PSA: Electrical Wiring

[alfsauve]

Older son just bought a new washer/dryer and it came with a 4 prong plug.  Of course his town home only has 3 prong sockets, so the store sold him a 3 prong replacement cord.  They gave him instructions on how to swap them out and he distinctly remembers they said make sure the screws are tight. 

W R O N G


#1 Son isn't the overly technical type.  Fortunately, he called me to inspect his installation.  The first thing I did was wiggle the wires, AND THEY MOVED.  The screws were tight, but the wires weren't.  (Too long an explanation of how that happened but it can.)  This is a serious fire hazard as wires that aren't secure will arc and arcing comes with a tremendous amount of heat.  Hot enough to melt steel.   Below is a picture of what's left of an outlet that had an unsecured neutral.

So what should the store clerk instructions have been?

TIGHTEN THE SCREWS UNTIL THE WIRES ARE TIGHT.

A minor wording difference but it makes all the difference.  Yes the screws will be tight as well, but just remember always check the wires.  It's one of those cases where A implies B but B does not imply A.

[Rastus]

Exactly. 

I had a similar experience but with a 50 AMP 220/240V RV hookup that a contractor had installed.  Power on...power off...shake it and it's on...shake it and it's off.  Actually, it wasn't power on/off it was a leg that dropped out.

[alfsauve]

I guess instinctively I always check the wires.  It never occurred to me until now that not everyone understands that. 

I also instinctively  check trailer tongues by trying to yank them off the hitch.  Maybe Im just not a very trusting guy.

[Big Frank]

I usually check my trailer hitch by standing on the back of the trailer and bouncing a few times. It's a 5'x8' tilt bed, so the axle is right in the middle and it's almost balanced. Sometimes I just yank on the tongue a couple of times but with arthritis in every vertebrae head to toe, yanking on a trailer hitch can be a really bad idea. The trailer sets low enough for me to step onto the back of the deck when it's hooked up.

It sounds like someone missed the Basic Electricity lecture.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3GRm_35rHlo