Moulded-on 13A plugs going bad

Well, almost any kind of mass produced device can be faulty I suppose. I assume this had the usual hinge up fuse on the bottom of it. Maybe it just got very hot due to poor manufacture until a critical point happened where it failed.

I'd have thought though that something more than what you see now must have occurred to make things trip without blowing the fuse in the plug.

I guess it depends where the actual short was. I am not that impressed by those clamped on plugs for hi fi bits and pieces where a two pin shaver type plug on the mains lead is clamped into a housing for a 13 amp fused plug. they seem flimsey and open to damage.

Brian

Which will give a fault current of 0.00077Amps, so that would not trip a RCD, never mind a circuit breaker. Your fault is elsewhere.

bzzt. 300k is at 1.5v, apply 330v and R will change dramatically.

NT

The washing machine has damaged the socket. If I was the landlord I'd charge for that.

Bill

In message , at

That's why I mentioned voltages. The full set of components involved were:

Main fuse box (with RCD trips) Neon-fitted wall switch in kitchen (above counter) Unswitched 13A socket-plate (below counter) Moulded-on plug Cable to a mains filter inside the washer, top righthand rear corner. Washing machine wiring loom plugging into the filter.

Working though it stage by stage, the tripping was fixed by replacing the plug, and the one I took off has the characteristic I described.

In message , at 03:05:47 on Sun, 29 Oct

How has it done that, if the socket itself wasn't also inherently faulty. It was provided for a washing machine and the plug was correctly fully seated when I found it.

My guess would by the socket was 'loose' causing an occasional 'arc', which burned the surrounding area. Once the process starts, it tends to get worse with time.

I would recommend you replace the faceplate. Even if the property is rented, the small cost really isn't worth the aggro. What does a faceplate cost, under £5?

Probably £2. But how much for the call out fee from an electrician?

Such activities are specifically excluded in my leases. Tenants changing things are a nightmare as it invalidates the periodic electrical tests, and very few do a capable job. So although normally the landlord would be potentially liable for issues caused by the fixed wiring, if it can be shown that the tenant has willfully breached the lease conditions then that liability shifts to them.

I had a case where a tenant replaced a single socket with a very nasty triple. the wall was damaged but the wiring was awful with bare wires exposed where they had stretched the wires to the new socket. Fortunately found at a periodic inspection and corrected at the cost of the tenant.

Andrew

It's likely that the 300k is a dirty/carbon track somewhere inside the plug so it may well exhibit a lower resistance/impedance when there is

JOOI if the Tenant had requested a profession conversion of the single socket would you have considered doing that for them or charge them. That they had attempted to alter the socket showed they needed more outlets and a double is usually the normal arrangement .

The alternative would be a miscellaneous collection of possibly low quality extension leads or multi way adapters with risks they entail that in the worst instance could see a fire that destroys the property. And unlike a socket if they know your inspector is due such extensions may be tidied up and put away in a drawer.

I appreciate the answer could vary depending if a tenant is one who pays up on time and respects the property or one who thinks fair wear and tear includes allowing the kids to kick in doors etc and is always in arrears.

G.Harman

In message , at 08:09:11 on Sun, 29 Oct

Which bit of the socket - the clip that holds the prong not having sufficient 'grip', or a wire inside?

I don't like to tamper with landlords' fittings, and in any case all I went to do was "replace the fuse" (an over-simplistic diagnosis) and only had about an hour.

Poorly designed plug where the fuse contact is bad causing it to overheat at high current. Like when the machine is heating water. Far more likely than a poorly designed socket.

It's something that I come across once or twice a year. So extrapolate my experience (considering what I do for a living) into a population of

But it is the chicken or egg question. Did the socket or the plug cause the problem?

I just swap both.

That's hardly a short, you are even allowed a small current to flow between live and earth which would be commensurate with this sort of resistance.

The same can be said for cheap sockets, where heat transmits into the plug causing failure there.

Charring of the socket, where the plug is intact, is also indicative of a socket fail.

I'd say you're less likely to find poor quality sockets, though. As they are more likely to come from a reputable supplier.

In message , at 10:03:50 on Sun, 29 Oct

at least that's on-topic of "plugs going bad", but I have the exhibit in front of me and the fuse clip is fine.

In message , at 10:56:47 on Sun, 29 Oct

That's part of my question, I suppose. Does a ?300 washing machine with an "ASTA 744" moulded plug imply it might be low quality?