Why do light fittings still have live prongs

[Mattrm]

a few weeks ago at college we wired up a lighting circuit and our lecturer got a shock when he showed the students were you put the lightbulb and stuck his finger in the bayonet light fitting with the power turned on. It got me wondering why do socket need shutters but it's perfectly acceptable to have two live prongs sticking out a lamp.

 

[bernardgreen]

a few weeks ago at college we wired up a lighting circuit and our lecturer got a shock when he showed the students were you put the lightbulb and stuck his finger in the bayonet light

Maybe a different college, one with better lecturers.

There are bayonet type light fittings where the prongs are only connected to the supply when a lamp is inserted. Designed for those lacking in common sense

 

[Keithmac]

I suppose a plug is designed to be fitted and removed, plus only an absolute idiot would shove his finger into a live light fitting..

 

[terryplumb]

Good question to ask your lecturer mattrm ,together with ....have you ever had any practical experience sir!!

 

[crystal ball]

After all the trouble we go to to shield live parts in sockets and various fittings the bayonet fitting seems a bit of a survivor from another age

 

[Mattrm]

Good question to ask your lecturer mattrm ,together with ....have you ever had any practical experience sir!!

He boasts about the fact he rewired his own house by himself so I would imagine he believes he has practical experience. He is also ex-navy as he likes to keep telling everyone.

 

[terryplumb]

He is also very ,very careless isn't he !

 

[Iggifer]

MK make Bayonet fittings with shutters over the pins. Turning the lamp into the holder opens the shutters. Maybe you should buy him one!

 

[sparkwright]

Lampholders are primitive. They haven't really changed much since the early days of electricity.

They were designed in the days when people had more common sense.

To match some of today's other safety improvements, some kind of shutter could be fitted on all lampholders, similar or better than the MK ones. No requirement yet though.

Electric shock is no laughing matter, but I bet it was hilarious to most of your fellow students!

 

[JohnW2]

Lampholders are primitive. They haven't really changed much since the early days of electricity. .... They were designed in the days when people had more common sense.

Quite possibly true, but even if levels of common sense have/had not changed, expectations of levels of 'safety' certainly have, in virtually all walks of life.

Injuries, or even deaths, that were once regarded as 'accidents', 'one of those things', or the result of stupidity, are often now regarded as events against which we should be protected by the ('nanny'?) state.

Given the way that everything else has gone, I share the surprise that we still have 'unshuttered' lampholders.

Kind Regards, John

 

[Taylortwocities]

When I left school I was a telephone apprentice. After an intial induction course, My first day in the field was to go fitting telephone lines in some new built houses.
We arrived at the first house and (of course) it was time for a cup of tea. The crusty old bloke I was working with said "I wonder if there's any juice"
He turned the light switch on and shoved his fingers into the pendant lamp holder. proclaimed yes there is! and went to get the kettle from the van.

A fine example. especially as the first six weeks had been largely taken up with health and safety matters..!

 

[securespark]

Not to put too fine a point on it, TTC, but what year was this?

 

[JohnW2]

Not to put too fine a point on it, TTC, but what year was this?

Perhaps more relevant may be the age of the "crusty old bloke" at the time!

I certainly came across a few 'old timers' in a number of trades in the 70s/80s (hence mainly trained pre-WWII) whose approach to electrical, plumbing, building etc. work was, to say the least, 'interesting' in terms what even back then were 'required/accepted standards'! (they had, of course, usually had no further updating training since their initial, often lengthy, apprenticeship - if, of course, they had ever had any training at all).

Kind Regards, John

 

[securespark]

Yeah. I knew a Transco bloke who used to test for leaks with an old Zippo.....

 

[JohnW2]

Yeah. I knew a Transco bloke who used to test for leaks with an old Zippo.....

I know that ancient memories have habit of getting distorted, but I really do think that use of some sort of naked flame was a fairly 'standard' (at least, common) way of testing for gas leaks when I was a lad!

Kind Regards, John