Running two appliances from one plug

Joined
18 Apr 2018
Messages
9
Reaction score
0
Country
United Kingdom
Helll I have a workshop out in the garden and spare electric sockets are in short supply..!

My lights run off a plug they are led 45w lights and I have two of them each wired to a 5amp plug.

This means sacrificing 2 out of 3 plug sockets just to have lighting. The lights cannot be daisy chained as the wiring is built in.

Is there anyway of joining the cables so that they run off one plug?

Thank you
 
Sponsored Links
you should be able to wire the 2 lights into, 1 plug.
Post a pic of the light & plug to be sure
 
Helll I have a workshop out in the garden and spare electric sockets are in short supply..!

My lights run off a plug they are led 45w lights and I have two of them each wired to a 5amp plug.

This means sacrificing 2 out of 3 plug sockets just to have lighting. The lights cannot be daisy chained as the wiring is built in.

Is there anyway of joining the cables so that they run off one plug?

Thank you

Wouldnt a 4 inline short extension lead sort you out. Its possible to get switched ones if you want individual on off switches for each.

A 13a plug isnt designed for 2 cables
 
Short multi-way extension lead
two-way socket adapter

Lots of easy options.
 
Sponsored Links
The lights cannot be daisy chained as the wiring is built in.

Is there anyway of joining the cables so that they run off one plug?

Most likely the "plug" is a low-voltage power supply unit, so you can't cut into it and add more wires.

The multiway adaptor is a much better idea.
 
Sorry I probably should of put this originally... it’s all running off an extension cable already.

There’s no electric out there so I’ve got an extension cable running out to the shed with 4 sockets on, one has a piece of machinery attached, two for lights which only leaves me 1 spare socket for laptop, printer, press, sewing machine etc

I ways always told you cannot safely plug an extension cable into an extension cable?
 
show us some photographs of what you've got please.

Is the supply socket in the house, and is it on a circuit protected by an RCD? Show us a photo of your consumer unit (fusebox) with the door open too.

All this guessing is too tiring.
 
Also... the less cables the better as currently tripping over them all as they are plugged in coming from various points around the shed which is 16’ long ‍♀️
 
I ways always told you cannot safely plug an extension cable into an extension cable?
Heres what happens,

People chain together extension leads without paying attention to what they are doing. Extension leads end up getting melted and occasionally causing fires. This is especially a problem in the USA due to their lower voltage, and the fact that they have extension leads that are rated lower than the breakers protecting them, but it can happen over here too, especially when reels get involved.

That doesn't mean chaining extension leads is intrinsically unsafe, it means that as with many things in life you need to pay attention to what you are doing. Protect your cables from damage, pay attention to the total load, unwind reels fully before drawing high currents through them or better yet avoid reels altogether (ever looked at stage/event power/lighting setups? extension leads of various types everywhere but no reels in sight), don't buy extension leads from dodgy sellers.

But that is hard to digest down into a soundbite for the hard of thinking, so people get told not to chain extension leads.

Getting back to your situation in an ideal world one would run permanent power to the workshop, but that is not always practical. In the absence of a permanent set-up i'd much rather see extension leads of appropriate length, routed in a way that kept them away from damage chained together than what it sounds like you have at the moment which is cables that are routed unsafely because they are not long enough to do their job.

As to the lights i'd probablly use something like https://www.amazon.co.uk/Ashley-J804-Maintenance-Terminal-Junction/dp/B00BATALN6 to join the flexes from the lights to each other and to an incoming flex that could be plugged in.

Don't let perfect be the enemy of better.
 
Last edited:
Sorry I probably should of put this originally... it’s all running off an extension cable already.

There’s no electric out there so I’ve got an extension cable running out to the shed with 4 sockets on, one has a piece of machinery attached, two for lights which only leaves me 1 spare socket for laptop, printer, press, sewing machine etc

I ways always told you cannot safely plug an extension cable into an extension cable?


Remove your 4 gang and replace with this ... https://www.toolstation.com/10-gang...MTg85fqqu_nmsJdl-Gl_2GIQTQp70juUaArgIEALw_wcB
 
Sorry I probably should of put this originally... it’s all running off an extension cable already.

There’s no electric out there so I’ve got an extension cable running out to the shed with 4 sockets on, one has a piece of machinery attached, two for lights which only leaves me 1 spare socket for laptop, printer, press, sewing machine etc

I ways always told you cannot safely plug an extension cable into an extension cable?
Blimey, with what you’ve got going on out there, wouldn’t it be better to get a proper power supply to the workshop?
 
13436B7B-B205-481E-B8AE-0B827D9C1D15.png
It would make life easier to have a permanent supply however it’s rented property and it’s a no for having a supply fitted so have got to make do.

I can’t swap to a 10 gang extension it won’t solve the issue as the shed is 16’ long and some sockets are needed one end and some the other, none of the appliances have cords long enough to reach the centre point.

@plugwash the link you sent there was a similar item listed this is what I was thinking of so where the two cables come in that would be the two lights, and the one coming out would be the wire to the plug would that work? I’ve used these boxes to make single cables longer but never with two cables?
 
Either the J803 or the J804 will work fine. The J804 has an extra terminal group (which is useful if you ever want to add a cable going off to a switch), the J803 has a higher current rating (but both have a higher current rating than a normal domestic plug).

Doesn't matter which flex comes in where, just connect all the lives together, all the neutrals together and all the earths together.
 

DIYnot Local

Staff member

If you need to find a tradesperson to get your job done, please try our local search below, or if you are doing it yourself you can find suppliers local to you.

Select the supplier or trade you require, enter your location to begin your search.


Are you a trade or supplier? You can create your listing free at DIYnot Local

 
Sponsored Links
Back
Top