I see a lot of outlets like this on Airbus aircraft. Cheap USB chargers plugged into poorly conceived universal outlets in a airplane - that will never be an issue, right?
in an airplane, like a Boeing or Airbus, they'd absolutely have to be type approved. Also the current will be very limited, so not going to be using your Black & Decker iron in-flight.
You missed the really dangerous 4 way extension in the market. That type typically has an undersized aluminium cable combined with what looks like 5A fuse wire running down the length of the unit connecting the L and N pins. Ive even seen them in the Middle East where the Earth pins of the outlets are not even connected.
you should visit america then. out safest extention cords are holiday lights. as in those are typically the only "extention cords" with a fuse. and grounding is not always a thing.
Seen earth not connected on halogen lights bought here. I made modifications before it went up (at a museum). It like almost all the other (crappy with hindsight) LED lighting failed after a couple of years and now we have a large cherry picker job to do.
Universal sockets are fun and offer a more shocking experience while on your Holidays but make sure your Travel Insurance covers you for Defibrillator use first
These type of universal sockets are indeed very dangerous. Due to the socket holes being "universal", they give less contact surfaces for the plug legs which will cause heat and melt the plug and socket plastic.
These universal sockets are now commonplace on aeroplanes. That said, they are only used for low current gadgets such as laptops, phones and tablets. Most such gadgets are also universal voltage and Class 2 equipment. I must admit I would be lost without them as a frequent flyer on double long-haul flights. I'm sure they will be safe in this situation with right choice of protective equipment. Plane manufacturers have extremely high safety standards. The big danger of universal sockets is when using high current appliances combined with a low level of protective equipment. Many countries have much lower electrical standards and the use of universal sockets probably isn't much different to using travel adaptors.
Many devices that are likely to be carried by international travellers are now universal in themselves. The power brick for my Acer laptop, for example, a LiteOn PA-1450-26, has input specs of 100-240V, 1.2A, 50-60Hz. It has an interchangeable power lead, with a standard Mickey Mouse plug (IEC 60320 C5) on the brick end, and a location appropriate (in Canada, type B (NEMA 5-15P)) plug on the other. If I choose to travel with it, all I need is to buy a destination appropriate power lead, and I'm good to go. No messing with plug adapters, universal outlets, or anything of the sort. On the other hand, my newer, Asus laptop, uses an unspecified, type A (NEMA 1-15P) wall wart, instead.
Can confirm. I unscrewed a lightbulb one time and for the low price of $50/hour I can make sure that all of your children's plastic bags are electrician approved. ** Employee is not responsible for injuries resulting from children being dumber than an empty plastic bag **
Electrics are complicated enough without adding international differences into the mix. Can you imagine trying to get compensation for being electrocuted by one of the universal sockets that don’t earth. It could take years to sort out who is responsible. Big Clive is Da Man. Cheers Stuart 🇦🇺
@@efixx From a legal point of view they’re probably better off not knowing the risks. At the moment they could probably get away with pointing the finger at whoever signed off on them or installed them but once they’re informed of the problem then they will be obliged to fix it otherwise they may be held culpably negligent for knowing of the danger and doing nothing about it. I’m glad it’s not me. 👍👍
@@scroungasworkshop4663 Agree - we are also surprised to see that a large global “trusted” electrical brand would place a product like these in the market. No warnings contained in the product packaging.
@@efixx Legrand relying on these being approved for the Chinese market, so not an issue if sold to others, as there is a CE sticker on, and the warning to qualified people only to install, so the installer is the one who is liable.
@@SeanBZA "approved for the Chinese market", nice one! Chinese stuff is "approved" by the guy who sells it to you. He approves of taking your money. The CE stickers I'm sure you can buy rolls of in some Shenzhen market. Having a brand on the label doesn't mean it's from that brand, it's just to make it more saleable.
Great video guys! On the part where you were looking at the UK plug going in to the socket, and you said the contact was poor, I did wonder if the problem might instead have been that the insulated pin of the plug goes in too far, and the socket contact goes past the brass part of the pin and touches the insulation? Have you checked how far the pin engages to see if this is the cause? If the socket contact partially ran onto the insulation, that would increase the joint resistance. Just a thought.
At first we thought that was version one of this video. Then we looked again with the front plate spacing and found that the contact avoided the insulated section.
The danish have their 😁smile sockets, while all the appliances you can buy there have the European style plugs. It all works fine, as long as, you know.. The shorts are a nice contrast to the wood fire in the background. Nice video, thanks.
BS1363 is absolutely nothing to do with Brexit, since they're used in Ireland and Cyprus and many places outside the EU. I note that on trains like the Eurostar, they get around this mess by having both sorts of sockets (BS1363/Type G, and French/Shuko Type E/F) available, which is far more satisfactory than any of those compromise designs, because at least you know there will be an earth contact, and you can do your ironing safely on the train while travelling at 300km/h.
@@Chris47368 I think they might have been joking. Although ironically Brexit wasn't about immigration, despite that being why most of the leavers voted.
@@greenaum Brexit was due to a magnitude of reasons tbh - a major reason being that career Brexiteers lied and convinced huge swaths of voters the supposed brexit 'benefits' that never materialised...as a result of largely brexit(combined with the war in Ukraine and COVID) we are one of the poorest and most stagnant economies in the G7 and all these problems the average brit is facing is only going to get much worse provided we continue to keep electing lying brexiteer tories into power and continue to isolate ourselves from one of the largest markets on earth xD
Safer, if not a bit uglier, option is to just have a socket for every common traveller's home country. You'd only need UK, US/Canada, Aus/NZ, and EU options and you've got most covered (obviously not going to do anything about frequency). Anybody else can then have an adapter from their own standard into any of the aforementioned standards.
Sockets in hotels get a lot of wear and tear. I would have thought that the heat damage to the plug was probably caused by a worn (and therefore loose) connection between the socket and the plug - rather than the socket design.
@@efixx I think it has the chance of being self correcting. As on that unit. I doubt the person with a need for an American plug would also have a need for a UK plug. But agreed. One socket one device. That is the only way I work.
@@capactiveresistance314 Small variation, I have a BS-1363 2-way extension with a French plug on the lead and another with an Italian one which I take travelling. Much more convenient than travel adaptors, and as they're "official" plugs connection and grounding are as good as the outlet can provide. Never worry about load because the most use I have for them is a laptop and a camera battery charger.
