| |
Bertram31.com General Bulletin Board
Re: 120 v outlet
Posted By: bruce In Response To: Re: 120 v outlet (Ed C.)
Date: Saturday, 4 June 2005, at 9:10 a.m.
Andre,
Metal boxes are better at containing a fire than plastic boxes if it starts at the oulet. They are not user friendly in boats due to possible rust though.One main cause for fires that don't trip breakers or pop fuses is corrosion at the connection.
Most modern outlets have the wire slide in place hole and is kept there by a piece of metal pointing up to keep the solid copper from pulling out.On boats, anything copper WILL corrode. Wiring either needs to be tinned at the connection or use tinned marine wiring.
The screws on the outlet need to be utilized instead of the push and lock because they don't work with stranded wire which is the only thing that is used on boats and they don't secure a connection tightly.As a connection corrodes, heat will build up due to resistance. This also can happen with loose connections. This heat can build up to a point to ignite a fire without tripping the breaker. A breaker only trips if its trip rating is exceeded.
You can have a fire on a corroded connection only pulling 10amps on a 15 amp circuit.
Thus no breaker trip.The other thing that corrodes are the slots in the outlet that take the appliance plug. These can become worn, loose and corrode igniting a fire without tripping the breaker.
Due to the moist air, I would replace outlets on a boat every 5 years. They are cheap. This also allows you to inspect the connections when replacing them.
When rewiring, leave enough slack to cut and replace those connections once or twice in its life time.GFCI outlets only need to be used in galley and head areas where there are sinks and the possibilty of shocks due to water.
They do not work with alot of appliances due to the design of tripping when detecting slight leakage current. Most major appliance will trip them. They are no good for dock outlets also due to the general leakage on a boat. You'll never get them to hold in.
Use standard outlets in other areas.
If you have a real wet area, say the cockpit, use an outlet with a spring loaded cover and gasket.
Connections are the most important area since this is where the majority of fires start.
bruce
A good friend will drive two counties over to bail you out of jail.
Your best friend will be sitting next to you in the cell going, "that was really cool."
| |
Bertram31.com General Bulletin Board is maintained by Patrick McCrary with WebBBS 5.12.