Warning: Electric Hook-Up Cables

We once had a caretaker at the school i work in he was also a part time fireman one afternoon i went into the main hall and spotted a 3kw burco boiler setup for parents that evening pluged into a 10m 13amp extension cable only unwound by 1 meter i said to my mate omg whos done that and he said why? i said that will be red hot and catch fire and it was the cables had started to melt and stick to each other. If it had been left a bit longer it would have been a fire when i told the guy he did not have a clue and we are supposed to put our lives in his hands ? his training must not have been any good.

Mike

mikejack wrote:We once had a caretaker at the school i work in
Mike

I hope you don't teach English

Frank

I always loop our cable over my thumbs about 4' apart, lorry driver style.
This ensures no kinks as the cable is wound in a figure of eight.
A simple half twist to bring the two ends together and the whole lot drops into the purpose made blue bag(50p from Ikea!).

Derek

murph wrote: Hi Mrs Grey,
I carry 2 cables, a 10 metre and a 15 metre, (25metre cut to lengths) I find the 10 metre adequate in most cases but ocasionally I need to join them together

Brian2

I have seen advice not to connect two cables together as the join will be lying on wet grass and will not be waterproof.

You can get a weatherproof cover for the junction ....

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shargrea wrote:I have seen advice not to connect two cables together as the join will be lying on wet grass and will not be waterproof.

So have I but I ignore it! in all the years I've been doing this, I have never, ever, had a problem what's the worst that could happen? It would trip out the RCD on the hook-up post. You can buy covers for the connection if you really feel the need.

Frank

boxerman wrote:

shargrea wrote:I have seen advice not to connect two cables together as the join will be lying on wet grass and will not be waterproof.

So have I but I ignore it! in all the years I've been doing this, I have never, ever, had a problem what's the worst that could happen? It would trip out the RCD on the hook-up post. You can buy covers for the connection if you really feel the need.

Frank

Ditto on the connection. (Wrapped in a plastic bag when it's raining!)

However, in Germany went to a site where they insisted on a single length of cable - and even banned "pigtails" that changed from one style to another!

My cable was OK but I did wonder if they allowed a connection if there was one of those "protectors" in place.

Best regards,

I have a 10 and 25 ft cable and always lay it out etc. When I coil it up I use a tree rie to secure it so it doesn' unravel and carry it in a canvas bag.
Just back from France and am amazed to see how many continentals, Dutch and German have here coiled and UNDER their vans

I have enjoyed reading all of the comments and views, and have decided to carry one 10mtr and one 15mtr plus a waterproof connector giving me the three options .....as always Safety First

Very sad news indeed our hearts go out to the family that have suffered such a tragic loss .thanks paul for bringing this to the forum's attention i think a lot of people will now be more careful as to how they leave there hook up cable's in future.
God bless the family.

Grant

Just to put another suggestion in the pot for those wanting to connect two leads together you can get the blue 16amp male and female plugs & sockets that are waterproof from your local electrical suppliers when you connect them together there is a lock ring around the female with a rubber seal which makes it totally weather proof we use them on sites for machine such as pressure washers etc where there is always water around hope this helps folks

There is a much worse issue than cable length or coiling. On some continental sites the manager unlocks the EHU connection point and plugs your cable in when you arrive. What do you do when you go out? You cannot disconnect it. The right answer is to carry with you an unwired blue plug to blank offthe live socket, pop it into one of the IP44 containers and hang it onto a convenient branch or post. But how many of us do that? Nof me! But I do hang the live socket up somehow. 
Just a thought!

I uncoil my cable, but I have the blue / artic cable, 5mm,  they is also  a 2.5mm  which I didn`t think was suitable, the blue is lighter, doesn`t kink, and easy to pick up and coil, I have it in a dedicated EHU bag.much easy than the yellow/orange. which I had previously, I also have the two lengths, the longer one is used more at home than away.

Just back from a trip and I was really surprised how many folk leave their EHU cable coiled on a drum when connected.  Notwithstanding previous comments here on the conditions in which overheating can occur..........it can and does occur.  As previously mentioned, lighter gauge cables may be more susceptible to overheating but we're all too smart to use one of those eh  .  What happens though if the guy parked next to you has one?

Incidently, I use the cable supplied by A/S with my van, loosely dumped in a higgledy piggledy fashion when connected.  I have no idea of how long it is and I have no intention of measuring it either 

I should also say that my wife tries to push the cable under the van as she's worried about the orange cable "fading" (no, I'm not kidding) 

I generally carry two lengths of EHU cable , the cable is unwound and any surplus laid out underneath the rear carry box.
I still see the practice of campers,caravaners and even tenters hooking direct to the EHU tower before connecting to the van first??
Another observation over the years on site is , unhooking for the day and leaving the cable on the floor still connected, I take it the EHU cable still live?
Boaby

Yes, I've seen that as well and the cable is live. Given the nature of modern circuit breakers, it's likely they would trip before any damage was done.......assuming they are in working condition.

A cable loosely coiled is unlikely to pose a problem, it's the ones tightly wound on a cassette or cable drum when connected that could overheat.

Lots of sound advice here about what to do and not to do with your EHU cable.

The original fire, in 2011, however was caused by a coiled extension lead, not an EHU cable.

At home, when an extension lead is used, it tends to have one or at most two gadgets connected to it. In a caravan awning people plug in electric fires, kettles, hotplates and portable fridges. For convenience they tend to buy extension leads in neat, easy to carry roll-out drums.  Rather than have your children trip over the extended wires  what could be more natural than to leave the bulk of the cable coiled inside ?   Yes, the cables advise unrolling before use but how many do this ?

Perhaps we need to start an awareness campaign about extension lead use ?  These are usually where the neighbours and the wardens can't see them and advise.