13 amp plug overheating

[johnbuckley]

Hope someone can shed some light on this please.
My daughter runs a dog grooming van and has an issue with a 13 amp 'heavy duty' 3 pin plug getting hot and sometimes blowing the fuse.
This tends to happen when she is using a dog drier which has a rating of 2400 watts.
The van has the circuit breakers in attached pic, then the 16 amp plug and lead is plugged into the socket outside the van, this terminates with a 13 amp 'heavy duty 3 pin plug which is plugged into the customers home, it is this plug that overheats andblows the fuse occasionally.
I opened the plug and inside I could see obvious burning at the live connection, I rewired a new plug ensuring that terminations and 13 amp fuse were secure. I told my daughter to ensure that nothing else is being used to draw current while using the drier and after a while the same thing has happened.
The drier is now not being used until we can find a solution; from what I've been able to find out, the 13 amp plug should be able to handle a current draw of 2400w, is it possible that the length of continuous time that the drier is on would cause this?
Any advice or ideas on how to overcome this would be appreciated.

 

[securespark]

There's a 16A breaker for power and a 6A for lighting.

What are the other loads being used?

It would be interesting to do a current check with a clamp meter to see the load at any one time.

 

[johnbuckley]

There are no other loads on at the same time apart from the internal led ceiling lights with amount to 35w. The van has a bath heater and shower pump but I made sure that she has these switched off whilst using the drier to reduce any excess current draw.
Current check with a clamp meter seems reasonable, I didn't think of that; at least then I would know if the appliance is drawing more than its labelled 2400w. Thanks

 

[ericmark]

"Van" rings alarm bells, where is the 230 volt coming from? Many heaters use diodes to reduce the output by half, or use some wave form clipping, if supplied from a simulated sine wave this may be messed up, I would too look at using a clamp meter.

 

[securespark]

Other factors could be the length of time the heater is on for, the quality of the plug and its connections and the quality of the socket and its connections.

 

[hllns]

There are no other loads on at the same time apart from the internal led ceiling lights with amount to 35w. The van has a bath heater and shower pump but I made sure that she has these switched off whilst using the drier to reduce any excess current draw.
Current check with a clamp meter seems reasonable, I didn't think of that; at least then I would know if the appliance is drawing more than its labelled 2400w. Thanks

Wonder if you just have so much voltage loss over the whole setup that the current draw is a lot higher, try it on power usage meter that shows consumption and voltage at the van end.

 

[davelx]

Wonder if you just have so much voltage loss over the whole setup that the current draw is a lot higher, try it on power usage meter that shows consumption and voltage at the van end.

That only happens with switched mode power supplies. Very unlikely that heater and drier etc. uses those.

 

[trojanhawrs]

How long is the extension between van and house, is it on a coil? What is the cable csa

 

[Harry Bloomfield]

Wonder if you just have so much voltage loss over the whole setup that the current draw is a lot higher, try it on power usage meter that shows consumption and voltage at the van end.

No, voltage drop, normally means a reduction in current drawn,

 

[Harry Bloomfield]

How long is the extension between van and house, is it on a coil? What is the cable csa

That would only cause the cable in the coil to overheat, not the plug.

I would check there is definitely nothing else drawing current at the same time, no lights, no water heaters, as well as fit a good quality, well terminated plug.

 

[johnbuckley]

"Van" rings alarm bells, where is the 230 volt coming from? Many heaters use diodes to reduce the output by half, or use some wave form clipping, if supplied from a simulated sine wave this may be messed up, I would too look at using a clamp meter.

The 240 volt comes from the supply of a clients house. Not sure about the rest of your info as that lost me a bit; the heater is portable with its own 13 amp plug which is plugged into a normal 3 pin socket inside the van. Really it's a glorified hair drier.

 

[johnbuckley]

Other factors could be the length of time the heater is on for, the quality of the plug and its connections and the quality of the socket and its connections.

Length of time was a thought that I had although the van was professionally converted and should have taken that into account. The plug is a screwfix 13 amp heavy duty affair and I terminated it myself and whilst I'm not a spark, I am confident that at least my fitting is good. Maybe the plug is not so heavy duty; any recommendations on a more suitable one?

 

[johnbuckley]

How long is the extension between van and house, is it on a coil? What is the cable csa

I think it's 14 meters, and it's loose not coiled. I would need to check the csa, it was bought from screwfix.

 

[Fred Blogs]

If this is the Screwfix heavy duty plug you are using then apart from the plastic casing which does look a little more robust than a standard whit plug I wouldn't think it is particularly heavy duty. I think you need to look for something a bit heftier on the connection side of things including the prongs.

13A Fused Heavy Duty Plug Black - Screwfix

Order online at Screwfix.com. Durable and hardwearing. FREE next day delivery available, free collection in 1 minute.

www.screwfix.com

 

[Harry Bloomfield]

I am confident that at least my fitting is good. Maybe the plug is not so heavy duty; any recommendations on a more suitable one?

Post a photo of the plug, with the top cover removed, so we can see the terminations. A weak point of 13amp plugs, is the fuse, and how the fuse makes contact in the plug. You need to ensure it is tightly held, to minimise resistance heating.