What is the best Power Outlet, and why?
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fuck's happenin in italy
The pictured one is an universal socket that can accept any plug sold in the eu, because if you go to buy any fridge or oven or washer it comes with the German plug
Otherwise, any other plug (phone chargers, lamps, laptops) comes with the standard which is this:
It doesn't fit in a German plug as the diameter of the holes and the spacing is slightly different, hence the weirdly shaped wholes
It has both prongs insulated so you don't get accidentally electrocuted if your finger accidentally touch one during unplugging (especially toddlers)
In my house I exclusively got pure L sockets without the double holes and I wanted to kill the sadist electrician who decided to install them everywhere. (It's a money issue, universal socket by regulations need 2.5 mm² section copper wires, while the 10A L socket can use cheaper 1.5 mm² section copper wires - but still, how much he saved, 50€ in total? Asshole, I had to spend 3x that to replace all the sockets)
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Even tho I live where type F/C is common, I know that type G is the best. Reason is that ground pin always connects first and disconnects last. This is an ultimate way to make ground pin.
Also, type F/C and some other types sometimes doesn't have ground. There is literally not a single type G plug/socket without a ground. Simply safer.
Afaik ground connection is made first on schuko connector too and I've seen plastic prongs on UK plugs for ground (even though I live in europe and have only 3 of them, one is still fake ground) yet I've never seen a plastic grounded schuko. That UK bitch is safe but I'm not sold yet on whether it is the best of the best.
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A useful source:
https://worldofsockets.comF, C, E, K..... Are they all directly compatible?
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F, C, E, K..... Are they all directly compatible?
They are, but they do have slight differences. For instance, the type E plug is often used in Belgium and France, it has a ground pin just below center. It basically means that you cannot turn the plug upside down, similar to the plug used in the US, which can be very annoying when you are used to plugs F and C, these are grounded in the bezel, allowing the user to plug upside down.
Type E always bugs me when I visit Belgium or France and I do that often. It's like the original USB plug, you always plug it in wrong on first try.
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That doesn't ground a lot of plugs
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Even tho I live where type F/C is common, I know that type G is the best. Reason is that ground pin always connects first and disconnects last. This is an ultimate way to make ground pin.
Also, type F/C and some other types sometimes doesn't have ground. There is literally not a single type G plug/socket without a ground. Simply safer.
Type G can also be ungrounded (the grounding pin is just plastic)
And type F (and E and K) are also made so that ground is always connected first and disconnected last (when they are grounded).
What makes G somewhat better (and why the ungrounded plugs has the plastic pin) is that the holes for the living room live wire are closed by a shutter that can only be removed by a lever in the ground hole.
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Wrong, it's fused because in the UK they have 32A 240V circuits, a fuse is important when dealing with that much current. In Australia we only have 16A 240V circuits as standard so there is no need for a fuse.
They have fuses because of their ring circuits from after WW2. You're the one who's wrong.
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F, C, E, K..... Are they all directly compatible?
Are H and J compatible?
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A useful source:
https://worldofsockets.comTom Scott already answered this
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A useful source:
https://worldofsockets.comSchuko (Type F) of course. The British plug (Type G) is a truly worthy adversary.
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A useful source:
https://worldofsockets.comEverything else falls out with a light breeze, G is the way forward.
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That doesn't ground a lot of plugs
wrote last edited by [email protected]Not supporting the French was an intentional design decision.
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Some images of the plugs, since I didn't know what they looked like.
It was mentioned the pins started being insulated like that second image 20 years ago, but going by the images I found the older uninsulated style is still more common. This is ofc a major shock hazard when plugging in your stuff.
Even with the insulation, you can still reach under the half inserted plug, just less easily and maybe only if you have smaller hands (like children).
Fundamentally flat sockets are doomed to be shock hazards, compare it to the recessed sockets where the entire surface the contacts insert into is cut off from reach before the pin insertion starts, and on top of that the pins of say type F have been insulated for so long many don't know there were uninsulated variants.
Another bonus of the recessed style is the plug doesn't stick as far out of your walls. For extension cords it's probably a bit bulkier, but when you sink the recession into the wallbox of the outlet you can get as flush as the width of the cable with an angled plug.
