wiring a socket to a lighting circuit
- Thread starter FosD
- Start date
FosD said:
It COULD be safe.
There is a thread on this subject on UK electrics.
You should fit a fuse between the light circuit and the socket so that the maximum current that can be taken from the socket is limited.
In the UK this would be a FCU ( Fused connection unit )
FosD said:
Be carefull!! I have had an apartment in Spain for 3 years now. It has several switched sockets which I eventually found out were "lighting only" sockets, for usewith table lamps These lighting sockets were visually VERY similar to standard "side earth" sockets (they accepted the UK/Continental adapters without problem), but the side earth contacts were not fitted --- the sockets were either for use with double insulated lights with small plugs similar to a shaver plug, or with special European plugs that have an extra earth pin (rather than the side connector earths)
We then had an episode of "brain not in gear" --- when used with UK/continental adapters and various wired earth UK lights/appliances left by the previous owner (which I had assumed were fault-free), someone got (and survived) a shock! A check with a meter showed that several metal parts/lampolders were indeed live. Because we were using faulty, wired earth appliances in sockets with no earth contacts, we were very lucky to get away with it.
I called in a local electrician, who was horrified I was using a UK/Continental adapter with wired earth appliances in such a socket, saying I and British appliances were "stupido". He spoke as little English as I spoke Spanish but we got by. It was only when I INSISTED he changed these lighting type sockets to side earth type sockets that we both realised that these lighting sockets and standard UK/Continental adaptors with wired earth appliances were an accident waiting to happen, because almost every British visiter uses these adapters and assumes they will properly earth their appliances. It would be good if the adapters were labelled with details of these earthing problems.
He insisted I label each of these sockets "300watt maximum". He then realised that UK appliances expect the live and neutral supply to always go to the same pin whereas (aparrently) this does not matter with Spanish sockets (in any case the plug can go in the socket 2 ways round). He then checked which way round the wires were in each socket, altering them where necessary, and warned me always to insert the UK plug in the socket with the cable hanging down.
In the circumstances I think I am now about as safe as I can be using these adapters, but I dread to think how many other UK visiters might make a similar mistake and not survive.[/u]