Re: Surge Protector "Discussion"
Hi Daverob.
The general public in the US don't usually concern themselves with electric codes and regulations. If they need an extension or power strip they just go get one.
The US has Underwriters Laboratories which is trusted to test consumer products to be safe before they go to market. I think most of us understand that if it didn't pass UL then the safety is questionable.
I still don't understand why a 9ft extension would be said to be unsafe when a 30ft cord made of the same materials would be tested in a laboratory to be safe for consumer use.
Here's a calculator:
http://www.powerstream.com/Wire_Size.htm
It calculates a 3 foot 14gauge wire drawing 15a will have only have a 0.2v drop, and a 9 foot cord of the same length will have 0.7v drop. 30 feet would be only 2.3v.
I haven't heard of anyone being electrocuted with less power than a common flashlight battery.
The only possible safety issue I can see with daisy chaining power strips is (1) overloading them or (2) using damaged ones in which the plugs and sockets have became dirty or corroded and cause heat under a high load. (Such as using strips that had been forgotten and left outside in the elements)
On the lighter side,
I understand your passion about the spread of misinformation and false claims about surge protection. For example, I learned a lot about solar power a few years ago. I learned its capabilities and limitations, and the limitations are most important. I built a small scale 240ah solar power backup system which also run back yard security lights. I firmly believe the solar power industry is involved in crooked trickery scams and false claims.
We've seen crooked, misleading scam advertisements like these:
http://www.homemadeenergy.org/specia...d1cf7cda210e4=
(Link deleted, see below)
Worse is that more scams keep appearing.
Also suppliers making wild unrealistic claims like these:
http://www.greenearth4energy.com/
http://www.freesunpower.com/
Someone made this comical parity website:
http://www.diysolar.com/
If you're interested, this is a thread to my own project:
http://www.solarpaneltalk.com/showth...ll-scale/page3
Anyway, I get just as aggressive to people making false claims about solar as some do here about surge protection. Maybe I get more aggressive about it.
