3 pin socket

[David Sarbutts]

Hi, I’ve recently moved house and in one of the bedrooms there is a 3 pin socket. Can someone please tell me what it would have been used for?
Kind regards Dave

 

[terryplumb]

Providing an electricity supply ,via a suitable plug ,to something. Possibly a lamp.

 

[bhm1712]

It’s a 5 amp socket. Usually used (in the past) for powering a low power device or plug in light from the lighting circuit.

 

[David Sarbutts]

Does that mean that the previous owner used for a bedside lamp possibly.

 

[David Sarbutts]

Should I disconnect it or leave it in situ as I don’t think I’ll be using it?

 

[bhm1712]

Should I disconnect it or leave it in situ as I don’t think I’ll be using it?

If you want to remove it you first need to consider what you’re going to do with the wiring. Simply removing the face plate means that the wires supplying it will still be live. Are you able to disconnect the supply at the fuse box?

 

[David Sarbutts]

This is how it’s connected

 

[terryplumb]

Does the cable from the switched ,fused ,connection unit go directly to the socket in question ? You need to establish that ,and if it is ,you can disconnect from the connection unit.

 

[bhm1712]

What Terry said

 

[Harry Bloomfield]

This is how it’s connected

Oh, a bit of a botch. Buy a second single 13amp socket, isolate the socket circuit and remove that fused spur, replace it with your brand new 13amp socket.

 

[BlueLoo]

This is how it’s connected

Eek.

Someone went to the effort of putting that in, only to add a (Wilex?) extinct plug socket on it for gods knows what (something equally extict)

Rip it all out.

 

[bernardgreen]

only to add a (Wilex?) extinct plug socket

Definitely not extinct

But could be 5 Amp ( pins 2 cm apart ) or 2 Amp ( pins 1.5 cm apart )

https://www.tlc-direct.co.uk/Products/BG829.html

( many other sources are available )

 

[Harry Bloomfield]

Someone went to the effort of putting that in, only to add a (Wilex?) extinct plug socket on it for gods knows what (something equally extict)

Nothing extinct about them, they are still very in used for special purposes. There was nothing manufacturer specific about 5amp sockets, that particular one looks like an MK style one.

 

[BlueLoo]

Nothing extinct about them, they are still very in used for special purposes. There was nothing manufacturer specific about 5amp sockets, that particular one looks like an MK style one.

BS 546 is from the 50's and has no use real use 70 years later except for museum pieces.

Yes, its still current (!) yes you could probably buy something with that plug on it from some far flung corner of the old empire.
There is web museum for plugs (honest). This one rightly sits in it.

Best of luck plugging something from the 50's into it and not getting zapped.

Bin it off.

 

[Harry Bloomfield]

BS 546 is from the 50's and has no use real use 70 years later except for museum pieces.

In your very limited opinion. If you had some specialised mains powered equipment, which you only wanted to be be able to plug into one particular socket, or series of sockets, how would you do it?

Take for instance table lights in a restaurant, or night club, where you would want to turn all the table lights of as one and would want to prevent a cleaner plugging her vac in.