Also pretty sure you can step on angled type I plugs resting on their backs. The recessed plugs usually have grips on top so can't rest on their back even when angled. Their pins are also ball-shaped on the end, type I looks quite angular and more painful.
Ironically, those are upside down.
Which usually indicates Chinese Type I - they don't insulate pins but do put earth on top.
We insulate pins but live/neutral is on top.
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The safest ones (design-wise) would be the ones that are inset, like types C, E, F, H, J, and K. If there is ever a chance a plug is partially pulled out or not fully inserted, the socket being inset wouldn't allow anything to touch any of the contacts.
Fuses in plugs and the orientation are relatively irrelevant to the plug style and are more a convention choice, if not regulatory requirement.
Type I (in Australia, at least) plugs are partially insulated with in order to prevent that from being an issue.
We are the descendants of the UK after all, our nanny-state is almost as strong as the motherland’s!
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A useful source:
https://worldofsockets.comFun fact; even though China and Australia both use Type I plugs - they aren’t actually fully cross-compatible, due to differences in the thickness of the metal prongs.
China’s are thinner, so they hang somewhat loose in Australian outlets - and given they are less likely to have insulation around the plug ends, are a relatively common fire risk.m
On the other hand - Australian plugs don’t commonly fit into Chinese wall sockets due to their girth (giggitty), and often require the use of a power board or travel adapter in order to work.
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Ironically, those are upside down.
Which usually indicates Chinese Type I - they don't insulate pins but do put earth on top.
We insulate pins but live/neutral is on top.
Oof, I see.
Kinda a bad look for type I when some of the users follow a different spec and ruin all attempts at improving safety or even keeping standards like earth being down.In comparison the european plugs are moving closer together, for example F+E combo plugs are increasingly common.
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Their whole homes are on GFCI
wrote last edited by [email protected]Same in Denmark. I thought this was the standard everywhere lol. I almost never see ground pins except on professional electronic equipment
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A useful source:
https://worldofsockets.comwrote last edited by [email protected]I would argue that neither of the plugs shown in the picture nor those mentioned by others are the best.
Ignoring current adoption, I think that IEC 60906-1 is the best plug. It is very similar to the Swiss plug and was intended to, at least in the EU, replace other plugs. It has quite a few advantages over the other plugs. It is rated at 16 A, has a compact form factor, is polarised, and has almost all the common protections except fuses (which are pretty much useless anyway). Currently it only is used in South Africa without major changes to the plug.
Compared to the Schuko (Type F):
- Much smaller. You can fit three plugs in the same space as a single Schuko plug (similar to Swiss triple outlets).
- It takes less force to plug in. Above 2.5A, Schuko plugs require a lot of force to plug in and pull out. To some extent, this is actually good for safety, but I would argue that, in the case of Schuko plugs at least, it's too much
- It is also easier to plug in without seeing the plug since it isn't round. Everyone who has tried to plug in a Schuko plug without seeing the holes knows how difficult it is
- It's polarised/directional. In some very specific cases, there is a security advantage to using a polarised plug, but I think it's also a hassle to only be able to plug in a plug one direction.
It also fits Europlugs (the thin, small plugs with only two pins that are very common in Europe, e.g. on phone chargers)
Compared to (Typ G)):
- Wayyy smaller
- Not a stepping hazard
- Rated for 16A (instead of 13 A)
- No Fuse (Again, pretty unecessary)
Regarding three-phase power, I would argue that Swiss type 15 (10A) and type 25 (16A) plugs are the best. These are really cool because while beeing the same size as Schuko (Typ F) plugs, they can transfer three-phase power (so 11 kW; 230 V / 16A on all three phases). They also fit standard Swiss single-phase and Euro plugs. This makes plugging in large appliances like electric stoves much easier than in other countries.
I would find it quite cool if most countries switched to one common plug, and I think IEC 60906-1 would be best for that. It would also be possible to build hybrid sockets for many common plugs during the transition phase.
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They're all functional, but the UK's Type G plug is the best of all plugs out there IMHO. I'm a Yankee and our plugs are fine, but the shutter design and built in fused plugs of the Type G are just.......chef's kiss.
You do know that the european type e and c also have shutters.. Right?
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Yeah but the plug is FUCKING HUGE.
Doesn't matter because you leave it plugged in and flip the switch to fully disconnect it. I don't know how you savages live without that feature.
