More to the point it also gets rid of voltage selection switches and means that the same basic product can be sold anywhere in the world without the need to put in a sophisticated switched mode PSU.felix said:This gets all the nasty voltages out of the equipment which is no bad thing.
mapj1 said:bl$%% H*^* plugwash!
I know you and I do this sort of thing regularly, but this is advice to someone who may not know when not to do it (visions of live Knitting needles etc.)
the rest of the world happilly connects thin mains flexes to sockets with no protection other than the cuircuit protection (which is admittedly usually considerablly lower rating than here but usually more than 13A)felix said:OK, so we put a 13 amp fuse in the socket instead of the plug - and use 13 amp flex for everything!
Actually, that's not nearly as stupid as it sounds. How many people bother to put the right fuse in the plug? Time after time I come across low power equipment with 16/0.2 (or smaller) mains lead and a 13 amp fuse in the plug. What have we got to lose? Since a lot of 13 amp cable is orange why not standardize on this and ban the use of this colour for anything else? Result - all proper mains leads will be up to the job and any cowboy ones will be instantly recognizable.
do you want a transformer for every few houses like the US have?!felix said:The other side of the argument is that this whole electrical safety business is over the top. I still have a clear mental picture of my mother 'plugging' her iron into an adapter in an overhead light socket - and before you ask, no it wasn't Class Two!
All things considered, the British system of fused plugs and earths is pretty good. It's just a shame that we have live and neutral instead of the more obvious balanced 120-0-120 supply.
felix said:I wonder whether, in a few centuries time, similar arguments will rage over the safety of domestic fusion rings? "Will owners of the deuterium-lithium model 39C please use the beryllium reclamation plant on Mars. Anyone found fly tipping within the Moon's orbit will be liable to a fine of blah, blah, etc."
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