I've seen universal sockets in a few UK hotels not sure how they can legally fit them or where they buy them from, they were the shuttered version. Last hotel I stayed in with one was an Ibis but I've seen them in others.
You'll often see universal outlets in China. Because they actually have three different standards for mains plugs and sockets, Two flat prong US style, a three prong with slanted prongs similar to Australia, and British BS1363 style used in Hong Kong and Macao.
This is why I just carry an adapter for the country and a 4 way extension. In a past life I was at a work offsite in Sweden and a number of us needed to charge our phones but only one socket was close to where we were drinking. Ran to my hotel room, came back with the 4 way got some singgers and some whys?!? But now everyone has taken that idea for their future trips!
I have one with a short fly lead to an IEC C14 so I can either make an adapter or buy a standard “kettle lead” locally, or I can use a UK lead with an adapter plug. Best of all worlds.
There is nothing wrong with the design of the outlet. It’s the types of plastic you are allowed to use in the countries these are deployed. These outlets were designed with poletheretherketone in mind not cheap vinyl or abs. There has been a trend to use cheaper plastics in lower amp outlets. I’m sure it’s cost over safety that helped this trend to fruition. Only thing we can do is steer customers away from cheap equipment.
The socket you were buying was made by Legrand and I would have thought that legrand would never make a dangerous product as they are considered a very reputable company.
I've lived in France for the last few years. Legrand is indeed a reputable company, but some of their plug designs are dangerous cr*p (you can buy them in most national chain DIY stores). I was really surprised about it actually. I haven't seen this particular socket for sale though
Gary giving himself a pat on the back there. Agreed you guys do the best job on UA-cam when it comes to knowledge and understanding, Implimentation of that knowledge, updates in the world of Elctrics and at the same time being entertaining. Thank you for the effort
Great thing about Mauritius they get many appliances from China. The main shipment being destined for Europe via boat. So tend to get some of what they need in those order lots. South Africa does the same thing. Which leads to South Africa having now 4 standard plugs. French/German for outdoor equipment especially lawn mowers. "2 point plugs" like Italy. The standard SABS socket and the new "3 point plug" that will replace the SABS socket. Just with the addition of the earthing pin. Got to love when you live on a trade route
The "SABS" plug, was the old 15amp British plug. South Africa inherited it from the UK. But it's no longer used in the UK now. (In some rare cases it still is) I actually like the design of the "new South African" plug, it means we can use the small unearthed "euro plug" directly, without an adaptor. By the way, RCDs were invented in South Africa.
@@efixx That is just the start of it. I think you would be shocked at what the standards allow for bonding of hot water tanks and the rest of the house.
@@capactiveresistance314 you can still buy the old 15amp British plug without a fuse (identical to South Africa) in RS components. They still have the solid brass pins, like they used to have, in South Africa.
The biggest safety concern in this video is watching you two pretending to look comfy sat in those chairs. Let's have a whip round to get them something decent ha. Great video as always.
another fun game you can play with those death adapters is you can shove the ground pin from the UK plug right into the live side of the plug. Fun and sparky! Dangerous for the entire family!
In the United States we have two prong plugs on our hair dryers, but they have what is called an Immersion Detection Circuit Interrupter which is designed to trip if the hairdryer falls into the bathtub, and presumably any other ground faults.
Hair dyers are double insulated so they are not grounded anywhere. Note the ALCI plug does not protect you if you touch the prongs - though the physical size may make it less likely.
TK Maxx sometimes sell universal extension leads. I could not believe what I saw, I asked to speak to a manager, they were removed from sale. I have seen them in lots of places, very scary indeed.
These aren't actually 'universal' for a reason. I suppose, yes its convenient but if they cause arcing to happen on a £300 Dyson hairdryer they're just stupid.
@@efixx Hospital outlets are generally coded with a green dot. Ones with orange are isolated ground. Hospital grade isn't necessary for everything. Generally look for the outlets that have a metal bracket on the back and have the option of back wire(not back stab). That is an indication of a quality outlet.
In countries with less stringent regulations or less safe systems I like to use a proper plug for that country and then make up a short lead before I travel with a UK trailing socket. In India they use the old 5 amp round pin system we used to have in this country and which is still some used for here for desk and floor lamps controlled by the room light switch. It was also still used in theatres. In other words, the parts are still relatively readily available in this country. I was so glad when I got to India because dodginess of fittings and installation abounded, so at least I didn't compound the situation with a locally available dodgy adaptor.
@@efixx Same with the 15/16A South African standard plug, though those adaptors will not grip the EU plugs again, after the SA plug has been used a few times. You probably will find the SA plug is more common than the UK plug in Mauritius, simply because they import most of their needs from South Africa, and the plugs come as standard. however those deathdaptors are also common in the UK on equipment from the EU, as the importer/ online reseller finds it easier to slap one in the box ( and unfused as well for most of them as well) rather than a actual UK plugtop, and, as the equipment does "work" without a ground connection, it is used by the unwary, till it goes faulty, and either injures or kills the user. Seller denies responsibility, as the user was technically the importer, the online shop claims they were merely a carrier between, and till the UK government gets their act together (ie never) nowt will be done.
Universal power outlets are widespread in Asian countries but considered to be unsafe if they do not have a protective shutter that prevents the plug from being connected incorrectly. In Russia, you can easily order power strips with universal outlets. However, such universal outlets cannot provide a ground connection if the Schuko/French plugs are plugged into them
I live in Hong Kong, we use 1363 socket too. In here is common to use universal adapter because appliances from taobao is much cheaper. In my experience, don’t use such socket if your load is over 400w otherwise the socket will heat and deform. but anyway, I have mod few Chinese type plug cord extension to 1363. It works much better than this type of socket.
my PDU i got for my rack had a similar universal socket on the back (Pyle brand name) sold on the US market and while our plugs in the US suck, this sucked worse as all of the NEMA 5-15 and NEMA 1-15 plugs had a really loose fit in it and it didnt take much force to unplug a cable. While its a nice idea its a horrible design, not safe. (although im suppressed with the Legrand outlet how bad it was built, they are a very common brand used in the US, heck i think every outlet and switch i have in my house is Legrand which look better built, well at least the US outlets.)
