CAN I USE A TOOTHBRUSH CHARGER IN A SHAVER SOCKET

HI, IS IT OK TO USE A TOOTHBRUSH CHARGER IN A SHAVING SOCKET.THANKS,ELLSIE

 

they will work but not a good idea because shaver sockets are designed for occasional load

some will quite happily work with tooth brushes others wont

 

Are you absolutely sure that the charger has a BS 4573 / IEC 60884-1 shaver plug and not a CEE 7/16 Europlug?

They look similar, but CEE 7/16 Europlug pins are 19 mm long. They consist of a 9 mm long conductive tip of 4 mm diameter with a rounded ending, followed by a 10 mm long flexible insulated shaft of not more than 3.8 mm diameter. The two pins are not exactly parallel and converge slightly; their centres are 17.5 mm apart at the tip and 18.6 mm apart at the base.

They can be inserted into any socket that accepts 4 mm round contacts spaced 19 mm apart.

BS 4573 / IEC 60884-1 shaver plugs have larger pins (5.08mm) which are closer together (15.88mm).

The bendy pins of the Europlug mean that it can be forced into a shaver socket, but then there's a risk that the tips, being larger than the shaft, will catch on something and you won't get it out.

Conversely, a shaver plug forced into a Europlug socket can leave the pin receptacles enlarged so that Europlugs are loose.


And also:

Forum Rule 7) Please do not type in capitals as it is considered to be SHOUTING!

Just what is it about not using capital letters all the time that you find impossible to understand?

 

I was under the impression that most shaver sockets were supposed to be able to take europlugs, american plugs and sometimes even australian plugs as well as the british shaver plug.

The bigger problem is that the rated load on a typical transformer based shaver socket is typically VERY low making it very easy to accidently overload them.

 

Some take both - don't know if there's any guarantee that all do.

 

Shaver sockets seem to take a range of plugs as you suggest. Not seen one lately that isn't quite generous on pin sizes.

I've had to replace several shaver sockets where toothbrush chargers were left in for extended periods. The transformer can get quite warm and I've seen several crack the faceplate across.

Try leaving it in for an hour or so and then feel the faceplate with the back of your fingers. If it's only slightly warm you're OK. If it's hot you're probably not.

 

I think it's about time that the shaver sockets were phased out entirely. The use of an isolation transformer to protect a bathroom socket is pretty much the 1950s approach.

In more modern wiring rules in other countries, they just provide a socket by the sink which is protected usually by an RCD . You could even mandate a 10mA RCD rather than the standard 30mA if you wanted to be very sure.

The UK/Ireland style shaver socket could also be retained as in the fitting that accepts Europlug / BS shaver plug.

I would also argue that the UK shaver plug should be phased out in favour of CEE 7/16. It makes no sense to keep it anymore as the sockets are all 100% compatible with CEE 7/16 and people are forced to use all sorts of weird adapters to connect UK/Irish shaver plugs to pretty much any outlet in Europe or elsewhere where CEE 7/16 "Europlug" is almost always accepted.

We installed non-isolator transformer shaver sockets (MK variety) in the bedrooms over the dressing tables specifically so that people could charge shavers and toothbrushes. They contain a 1amp internal fuse and are wired on the normal 20Amp RCD protected radial socket circuits. So, they're quite safe. They accept shaver plugs or CEE 7/16 only.

It's pretty unusual to actually use a shaver or a toothbrush while it's plugged into the socket. The vast majority of them are rechargeable only.

 

Or just put a non-isolating one inside a cupboard.

 

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