Single pole or double pole?

[F]

I need to replace some 13 amp double sockets.

Is it 'best' to get double pole, or is the difference in cost (~50p per socket) not worth it?

[Owain]

It is best to get DP. People *should* pull the plug if they want to isolate the appliance, but a lot of people don't.

Owain

[Andrew Gabriel]

It doesn't make much difference, I might have a _very_ slight preference for double pole on RCD protected circuits, and single pole on non-RCD protected circuits. When you've picked the make and style you want, I don't think you normally get the choice though.

[long ironer]

Snag with these is that should the N (neutral) pole of the switch fail you end up with an appliance apparently dead, but at 240V internally.

[Andrew Gabriel]

More complex mechanical bits to fail sooner (and twice the contact resistance to generate more heat). On some, live connects before neutral, which causes some plug-in RCDs to trip, believing there to be a neutral fault.

[Christian McArdle]

Use double pole. They are superior. Single pole switches are usually older designs with poor switch design (less than 3mm contact gap, for example).

Christian.