Thanks because i have seen even worst on a toilet a uk socket for hairdryer but the hair dryer was installed to the wires inside the socket which means the socket is useless and the hairdryer is hanging on the wire This was my trip to Malaysia
Also, IMO the A and B standards in my opinion, NEMA 1 and 5, shouldn't dare be used for more than 127v. Japan is on 100 which I'm ok with providing their devices tolerate the 127 which I wager ain't always the case. All other basic GPO standards C-O, shouldn't dare be less than 220 or more than 240, period. Brazil uses 127 and 220 with type N. Even if one country was 127 and a colony in Mars was 220 with that or any other type, there's still travellers that might not get the memo and a blown appliance is bad enough without electrocutions and tragic fires Incredible naughty for obvious reasons. I love foreign adapters and I know how to use them safely.
CEE 7/7 is a de-facto EU standard, it is not mandated by EU regulations. It's not true that the UK would be forced to use Euro style outlets if we had remained in the EU. The UK was then (and is now) free to use whatever standard is deemed suitable by UK Gov. In fact, most EU countries use regional variations on the CEE 7/7 standard, and the Republic of Ireland uses BS 1363 and remains in the EU.
I don't know these place don't just provide a bar/extension lead that has the original single design type on the main female input and then has the female socket of the needed country on the output be far safer. If your on holiday you don't need a massive amount of sockets. I always take an extension anyway as normally limited on plugs and location so realistically at worse you only need one travel adaptor. Even buy a cheap one from Poundland and leave behind just for the sake of a bit of safety. The travel plugs tend to to never fit great anyway and with a heavy phone charger on them they sag so again making it far less safe then just using an extension lead that has been converted or with a travel adaptor as it won't have masses of weight hanging off it.
Is this like the Propaganda machine of the brits? I think its sponsored from the government ;) They used a "fake/really really cheap" eu plug that just have 2 full metall plugs ( the norm is half metall half plastic so that the shown thing isnt possible :) EU plugs have still some more improvements than the uk shit: You can plug bolth ways :) the socket has those recess for more safety that thos plugs doesnt relly only on the pins to hold on or dont bend
I was in Denmark twice this Year. Same Problem. 2 Pole Europlugs fits everywhere perfectly. But our Schuko wasn’t connected to Ground. In France and Poland Schuko works fine. In other Countries I use an Adapter.
Well the english plug is so wonderfull that all Europe adopt the French one, strange isn't it? Maybe the German or Italian does not tfound the UK one that good.....
Why not make your own? Take one double socket with usb outlets, one marshall tufflex box, one gland and one length of high quality european extension cord. Lop off the euro socket and assemble the components!!!
I like to call reception at hotels... Dont wanna alarm you. Im sat by the pool and theres a guy with an extension cable and a hairdryer i think he is trying to make waves in the pool.
i have an adapter from c14 (like pc, printers, ... use) to T13 (swiss). so i only need to get a apropiate cable dor the country i visit. perfectly save.
And when you have one of this type of socket with not much around it (in, say, a deathdapter), you can just plug the earth pin of a UK plug straight into the live!
@@ikbintom most everything in the US has grounded plugs, whereas 220 consists of two live wires and a common, no ground unless it's got 4 pins. Us plugs have one live, one common, third pin ground
I do have to agree that the safety features on the british outlet are great, but they're twice the size of every other sockets. Shink it and we can talk.
are you sure the last thing i want is to burn down that hotel .........how can i pay if the thing is raised to the ground just do it day before you leave
The only problem i have with Brittish type G plugs is their foot-stabbing abilities, sure it’s got like a built in fuze, but that shouldn’t matter in a properly designed electrical system, so that’s why i think the European type F is the best.
"Shouldn't matter in a properly designed electrical system", there are still a lot of older electrical systems which would not live up to modern standards but when they were designed they were "properly" designed for the standards of the time which is why the British type G are the best
Every few years there's a suggestion to standardise… and of course no one agrees what that standard should be. Perhaps the closest we came was back in the mid 70s when something entirely new was proposed - and therefore equally inconvenient to everyone - which was similar in form to the Italian L-type but had flat pins and a slightly offset ground conductor allowing to to be consistently polarised. There's a 60 page booklet produced by goof ol' MK Electric Ltd describing both the system and what lead up to it which is preserved in the Internet Archive. The then current discussions had started a decade earlier at the International Electrotechnical Commission Meeting of 1966. Of course it came to nothing! 😀
@@efixx I did, and put it as a reply to my first message… but it's gone. Thanks YT! If you go to the Internet Archive and look for "The Proposed International Plug and Socket System" that should be enough. Alternatively "MK Electric Ltd" should also work as this is the only one.
That sounds like what ended up becoming IEC 60906-1, a standard that has only been adopted by two countries and one of them modified it quite substantially. Brazil changed the current rating and pin sizes (10 A/4 mm and 20 A/4.8 mm instead of 4.5 mm/16 A) and the pins are not required to be sleeved. As far as I know Brazil also uses these sockets for lower voltages (127 V) while the standard intended them to be 220-240 V only. South Africa adopted the original IEC design in 2014 but actual introduction appears to be slow, at least based on what I've found on the internet. I can't really see any plugs other than CEE 7/7 (French/German universal plug) come into widespread use in Europe though. Some oddball countries like Denmark and Italy seem to be drifting towards Schuko, albeit at a glacial pace, while others are very much set on their national plug and socket types, like the UK and Switzerland. The ideal point for the introduction of a universal plug would have been in the 1950s when more or less all of Europe west of the Iron Curtain changed plugs, either for earthed ones or for new ones (BS 1363). Schuko was invented in the late 1920s but didn't come into widespread use until earthing became a requirement in Austria and Germany in 1958, France developed their current type of earthed plug around the same time (its predecessor was designed similar to BS 546 5A with the earth pin part of the plug rather than the socket) and even Eastern Bloc Czechoslovakia switched from Schuko (required since 1934) to the new French system. Spain and Greece adopted Schuko much later, Greece only in 1989, apparently prior to that, a mix of Italian and local plugs (similar to the pre-war French system) had been used. The International Plug and Socket Museum (online) has a wealth of information on the history of electrical connectors worldwide.
