

[Lieutenant Scott]

According to

the MK ones are 13A per socket except three way ones which are fused at 13A.

[dennis]

There is a link to some tests on MK sockets that show they are not (or were not a few years ago). They could only carry about 19A without getting a rise of 52 C which puts them well into too hot for the wiring country. If I could remember where it was then I would google it.

[ARWadsworth]

If you knew where it was you would not have to google for it, you would enter the url instead, you pillock.

But it said

All MK socket-outlets are manufactured to comply with BS1363 part 2: 1995 and are rated at 13A per unit. Double socket-outlets have been manufactured and tested to exceed this rating by margin that allows electrical safety and reduces the risk of heat and mechanical damage to components due to overloading. It should be noted that BS1363 part 2: 1995 does not allow double sockets to operate at twice the permissible maximum loading and it should be remembered that double socket-outlets are not manufactured to be able to withstand a 26A load for sustained periods of time.

Research by ourselves and third party organisations has shown that all MK double sockets can safely withstand a continuous load of 19.5A for an indefinite period. Increasing the load slightly will begin to cause heat and mechanical stresses on the components in a relatively short period. Testing showed that a load of 22.3A was sufficient to cause heat stress that would cause a browning of the faceplates and sufficient heat to cause insulation damage to cable cores. A load of 24A for 43 hours was sufficient to cause significant heat damage to the material in which the socket-outlet was situated and within 75 hours sufficient to cause significant damage that would lead to the very real potential of fire.

MK recommend that users of their sockets consult professional design Engineers when designing installations to avoid the possibility of heat and mechanical stress to components and installations caused by overloading of MK socket-outlets

[Ian]

Not many people are going to want to draw in excess of 20A for more than a few hours anyway ..... too expensive! (Unless they are running a cannabis farm, in which case the legallity of the installation is the least of their concerns, a piece of a 6" nail would have to find its way into the incoming service fuse for a start......)

[Lieutenant Scott]

So either they fixed the problem after the bad publicity, or they are lying!

Haven't the fire brigade got statistics on the cause of house fires which would include this?

[ARWadsworth]

It would not take long for the heaters to reach temperature and switch off.

[Lieutenant Scott]

Why the hell are they allowed to get away with this? A double socket costs a couple of quid, surely they can add another 50p and make it 26A! Or even better

30A, as the fuse on the circuit is labelled. Everything should always be able to take the fuse rating continuously!

[Lieutenant Scott]

That's no excuse for MK making such dangerous crap.

Why would you need more than 100A for a cannabis plantation?

[Lieutenant Scott]

What if she'd just got in from a few days away and was warming the whole house? I can run my gas boiler (which I believe is about 12kW) for hours in winter.

[ARWadsworth]

Well if she was heating the whole house then the heaters would be spread around the house and not all plugged into the lounge socket!

[Lieutenant Scott]

Rubbish. She's sat in the lounge watching telly and snuggled up trying to keep warm. She wants most heat in the lounge.

[ARWadsworth]

So not heating the whole house then?

[Lieutenant Scott]

Leaving the door open for this. Do I have to spoon feed you?

[John Rumm]

You would need a sustained 6kW in one room for a significant time, without the thermostat on either heater cycling. The reality is that the room gets warm, and the heater stat kicks in, or someone turns one off. Hence the reason you don't see "old people" needing new sockets every winter.

[Man at B&Q]

e

A quick Google shows that 3kW fan heaters may well not have thermostats, only overheat safety cutouts.

MBQ