Power outlet orientation. | on ElectriciansForums

Discuss Power outlet orientation. in the UK Electrical Forum area at ElectriciansForums.net

Syncopator

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In Britain we mount our outlets with the earth socket at the top. The reason being that anything conductive which might fall between the socket and the plug would probably make contact with the earth pin first ... etc.

American sockets used to be mounted the same way, and I had assumed for the same reason.

All photographs of American outlets now show that they are mounted inversely, with the earth socket at the bottom.

This seems to fly in the face of common sense.

Does anyone know why this is done?
 
goes back forever, even before my time. 15A round pin sockets has earth pin at the top. (except for australia, of course, where it was at the bottom).
 
Earth pin goes in first-comes out last,most socket outlets are viewed and used,from above,so lining up the longer pin,is easier.

Owt else?
 
Largely irrelevant nowadays. Almost all plugs have sleeves on the L and N plug pins so stuff dropping in doesn't make any difference.

But if the socket was upside down then the flex would exit going up. That would add additional resistance (gravity) to the electrical flow.
 
Imagine in the past a socket mounted upside down with the old unsleeved pin plug inserted and powered up, just a few mm 'loose' in the socket and you'd have exposed live conductors, of course this would be the case either way up but would be more accessible.
 
With the pins live, the gap between the plug and the socket would be very small though, too small to get your fingers into, especially if the 9.5mm surface around the live pins is there (which it should be!). You could touch the pins with a metal ruler or a knife blade if the pins were unsleeved, but that's just silly.

If you want to shock yourself, a lampholder is the easiest way.
 

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