@@Ragnar8504 well today I learned! 60906 looks interesting, my first thought was it looks like the Swiss standard but apparently it’s rated for higher current, L/N are the other way round and there’s a bigger offset on the E pin. Agreed CEE 7/7 is what would get you out of trouble in most of Europe at least, but that crappy NEMA 1-15P will work in all of Canada, the US, Mexico and Japan which is a huge area.
In decades of traveling for work, I had my bag-o-tricks with every connector needed from Far East to Wild West. It wasn't a big bag, maybe 0.5kg. I also used the hardest-to-find outlet. On a similar line; my ex's (all of them) managed to have "working" deathtraps for their personal items' wiring, and few of them left their respective hometown. It's not what you use, it's how you use it.
The UK socket is better than the US one, but still not as good as the German one in terms of safety (that includes the plug) provided of course they are built to industry standards
Not true. No fusing to suit flexible cord ratings, no polarisation, no universal shutter protection (some countries now mandate it though). As to what safety features Schuko has that BS1363 does not, perhaps you can give just one.
**Reads description** Wait, as an American, I rarely call it a "receptacle." I always call it an outlet. Also, exposed pins are the American way, so I'm not scared. Also, also, "universal socket?" More like "universal shocket!" Am I right? I'll leave now.
the inverter I bought has one of these Universally Dangerous Sockets. just found out the damn hot and neutral are REVERSED. Not joking . I anyone has one, get a cheap 3 light tester and test every outlet you are going to use. They only cost about $7.
In any country using Schuko style plugs (most of Europe), there is no polarisation, which means there is a 50:50 chance which pin is neutral, and which is line (hot) so most of a continent with that issue. On an inverter, I am a bit surprised there is a distinction between hot and neutral as the outputs ought to be floating with respect to ground. Having a neutral implies that it is bonded to ground. That really isn't a thing if the inverter is battery powered, as there is no real ground reference. It will, however, confuse a plug in tester.
Always nice when a favourite UA-cam channel refers to another favourite channel (big clive), lots of good feeling :) Although not for that wonderful socket. Death trap!
Original German plugs will not fit French sockets where the pin protrudes, and neither will the original French plugs fit German socket. But the modified German-French plugs will fit both systems. French and German plugs share the same ancestry, but British plugs are quite different.
I see a lot of outlets like this on Airbus aircraft. Cheap USB chargers plugged into poorly conceived universal outlets in a airplane - that will never be an issue, right?
Probably designed to higher standards then the cheaper counterparts
those plugs on airplanes must meet safety standards hundreds of times more stringent than their ground-based counterparts.
From your comment I must assume you work for Boing Boing 🤣
I'd imagine you wouldn't get much current out of those
in an airplane, like a Boeing or Airbus, they'd absolutely have to be type approved. Also the current will be very limited, so not going to be using your Black & Decker iron in-flight.
You missed the really dangerous 4 way extension in the market. That type typically has an undersized aluminium cable combined with what looks like 5A fuse wire running down the length of the unit connecting the L and N pins. Ive even seen them in the Middle East where the Earth pins of the outlets are not even connected.
Good point - that’s another can of worms to open
you should visit america then.
out safest extention cords are holiday lights.
as in those are typically the only "extention cords" with a fuse. and grounding is not always a thing.
Another thing to look out for is bootleg grounds where the ground pin is just attached to neutral.
Seen earth not connected on halogen lights bought here. I made modifications before it went up (at a museum). It like almost all the other (crappy with hindsight) LED lighting failed after a couple of years and now we have a large cherry picker job to do.
Universal sockets are fun and offer a more shocking experience while on your Holidays but make sure your Travel Insurance covers you for Defibrillator use first
These type of universal sockets are indeed very dangerous. Due to the socket holes being "universal", they give less contact surfaces for the plug legs which will cause heat and melt the plug and socket plastic.
Wise words Eric
the UK plug is so good that the Ukrainian use it as landmines
These universal sockets are now commonplace on aeroplanes. That said, they are only used for low current gadgets such as laptops, phones and tablets. Most such gadgets are also universal voltage and Class 2 equipment. I must admit I would be lost without them as a frequent flyer on double long-haul flights. I'm sure they will be safe in this situation with right choice of protective equipment. Plane manufacturers have extremely high safety standards.
The big danger of universal sockets is when using high current appliances combined with a low level of protective equipment. Many countries have much lower electrical standards and the use of universal sockets probably isn't much different to using travel adaptors.
We’ve seen the ones on aircraft - 120 V at 400Hz we think 💭
@@efixx 60Hz usually (seen on Emirates) In addition to that the electrical systems inside the cabin resemble an IT-system (isole terre)
Many devices that are likely to be carried by international travellers are now universal in themselves. The power brick for my Acer laptop, for example, a LiteOn PA-1450-26, has input specs of 100-240V, 1.2A, 50-60Hz. It has an interchangeable power lead, with a standard Mickey Mouse plug (IEC 60320 C5) on the brick end, and a location appropriate (in Canada, type B (NEMA 5-15P)) plug on the other. If I choose to travel with it, all I need is to buy a destination appropriate power lead, and I'm good to go. No messing with plug adapters, universal outlets, or anything of the sort. On the other hand, my newer, Asus laptop, uses an unspecified, type A (NEMA 1-15P) wall wart, instead.
Most modern laptops can be powered from a USB C socket, as can a lot of other low power devices. I think that is the way forward.
the sockets on aircraft must meet far more stringent safety requirements than ones used in hotels.
8:10 i like how the bag suggests that you should consult an electrician about how deadly plastic bags are to children
lmao
Can confirm. I unscrewed a lightbulb one time and for the low price of $50/hour I can make sure that all of your children's plastic bags are electrician approved.
** Employee is not responsible for injuries resulting from children being dumber than an empty plastic bag **
Electrics are complicated enough without adding international differences into the mix. Can you imagine trying to get compensation for being electrocuted by one of the universal sockets that don’t earth. It could take years to sort out who is responsible. Big Clive is Da Man. Cheers Stuart 🇦🇺
We find it amazing that hotels don’t understand the risks.
