Poor quality of plugs, sockets and converters is an important cause of electrical fires. The quality problems of small power plugs, sockets and converters will cause serious harm to the personal and property safety of consumers. Therefore, consumers should focus on the safety of products when purchasing power plugs, sockets, converters and switches, and the main factors affecting their safety are the following performance indicators:
Logo
Signs are an important basis for instructing people to install, use and maintain correctly, and are extremely important safety standards to ensure personal and property safety. Plug and socket products should be marked with rated current, rated voltage, power supply properties, etc. in obvious positions. In addition, converters (converters refer to mobile electrical accessories with only one plug part and one or more socket parts combined) products should be marked with the "MAX (or maximum)" symbol to indicate the rated current/or power, To guide users to avoid overloading. Signs or symbols should be durable and legible. Silkscreen and sticker signs that can be easily erased should not be used.
Rated value
The rated value is the most basic electrical interchange matching parameter to ensure the normal, safe and cooperative use of plugs, sockets, converters and connected electrical appliances. For example: the rated current of the converter shall not be greater than the rated value of the plug part. Otherwise, it may cause danger when the user selects electrical appliances according to the rated current of the socket, and the plug overcurrent heats up, causing danger; the minimum rating of the converter with fuse and overload protector should be equal to the mark on the fuse and overload protector. rated value. Otherwise, product damage may occur.
Size
Size is an important technical requirement related to the safe use of plugs, sockets and converters, and whether they meet general interchangeability requirements to avoid misinsertion. The unqualified size will affect the user's use or cause hidden dangers such as poor contact and mis-insertion, which will damage the equipment at light level, and cause fire and electric shock accidents in severe cases.
Protection against electric shock
Electric shock protection is a key safety indicator to ensure that plugs, sockets, and converters will not cause electric shock accidents to users and others under normal use, even in some unexpected situations. When the power plug is fully or partially inserted into the socket, the live part of the plug shall not be accessible; any pin of the plug shall not be able to be inserted into the live socket of the socket when the other pins are accessible. Plugs, sockets and converters with protective doors should be able to prevent single-pole or probe insertion.
Structure
The socket assembly should have sufficient elasticity to ensure sufficient contact pressure on the plug pins. The socket should be corrosion-resistant and wear-resistant to ensure good contact between the plug and the socket; the pin of the plug should be locked and cannot be rotated, otherwise it will affect the insertion performance and cause unsafe factors; the converter has a flexible cord fixing device to ensure The flexible cord is fixed and can withstand normal tension and torque; when the plug and socket are inserted, the mating surfaces should be basically tight to prevent electric shock accidents.
Power cable
The power cord should have enough cross-sectional area to ensure that the power cord will not heat up and cause insulation damage, resulting in short circuit, fire, leakage, and accidents. Such as: the common 250V, 10A converter's power line cross-sectional area should be greater than or equal to 0.75mm2.
Mechanical strength
Plugs and sockets should have sufficient mechanical strength to withstand various mechanical stresses caused by drops, impacts, and extrusions during installation and use; sockets with protective doors should be able to prevent single-pole insertion.
Heat and flame resistant
High temperature has a great influence on various properties of insulating materials. Under high temperature conditions, the structure and characteristics of insulating materials will undergo essential changes. This change determines the reliability of the use of materials. Some materials will gradually become soft at high temperatures. The mechanical strength is reduced, which will affect the quality of the plug and socket and the safety in use. In addition, the insulating material of the plug and socket should have certain flame retardant properties. Otherwise, if the product catches fire during use, it will be out of control. Know the safety performance of plugs and sockets, and when purchasing and using, you can ensure the safety of your family and property by grasping the following points:
1. You must choose regular factories, supermarkets or specialty stores, and choose brand products; choose corresponding (matching) products according to the power of the electrical appliances used, such as: air conditioners, high-power showers and other products should use 16A plugs and sockets, other small Power household appliances can use 10A plugs and sockets. For example, when purchasing 16A plug power cords, you need to see whether the square size of the wires reaches 1.5 square meters or more. The copper wire heats up and the PVC outer skin becomes soft, causing electrical burnout or short circuit problems.
2. It is necessary to see whether the product logo is complete, whether it has the manufacturer's trademark, and whether it has the safety certification mark of the local country (for example, in the Chinese market, whether it must have the CCC mark). If there is no mark on the power plug and wire product, then this plug The product must be a fake and inferior product, and the quality of the product will not be guaranteed.
3. Check the certificate of conformity for plug products and the inspection report issued by the statutory department. If the converter product is not included in the compulsory certification, you should check the inspection report issued by the statutory inspection agency when purchasing, or check whether the file number on the plug is valid on the Internet.
4. Carry out a simple insertion experiment on the power plug products. After the plug is inserted into the socket, the contact should be good, there is no loose feeling, and it can be pulled out without too much force, because although some products have been tested at the factory, it is inevitable that they will be transported after leaving the factory. It will damage the plug and insert, and test it before purchasing to reduce a lot of unnecessary losses in the future.
5. Never buy a plug with a rotatable pin or artificially change the shape of the plug. This kind of plug after changing the shape must pass the CCC certification, otherwise it is definitely an unsafe plug product, which is easy to be broken down by high-voltage electricity. Use two high-power electrical appliances on one socket at the same time; when it is found that the temperature of the plug socket or power cord is too high or sparks occur, stop using and replace it.
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