Thoughts on Unswitched Sockets

[BluSparx]

Just a quick question, following doing some work today at a property where there is a small child who likes to stick things into items such as the dvd player etc.

The customer feels that unswitched sockets that are there are unsafe as always live and if the child sticks his toys in then he will get a shock ---- literally.

I am going back to swap them at her request for switched ones, however what are peoples thoughts on what they would advise regarding unswitched sockets as I can't find anything in the regs which says they should be switched and you can still buy unswitched ones.

My personal opinion is switched all the way 1) they are cheaper & 2) they are safer as can be switched off at the wall anyway.

 

[chiplard]

If the child can put something in a small hole in a socket then i would have thought they could operate the switch.

IMHO they are both equally as safe as they are covered by the same British Standard.

 

[Sintra]

The socket outlets for a domestic installation must be of a shuttered type so no contact can be made with L or N even when sticking things into them.

 

[rocker]

Yep there's nothing in the regs to say they must be switched.

Unswitched have their place I suppose, like in a kitchen behind something where there is a control switch elsewhere - however I still use switched in this circumstance simply because if you're buying them by the hundred, you're not going to order one unswitched one, are you?

Elsewhere I don't like them as there are a lot of things in the home such as irons which cannot be turned on and off on the unit themselves, so you have to pull the plug under an 800w load and you often get a spark - to me it seems only a metter of time and a half-arsed 'pull' before that spark turns into an arc.

 

[rocker]

Yep sintras absolutely correct BUT a kid could jam something in the earth hole which would open the other holes I guess.

 

[Des 56]

Agree with Rocker,isolation can be by means of a switch or just pulling the plug out

Personally unswitched regularly used sockets dont fill me with good thoughts

If they have children worries,then double pole sockets would be better
Also perhaps a warning to them about the campaign going on to have the dangerous socket covers banned

 

[rocker]

Also perhaps a warning to them about the campaign going on to have the dangerous socket covers banned

The what?

 

[telectrix]

a good smack on the a**se stopped me as a child from sticking things into sockets. they were unswitched, un shuttered 15A round pin then. my dad used to wedge the TV cable in with rawlplugs as we couldn't afford new plugs in the 50's.

 

[Risteard]

The what?

I presume he's referring to the "Fatally Flawed" campaign by IEE members.

The socket covers (not to any BS) can actually defeat the shuttering which is a safety mechanism and therefore render the socket outlets less safe than they were before interference.

 

[rocker]

What socket covers, though?

 

[Risteard]

The plastic things you see inserted into socket outlets in public buildings, houses etc. under the auspices of protection of babies/small children from inserting objects into socket outlets.

 

[Sintra]

Have a look [video=youtube;d-WhFgaqCX0]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d-WhFgaqCX0[/video]

 

[martysparky]

If your using unswitched in a kitchen post s/fused connection unit it is switched...That in my opinion is the only way they should be used.

 

[martysparky]

Yesv I've seen plenty of people use those child safe plugs thingys upside down to open the shutters for two pin lamps etc.

 

[nickblake]

this would come under isolation and switching , there is no problem with using un switched sockets you can isolate ,functional switching , but no emergency switching and these sockets are suitable for on load switching and disconnection IE plugging in and out the guidence for this is on page 117 ,table 53.2 of the regs