@@efixx From a legal point of view they’re probably better off not knowing the risks. At the moment they could probably get away with pointing the finger at whoever signed off on them or installed them but once they’re informed of the problem then they will be obliged to fix it otherwise they may be held culpably negligent for knowing of the danger and doing nothing about it. I’m glad it’s not me. 👍👍
@@scroungasworkshop4663 Agree - we are also surprised to see that a large global “trusted” electrical brand would place a product like these in the market. No warnings contained in the product packaging.
@@efixx Legrand relying on these being approved for the Chinese market, so not an issue if sold to others, as there is a CE sticker on, and the warning to qualified people only to install, so the installer is the one who is liable.
@@SeanBZA "approved for the Chinese market", nice one! Chinese stuff is "approved" by the guy who sells it to you. He approves of taking your money. The CE stickers I'm sure you can buy rolls of in some Shenzhen market. Having a brand on the label doesn't mean it's from that brand, it's just to make it more saleable.
Great video guys! On the part where you were looking at the UK plug going in to the socket, and you said the contact was poor, I did wonder if the problem might instead have been that the insulated pin of the plug goes in too far, and the socket contact goes past the brass part of the pin and touches the insulation? Have you checked how far the pin engages to see if this is the cause? If the socket contact partially ran onto the insulation, that would increase the joint resistance. Just a thought.
At first we thought that was version one of this video. Then we looked again with the front plate spacing and found that the contact avoided the insulated section.
I thought that too
@@efixx thanks. At least they got that bit right!
The danish have their 😁smile sockets, while all the appliances you can buy there have the European style plugs. It all works fine, as long as, you know.. The shorts are a nice contrast to the wood fire in the background. Nice video, thanks.
BS1363 is absolutely nothing to do with Brexit, since they're used in Ireland and Cyprus and many places outside the EU.
I note that on trains like the Eurostar, they get around this mess by having both sorts of sockets (BS1363/Type G, and French/Shuko Type E/F) available, which is far more satisfactory than any of those compromise designs, because at least you know there will be an earth contact, and you can do your ironing safely on the train while travelling at 300km/h.
Yeah, their brexit comment left me a bit miffed too... useful information in your comment btw!
Lol. It seemed like sarcasm to me
I think they were being facetious, although if we'd brexited before the "harmonisation" debacle, there might have been a few lives saved.
@@Chris47368 I think they might have been joking. Although ironically Brexit wasn't about immigration, despite that being why most of the leavers voted.
@@greenaum Brexit was due to a magnitude of reasons tbh - a major reason being that career Brexiteers lied and convinced huge swaths of voters the supposed brexit 'benefits' that never materialised...as a result of largely brexit(combined with the war in Ukraine and COVID) we are one of the poorest and most stagnant economies in the G7 and all these problems the average brit is facing is only going to get much worse provided we continue to keep electing lying brexiteer tories into power and continue to isolate ourselves from one of the largest markets on earth xD
Safer, if not a bit uglier, option is to just have a socket for every common traveller's home country. You'd only need UK, US/Canada, Aus/NZ, and EU options and you've got most covered (obviously not going to do anything about frequency). Anybody else can then have an adapter from their own standard into any of the aforementioned standards.
Sockets in hotels get a lot of wear and tear.
I would have thought that the heat damage to the plug was probably caused by a worn (and therefore loose) connection between the socket and the plug - rather than the socket design.
Yeah but where why didn't the breaker automatically trip?
It's dangerous.
These things are so very dangerous and I can't recommend them. BUT! a part of me really loves the convenience of a universal socket design. 🤣👍
Best solution I have seen to the universal problem was a multiplug with one of each on it.
If you know the risks you know to be careful
@@efixx I think it has the chance of being self correcting. As on that unit. I doubt the person with a need for an American plug would also have a need for a UK plug.
But agreed. One socket one device. That is the only way I work.
@@efixx yes exactly!
@@capactiveresistance314 Small variation, I have a BS-1363 2-way extension with a French plug on the lead and another with an Italian one which I take travelling. Much more convenient than travel adaptors, and as they're "official" plugs connection and grounding are as good as the outlet can provide. Never worry about load because the most use I have for them is a laptop and a camera battery charger.
I've seen universal sockets in a few UK hotels not sure how they can legally fit them or where they buy them from, they were the shuttered version. Last hotel I stayed in with one was an Ibis but I've seen them in others.
Wow we’ve never seen them installed in the UK.
@@efixx Gary check the WhatsApp I sent you 🤦🏻♂️🤣
You'll often see universal outlets in China. Because they actually have three different standards for mains plugs and sockets, Two flat prong US style, a three prong with slanted prongs similar to Australia, and British BS1363 style used in Hong Kong and Macao.
Bit of smugness, bit of useful info, bit of shitting on DIYers. Just like every other time 50yo electricians make a video
This is why I just carry an adapter for the country and a 4 way extension. In a past life I was at a work offsite in Sweden and a number of us needed to charge our phones but only one socket was close to where we were drinking. Ran to my hotel room, came back with the 4 way got some singgers and some whys?!? But now everyone has taken that idea for their future trips!
I have one with a short fly lead to an IEC C14 so I can either make an adapter or buy a standard “kettle lead” locally, or I can use a UK lead with an adapter plug. Best of all worlds.
Still got the Schuko to 4-way UK one I made up a scary 40 years ago.
There is nothing wrong with the design of the outlet. It’s the types of plastic you are allowed to use in the countries these are deployed. These outlets were designed with poletheretherketone in mind not cheap vinyl or abs. There has been a trend to use cheaper plastics in lower amp outlets. I’m sure it’s cost over safety that helped this trend to fruition. Only thing we can do is steer customers away from cheap equipment.
Looks like the shaver didnt work in the wall socket on holiday? 😉
better safe than sorry
How many times did the shirt swap ? 😄
Clive loves a good “Death Dapter” 😉
Plenty of life in the shirt swap
The socket you were buying was made by Legrand and I would have thought that legrand would never make a dangerous product as they are considered a very reputable company.
We thought the same - should we ask them?
@@efixx Yes I would certainly follow it up with them.
A spokesman for Legrand declined to comment ?
WAS it made by LeGrand, though? or did it just have LeGrand stamped on the box?
I've lived in France for the last few years. Legrand is indeed a reputable company, but some of their plug designs are dangerous cr*p (you can buy them in most national chain DIY stores). I was really surprised about it actually. I haven't seen this particular socket for sale though
Very entertaining and informative 👍🏻
Gary giving himself a pat on the back there.
