I think ring mains are unreliable. If your ring is broken (by, say, a bad connection in one of the sockets in the ring or whatever) you'd never know that it's capacity is halved. If your ring is broken near the fuse box, all of the sockets on the ring are actually on a spur. M.K.
The idea of heating the whole house simply didn't exist. You heated the living room only. Possibly the bedroom for a short time just before going to bed.
Took a World War to stop the last attempt at that. Why should I want to follow the same rules as a Frenchman? Why not the same rules as a Chinese gentleman or an Argentinean? Why should I have to use europroducts rather than American?
No different from visiting the USA or Asia or Africa.
Who cares? Europe is awash with such petty and useless bureaucracy (ignored for a small bribe), we need far less of it imposed - not more.
Tried using (or even changing) Euros in the Far East, or the USA? The credit card is now the ubiquitous form of currency.
Exactly as it should be. Much of your arguments make sense only on a world wide scale, not a petty european one. Do you really want a future world where everything is the same (and officially perfect)?
The last three items I have bought came with 100-250VAC PSU's with interchangeable plug plates so they work anywhere, not just Europe.
So I'm going to have to have 24 MCB's in the kitchen, the same in the office, 20 in the living room, 10 in the dining room, a dozen in each bedroom and about 30 in the garage? Total of about 150 MCB's in the house. What green weed was the idiot who proposed this on?
Alternatively I could adopt the euroapproach and "improve" safety by having one socket in each room and daisy chained 16A extension leads and adapters plugged in to adapters.
No - your *house* wiring is not well designed. And changing to radial circuits would not improve matters here - your house builder was simply skimping on material and labour costs.
Two part devices aren't normally considered as portable.
Architect's Specification 1947 says: "(TRS) It is however a less reliable system (than lead alloy sheath) and cannot be recommended for use in permanent structures. The alternative to tough rubber is a sheathing of poly-vinol [sic] chloride (P.V.C.)
Extracts from post-war building studies No. 11, Eletcrical installation
1944 (HMSO, 1s. 6d.)
Clause 95. Systems of Wiring. ... wiring should be carried out in vulcanized rubber-insulated cable (similar cable, insulated with polyvinyl chloride, which form a satisfactory alternative to which the possibility of post-war rubber shortage gives added importance) run in ... conduit.
So although PVC T&E may not have been common, PVC insulated cables in conduit has a long history.
You're having a laugh. The electrics in the Italian flat I stayed in were pretty bad. Not old, either, clearly rewired in the last 10 or 15 years. There was a pitifully low rated RCD (25A IIRC). Several of the sockets had scorch marks. We had to hunt round the house to find an unblackened socket to plug our stuff into.
We were lucky not to lose our deposit too, as the switch to the kitchenette unit was installed directly next to and above the hob burner. You have to remember not to centre the pan on the burner, or it melts the switch. We, of course, forgot one night and had a disturbingly melted and twisted switch plate. We, ahem, may have swapped it with an undamaged one hidden behind the washing machine (which was installed within touching distance of the bath/shower).
Bizarre. I don't recall replacing a fuse in the plug since I was a kid, and that was after a vacuum cleaner damn near exploded. I have never had one go on a power tool.
Yes - I've no experience of Italian electrics but seen this with Spanish ones.
A decent quality UK 13 amp plug properly wired - or a moulded type - when used with a decent quality socket - won't show signs of burning even at 3 kW load. Of course if it's used with an unswitched socket and regularly plugged and unplugged under full load there's likely to be some signs, but then who does that or uses them these days?
My kitchen sockets are all 25 year old+ Crabtree Classic brushed chrome types, and still look like new. Including the ones with the kettle, washing machine, etc, near permanently plugged in.
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