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it makes me seeth when something occurs! trading standards openly admit they have had several hundred complaints on their books ,what do trading standards actually do
i have emailed trading standards in the area where knives have been sold on ebay ,the only proof needed of age to buy them seems the ability to confirm your over 18 (not too hard for even the worst lier under 18 online) yet years later their still being sold and some with definate "macho" descriptions
yet ebay refuses to act on them but took off auction a copy of mein kampf i was selling because they had a complaint yet on the other worldwide Ebay sites theres hundreds
surely the old 16th edition only covered hard wiring and after the outlets extention leads were not covered after all you can buy a french extention lead and plug it into a uk plug with a converter even if it isnt up to uk "specs"and american leads found in hundreds of american computers happily plug into uk sockets with a shaver socket .
Yes you can make 'non-UK' products work on the UK system using adaptors. The UK wiring regulations are not harmonised with Europe, that is why it is referred to as BS7671, not BS EN 67671 or something similar, so our plugs differ from theirs etc.
The U.S. uses a 110V supply because they have a lot of wooden houses and the lower voltage reduces the risk of fire. The lower voltage also reduces the risk of shock, so their safety regulations are not a strict as ours.
Many European countries (all now harmonised at 230V) have appalling wiring standards, relying on RCD devices to trip in the event of faults. Our UK system traditionally uses Earth continiuty for protection of what we call 'Class I' equipment, such as a PC. In this case, using a lead with no Earth connector such as a shaver socket (which is an adapter for a 'Class II' device having no parts which may become live in the event of a fault and therefore requires no Earth) will operate the PC but offer no protection against electrocution. This may be fine in your home; if you get electrocuted it would probably be recorded as misadventure, the same trick at work would be manslaughter, so not quiet as legal as you might expect!
So just because something fits, or you can buy an adaptor which will change 'this to that' does not make it safe or legal. However, you are correct that most of these adaptions are not covered by the wiring regs par se.
With regards to connecting leads on equipment it is illegal to sell a portable electrical device (pc, hairdryer, washing machine, tv, etc) without a fitted 3 pin UK plug, so there should be no need to use the foreign lead that may also come with the equipment.
The ehu is treated differently because it is not a connection made using a "UK 3 pin plug", and is therefore not a portable device by definition, so on connecting it up you are extending a fixed installation - almost similar to adding extra spurred sockets to a ring main. It is also made to carry an electric supply to a high risk area (tent) and as such is covered by BS7671.
The trouble with any regulation or standard is that you will often come across situations the regulations don't specificallly cover (eg. tents), or one standard will contradict another. In this case, you need to interpret what is required from what is covered in the standard. In the case of BS7671 you could pose the question to the Institute of Electrical Engineers.
With regards to Ebay, my experience is that they spend more effort protecting the big brands names than they do policing products that may be unlawful or dangerous. Maybe they have some arrangement with them?
i had a little problem when our house was rewired (council) the chap couldnt re wire my supply into the shed because the armoured cable had the incorrect colours ,no prob! all i did was fix a 13amp plug via a short lead into the switch box i turn the power off with .it was now an extention lead .the armoured had 3mm wires and the new flex 1.5mm ,its now more "dangerous" that it was .
unfortunately regulation doesent always make things safer .
fear not i have played with very high voltages (from a vandergraff) and was the uni portable applience chap ,i have seen some equiptment that would make your hair stand on end so my "unlawfull" colours are in reality nothing to be concerned with
your right about the french stuff some have plugs that plug into the rear of each other and all shutterless ,the earth connection is a joke.
some of the equiptment was very dodgy with switchable earths (to cut interference etc) although i could pass it with the earth connected as soon as i left it was disconected for use
because of the nature of the equiptment a permanent earth connection would stop the equiptment working correctly but having the earth connection stopped it being double insulated ,you just cant win
mmmmmm not sure about the safety of the extension lead!! But if your not selling up then I don't suppose anyone will find out!!
I never really understood the change in wire colours in BS7671. The only time I can see a potential problem is when you wire a building in the UK directly into one in France, and that is unlikely to happen!
Quote: Originally posted by krisburs on 26/8/2006mmmmmm not sure about the safety of the extension lead!! But if your not selling up then I don't suppose anyone will find out!!
I never really understood the change in wire colours in BS7671. The only time I can see a potential problem is when you wire a building in the UK directly into one in France, and that is unlikely to happen!
being as both ends of the armoured are 3 feet above ground and glands both ends going into waterproof boxes ,the shed end having 2 more feet of armoured going to a modern "fuse box" and indoors that now thinner cable being 2 feet long means that only a 5 feet depth of water can enter it (highly unlikely due to us being on a hill )makes it safer than any "extention" lead available although a little stiff for your lawnmower
things change because theres probably money to be made! by self imposed regulators who no doupt somewhere have links to the people who make the stuff.
remember anyone can set themselves up as a regulatory body and charge people whatever you like for that little logo (and if you bend enough ears forbid people working without it)whether or not the "customer" follows your rules or not once he's forked out for it.
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Topic: eBay Electric Hook-Up