Agreed you guys do the best job on UA-cam when it comes to knowledge and understanding, Implimentation of that knowledge, updates in the world of Elctrics and at the same time being entertaining.
Thank you for the effort
He loves self gratification 😁
@@efixx you guys deserve it
Great thing about Mauritius they get many appliances from China. The main shipment being destined for Europe via boat. So tend to get some of what they need in those order lots. South Africa does the same thing.
Which leads to South Africa having now 4 standard plugs. French/German for outdoor equipment especially lawn mowers. "2 point plugs" like Italy. The standard SABS socket and the new "3 point plug" that will replace the SABS socket. Just with the addition of the earthing pin.
Got to love when you live on a trade route
Jeez - sounds like a nightmare
The "SABS" plug, was the old 15amp British plug. South Africa inherited it from the UK. But it's no longer used in the UK now. (In some rare cases it still is) I actually like the design of the "new South African" plug, it means we can use the small unearthed "euro plug" directly, without an adaptor. By the way, RCDs were invented in South Africa.
@@efixx That is just the start of it. I think you would be shocked at what the standards allow for bonding of hot water tanks and the rest of the house.
@@MyProjectBoxChannel I think the last time we shared a socket with the UK was back in the 30's.
But did not know that about the RCD.
@@capactiveresistance314 you can still buy the old 15amp British plug without a fuse (identical to South Africa) in RS components. They still have the solid brass pins, like they used to have, in South Africa.
The biggest safety concern in this video is watching you two pretending to look comfy sat in those chairs. Let's have a whip round to get them something decent ha. Great video as always.
Truth be told the chairs are very uncomfortable- so we do share your concern 😂
@@efixx my sincere condolences for you backs.
another fun game you can play with those death adapters is you can shove the ground pin from the UK plug right into the live side of the plug. Fun and sparky! Dangerous for the entire family!
In the United States we have two prong plugs on our hair dryers, but they have what is called an Immersion Detection Circuit Interrupter which is designed to trip if the hairdryer falls into the bathtub, and presumably any other ground faults.
Hair dyers are double insulated so they are not grounded anywhere. Note the ALCI plug does not protect you if you touch the prongs - though the physical size may make it less likely.
@@okaro6595 It's still the same concept as a GCFI. If the amount of current heading to the hairdryer doesn't perfectly match what returns, it trips.
Where I'm from we use the UK outlets and I change the non UK plugs on appliances to UK plugs
Wise advice 👍
I have never been shocked as many times as I have been in Mauritius, the electrical safety standards are terrible there.
TK Maxx sometimes sell universal extension leads. I could not believe what I saw, I asked to speak to a manager, they were removed from sale. I have seen them in lots of places, very scary indeed.
Surface area is pretty much the same on both sockets. It is just an illusion that two flat surfaces actually touch more than 1 sq mm.
It's probably just a line contact on either side of the pin.
@@Graham_Langley Exactly. Line, at best, often doubledot, if lucky, 3-point-contact if actually very flat surfaces meet.
Its strange that the UK is the only place that seems to recognise the problem.
How do people keep steeping on plugs?? Just tidy the things away, rather than leaving them strewn across the floor.
Teenagers bedrooms
These aren't actually 'universal' for a reason. I suppose, yes its convenient but if they cause arcing to happen on a £300 Dyson hairdryer they're just stupid.
A £300 over engineered hairdryer is stupid.
@@dougbrowning82 I'm extremeley happy with mine. The last conventinal hairdryer I got decided to open up a portal to hell.
Deathdapters as Clive calls them. I still kind of want one :P
In the US I try to source the "commercial" outlets because they often are so cheap and don't last very long. Hospital grade is the best.
Hospital grade we’ll remember that 👍
Always buy quality sockets .cheep ones are crap and can cause many problems. UK sockets are first class and very safe.
@@efixx Hospital outlets are generally coded with a green dot.
Ones with orange are isolated ground.
Hospital grade isn't necessary for everything.
Generally look for the outlets that have a metal bracket on the back and have the option of back wire(not back stab).
That is an indication of a quality outlet.
In countries with less stringent regulations or less safe systems I like to use a proper plug for that country and then make up a short lead before I travel with a UK trailing socket.
In India they use the old 5 amp round pin system we used to have in this country and which is still some used for here for desk and floor lamps controlled by the room light switch. It was also still used in theatres. In other words, the parts are still relatively readily available in this country. I was so glad when I got to India because dodginess of fittings and installation abounded, so at least I didn't compound the situation with a locally available dodgy adaptor.
The trusty BS546 5amp plug does indeed live on in India - don’t worry the universal socket will take them also!
@@efixx Same with the 15/16A South African standard plug, though those adaptors will not grip the EU plugs again, after the SA plug has been used a few times. You probably will find the SA plug is more common than the UK plug in Mauritius, simply because they import most of their needs from South Africa, and the plugs come as standard.
however those deathdaptors are also common in the UK on equipment from the EU, as the importer/ online reseller finds it easier to slap one in the box ( and unfused as well for most of them as well) rather than a actual UK plugtop, and, as the equipment does "work" without a ground connection, it is used by the unwary, till it goes faulty, and either injures or kills the user. Seller denies responsibility, as the user was technically the importer, the online shop claims they were merely a carrier between, and till the UK government gets their act together (ie never) nowt will be done.
A fourteen year guarantee sounds about a genuine as a nine bob note.
Very informative video guys, thanks. When you go on holiday you don't expect to be spending
half a day at the undertakers.
Very true - let’s see if the hotel industry reacts
Universal power outlets are widespread in Asian countries but considered to be unsafe if they do not have a protective shutter that prevents the plug from being connected incorrectly. In Russia, you can easily order power strips with universal outlets. However, such universal outlets cannot provide a ground connection if the Schuko/French plugs are plugged into them
did you just jab a live conductor with a graphite cored pencel?!
You didn't see graphite!
Someone should design a UK plug made out of Lego for the perfect booby trap.🦶😖
😂
What use does earth pin have if there is no earth wire in the wall?
A problem!
I live in Hong Kong, we use 1363 socket too. In here is common to use universal adapter because appliances from taobao is much cheaper. In my experience, don’t use such socket if your load is over 400w otherwise the socket will heat and deform.
but anyway, I have mod few Chinese type plug cord extension to 1363. It works much better than this type of socket.
my PDU i got for my rack had a similar universal socket on the back (Pyle brand name) sold on the US market and while our plugs in the US suck, this sucked worse as all of the NEMA 5-15 and NEMA 1-15 plugs had a really loose fit in it and it didnt take much force to unplug a cable. While its a nice idea its a horrible design, not safe. (although im suppressed with the Legrand outlet how bad it was built, they are a very common brand used in the US, heck i think every outlet and switch i have in my house is Legrand which look better built, well at least the US outlets.)
Thanks because i have seen even worst on a toilet a uk socket for hairdryer but the hair dryer was installed to the wires inside the socket which means the socket is useless and the hairdryer is hanging on the wire
This was my trip to Malaysia
Really good message sir
That's the scariest collection of junk outlets I've ever seen. I'd rather use a fork. If you get zapped by 220 have fun.
Hello from Mauritius island🇲🇺
Welcome 🙏
Also, IMO the A and B standards in my opinion, NEMA 1 and 5, shouldn't dare be used for more than 127v. Japan is on 100 which I'm ok with providing their devices tolerate the 127 which I wager ain't always the case. All other basic GPO standards C-O, shouldn't dare be less than 220 or more than 240, period. Brazil uses 127 and 220 with type N. Even if one country was 127 and a colony in Mars was 220 with that or any other type, there's still travellers that might not get the memo and a blown appliance is bad enough without electrocutions and tragic fires Incredible naughty for obvious reasons. I love foreign adapters and I know how to use them safely.
it seems that British General Electrical also manufacture those; do you reckon they'd be any better?
CEE 7/7 is a de-facto EU standard, it is not mandated by EU regulations. It's not true that the UK would be forced to use Euro style outlets if we had remained in the EU. The UK was then (and is now) free to use whatever standard is deemed suitable by UK Gov. In fact, most EU countries use regional variations on the CEE 7/7 standard, and the Republic of Ireland uses BS 1363 and remains in the EU.
I'm fairly certain it was just a joke but CEE 7/7 is a rubbish plug to standardize to.
I don't know these place don't just provide a bar/extension lead that has the original single design type on the main female input and then has the female socket of the needed country on the output be far safer. If your on holiday you don't need a massive amount of sockets. I always take an extension anyway as normally limited on plugs and location so realistically at worse you only need one travel adaptor. Even buy a cheap one from Poundland and leave behind just for the sake of a bit of safety. The travel plugs tend to to never fit great anyway and with a heavy phone charger on them they sag so again making it far less safe then just using an extension lead that has been converted or with a travel adaptor as it won't have masses of weight hanging off it.
Is this like the Propaganda machine of the brits? I think its sponsored from the government ;) They used a "fake/really really cheap" eu plug that just have 2 full metall plugs ( the norm is half metall half plastic so that the shown thing isnt possible :) EU plugs have still some more improvements than the uk shit: You can plug bolth ways :) the socket has those recess for more safety that thos plugs doesnt relly only on the pins to hold on or dont bend
I was in Denmark twice this Year. Same Problem. 2 Pole Europlugs fits everywhere perfectly. But our Schuko wasn’t connected to Ground. In France and Poland Schuko works fine. In other Countries I use an Adapter.
Well the english plug is so wonderfull that all Europe adopt the French one, strange isn't it? Maybe the German or Italian does not tfound the UK one that good.....
Why not make your own? Take one double socket with usb outlets, one marshall tufflex box, one gland and one length of high quality european extension cord. Lop off the euro socket and assemble the components!!!
On it 👍
I have one a 4 way extension, with lead from a euro IEC cable, works well, but only if you are taking hold luggage
I like to call reception at hotels...
Dont wanna alarm you. Im sat by the pool and theres a guy with an extension cable and a hairdryer i think he is trying to make waves in the pool.
i have an adapter from c14 (like pc, printers, ... use) to T13 (swiss). so i only need to get a apropiate cable dor the country i visit. perfectly save.
And when you have one of this type of socket with not much around it (in, say, a deathdapter), you can just plug the earth pin of a UK plug straight into the live!
I always prefer the USA plugs. I have been to Abu Dhabi and seen many of those burnt ones all over the place and poor quality cheap and made in china.
The english socket does seem to be a robust bit of hardware, but i'm far more comfortable with 110v running through my devices than 220.
Nah 220 isn't that much either that's just fear of the unknown. Much rather have grounded European stuff than non grounded US stuff
@@ikbintom most everything in the US has grounded plugs, whereas 220 consists of two live wires and a common, no ground unless it's got 4 pins. Us plugs have one live, one common, third pin ground
@@RedneckRepairs
A bunch of 120v US appliances do not have an equipment ground.
Metal VCR and disc players are notable for this.
@@jeffkardosjr.3825 They are double insulated. They don to have ground anywhere. You are not allowed to ground double insulated devices.
@@okaro6595 Untrue.
I do have to agree that the safety features on the british outlet are great, but they're twice the size of every other sockets. Shink it and we can talk.
are you sure the last thing i want is to burn down that hotel .........how can i pay if the thing is raised to the ground just do it day before you leave
The British plug is the best full stop
👍🏻
The best sockets are the swiss ones. realy save, campact, exist in 10 and 16A versions and single and tripple pahse.
funny how brits can convince themselves they always made the smart choice and others should have followed...
The only problem i have with Brittish type G plugs is their foot-stabbing abilities, sure it’s got like a built in fuze, but that shouldn’t matter in a properly designed electrical system, so that’s why i think the European type F is the best.
"Shouldn't matter in a properly designed electrical system", there are still a lot of older electrical systems which would not live up to modern standards but when they were designed they were "properly" designed for the standards of the time which is why the British type G are the best
moden cruse ships are so safe nowadays that it shouddent matter if theirs lifeboats on bord or not. should it?
2:05 I just think the British plug is clumsy to use and takes up too much space compared to the schuko.
The British outlet is actually OVERengineered. Complete overkill for 99% of uses.
One problem I can foresee people could plug in USA equipment with disastrous consequence
There is no guarantee there is any earth in the Universal socket.
Every few years there's a suggestion to standardise… and of course no one agrees what that standard should be. Perhaps the closest we came was back in the mid 70s when something entirely new was proposed - and therefore equally inconvenient to everyone - which was similar in form to the Italian L-type but had flat pins and a slightly offset ground conductor allowing to to be consistently polarised. There's a 60 page booklet produced by goof ol' MK Electric Ltd describing both the system and what lead up to it which is preserved in the Internet Archive. The then current discussions had started a decade earlier at the International Electrotechnical Commission Meeting of 1966.
Of course it came to nothing! 😀
Sounds interesting what could have been - do you have a link to the booklet you mention.
@@efixx I did, and put it as a reply to my first message… but it's gone. Thanks YT! If you go to the Internet Archive and look for "The Proposed International Plug and Socket System" that should be enough. Alternatively "MK Electric Ltd" should also work as this is the only one.
That sounds like what ended up becoming IEC 60906-1, a standard that has only been adopted by two countries and one of them modified it quite substantially. Brazil changed the current rating and pin sizes (10 A/4 mm and 20 A/4.8 mm instead of 4.5 mm/16 A) and the pins are not required to be sleeved. As far as I know Brazil also uses these sockets for lower voltages (127 V) while the standard intended them to be 220-240 V only.
South Africa adopted the original IEC design in 2014 but actual introduction appears to be slow, at least based on what I've found on the internet.
I can't really see any plugs other than CEE 7/7 (French/German universal plug) come into widespread use in Europe though. Some oddball countries like Denmark and Italy seem to be drifting towards Schuko, albeit at a glacial pace, while others are very much set on their national plug and socket types, like the UK and Switzerland. The ideal point for the introduction of a universal plug would have been in the 1950s when more or less all of Europe west of the Iron Curtain changed plugs, either for earthed ones or for new ones (BS 1363). Schuko was invented in the late 1920s but didn't come into widespread use until earthing became a requirement in Austria and Germany in 1958, France developed their current type of earthed plug around the same time (its predecessor was designed similar to BS 546 5A with the earth pin part of the plug rather than the socket) and even Eastern Bloc Czechoslovakia switched from Schuko (required since 1934) to the new French system. Spain and Greece adopted Schuko much later, Greece only in 1989, apparently prior to that, a mix of Italian and local plugs (similar to the pre-war French system) had been used. The International Plug and Socket Museum (online) has a wealth of information on the history of electrical connectors worldwide.
@@Ragnar8504 well today I learned! 60906 looks interesting, my first thought was it looks like the Swiss standard but apparently it’s rated for higher current, L/N are the other way round and there’s a bigger offset on the E pin. Agreed CEE 7/7 is what would get you out of trouble in most of Europe at least, but that crappy NEMA 1-15P will work in all of Canada, the US, Mexico and Japan which is a huge area.
Yes, this was pretty much the perfect design. Should have been adapted.
In decades of traveling for work, I had my bag-o-tricks with every connector needed from Far East to Wild West. It wasn't a big bag, maybe 0.5kg. I also used the hardest-to-find outlet.
On a similar line; my ex's (all of them) managed to have "working" deathtraps for their personal items' wiring, and few of them left their respective hometown.
It's not what you use, it's how you use it.
We mostly go to Big Clive for the gay innuendo, it's not Big Clive Style without it.
The UK socket is better than the US one, but still not as good as the German one in terms of safety (that includes the plug) provided of course they are built to industry standards
In what way?
Not true. No fusing to suit flexible cord ratings, no polarisation, no universal shutter protection (some countries now mandate it though).
As to what safety features Schuko has that BS1363 does not, perhaps you can give just one.
Surprised you didn't comment on the MK logo on the faceplates at 2:36.
00:51 This looks like we would rig up in the army just to get something working.
🫣
check if there is a safety earth breaker in junction box then you are ok :)
Are you guys still angry about loosing that independence thing?
I been to Indonesia I seen alot of the plugs and no earth connected
Each country has it's own safety features. Where are the yanks?
if that were an american hair dryer it would have a GFCI on it
The reason for leaving the EU 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣 omg I'm dead 💀
Here's hoping people don't start installing those in UK hotels.
Looks good to me. I'm smart enough to not touch the shiney bits, and it will help society by eliminating those who aren't.
2:13 He actually says "Bri'ish" lmaoooo
**Reads description**
Wait, as an American, I rarely call it a "receptacle." I always call it an outlet. Also, exposed pins are the American way, so I'm not scared.
Also, also, "universal socket?" More like "universal shocket!" Am I right? I'll leave now.
An "outlet" is anywhere power comes out of the home wiring to a device, while a "receptacle" is specifically where you can insert a plug.
the inverter I bought has one of these Universally Dangerous Sockets. just found out the damn hot and neutral are REVERSED. Not joking . I anyone has one, get a cheap 3 light tester and test every outlet you are going to use. They only cost about $7.
In any country using Schuko style plugs (most of Europe), there is no polarisation, which means there is a 50:50 chance which pin is neutral, and which is line (hot) so most of a continent with that issue.
On an inverter, I am a bit surprised there is a distinction between hot and neutral as the outputs ought to be floating with respect to ground. Having a neutral implies that it is bonded to ground. That really isn't a thing if the inverter is battery powered, as there is no real ground reference. It will, however, confuse a plug in tester.
00.53 is that not wired the wrong way?
If your not using a plug do they care?
@@danielvelinski9522 I guess not lol We used to do this kind of thing in the uk before devices had to be fitted with a plug!
If u voted brexshit then that was a bad decision
stepping on lego is much more painful than that
Excellent! Now lets get a 3 pin granny charger on one of them sockets
UK plugs are not as good as South African ones.
They're just like what UK used to be, with round pins.
A lot less painful on ya feet in the dark.
😂
where did you get that swiss army knife from
Always nice when a favourite UA-cam channel refers to another favourite channel (big clive), lots of good feeling :) Although not for that wonderful socket. Death trap!
I deliberately bought myself a death adaptor, one of those with extra sets of live prongs that can be popped out, for fun.
Stay safe 👌
Here in Malta we still use British outlets.
Original German plugs will not fit French sockets where the pin protrudes,
and neither will the original French plugs fit German socket.
But the modified German-French plugs will fit both systems.
French and German plugs share the same ancestry, but British plugs are quite different.
"American plugs are - chewing gum"?