I love everything from software to hardware, Windows to Linux, Computer to Phone, and everything in between. I have an extension cord with 3 outlets on it. It only takes a minute to sign up. This is some sort of scarecrow tactic from the manufacturers (and rightly so, IMO). Take some margin, especially motors sometimes can use a lot of 'starting' current. But I did, and everything seems to running fine. Whilst they may or may not work, they will most often not give the best signal even if they do work, and powerline adapters work far better when plugged directly into wall outlets. This latter is particularly important to calculate heating. Also consider external factors (like the heat from the sun) when calculating the maximum load, I once had a thermal fuse trip inside a rolled up cable when it was using less than 1A (at 220V). When you go towards the maximum current supported by the extension cord or in a warm environment or radiation (e.g. Do not use an extension cord or power strip, which could overheat and result in a fire. Apart from heating cables or connectors, a primary safety concern with an extension plugged into an extension of any type is that overall resistivity can become so large that even a full short at the furthest end of the cable may not trip a breaker. You can, but we found some problems can sometimes occur, the reasons for which we don’t know why. It mostly comes down to length, as extension cords can only be so long—the longer the cord, the more electrical resistance, which decreases the amount of electricity that can be fed to devices. Manufacturers warn against plugging extensions or other power bars into a surge protector in case someone plugs a 15 amp heater into the last of three power bars. It's been running for about a 30 minutes now, and neither the surge protector or the extension cord are overheating. Manufacturers must design their product and the included instructions around the (possibly dumbest) average consumer. To the left is a 3-prong-to-2-prong adapter (also known as a “Cheater Plug”). I plug mine into a surge protected power strip all the time, but I do that with all my device power supplies anyway when at home or work. If you know what you are doing and know the characteristics of your loads, you can mix and match almost anything by providing generous safety margins. If your refrigerator is too far from the power outlet, move your refrigerator or have a electrician install a plug closer to your refrigerator. From my experience, if the Wemo is plugged into the wall outlet and you plug an extension cord into the Wemo plug, Alexa, or whatever smart speaker you have, will turn on the entire cord. Space heaters must be plugged directly into a wall outlet, which can handle a higher wattage, and should be the only item plugged into that wall outlet. The NEC and most local electrical codes, in fact, do not permit the use of one extension cord or power strip plugged into another. This plugs into a wall outlet and is considered a power strip even though it doesn’t have a cord. Larger appliances, such as microwaves and refrigerators, All extension cords, power strips, multi-outlet adapters, and UPSs. If you are using the power strip (or extension cord) properly (one plug per outlet, no adapters, no daisy chaining) and you inspect the power strip for damage (wear & tear) regularly, you should not have much to fear. Why did these two ethernet switches die (again)? You can do it with surge protectors and power strips as well. "Normal" people could watch my setups and cower in terror (if they are sane), or they could do the same and burn their house down, because they can't tell the electrical difference between a 4W power pack and a 1500W toaster! Show me the reaction mechanism of this Retro Aldol Condensation reaction. Update the question so it's on-topic for Electrical Engineering Stack Exchange. Something I'm not understanding? It allows a 3-prong plug to be plugged into … . They tell you the simplest possible rule to use their products with safety: "One extension cord (adapter plug, or whatever) to one socket, no multiple adapter/extension things joined together". Instead of buying an extension cord, get a power strip with a cord of sufficient length. Wondering if the range extender can be plugged into an extension cord or power strip, or does it have to be plugged directly into a wall outlet? We had a few in for testing that the users had complained the remotes did not work. And just like with power strips and outlet taps, make sure you get an extension cord that can handle any heavy loads. What are the dangers of operating a mini excavator? If you have questions about the amount of equipment that may be plugged into an outlet or power strip, contact EH&S. Do not use an adapter. -Never use an extension cord on a any type of space heater. Relevance. According to Smart Nutter, this is possible. If you really want to know how many devices you can plug into a power strip, you need to know the amps, voltage and wattage rating of the strip. Does this property characterize the odd primes? 2 Answers. The following is a list of rules for proper use of extension cords and power strips at TWU. It is not recommended to plug powerline adapters into plug extensions or anti surge power strips. (addition from Kurja). temporarily to plug an extension cord to a power strip, but never a power strip to an extension cord. If the power strip needs to be at the beginning of the circuit, plug the extension cord into one of the outlets on the power strip. :-D. Leaving whether it is safe or not (or widely practiced or not) to the others, I'll mention that in my U.S. jurisdiction the fire martial doesn't like it and made everyone in my company reconfigure practically every office to avoid this or face penalties. If you must use an extension cord, then use the shortest cord length possible, and use at least a 12 gauge power cord, like the yellow one in the picture above. Always same conjugation for wir, sie-plural and sie-formal? An example of acceptable extension cord use would be a custodian using one with a vacuum to clean a hallway carpet. To power all of the equipment I use, I use a pretty expensive surge protector, with 12 outlets on it. They have appliance extension cords that you can purchase as opposed to an outlet strip. If anything is getting hot, then take steps to reduce the load on it, or at least investigate further. Want to improve this question? To be honest, I do it all the time. Stack Exchange network consists of 176 Q&A communities including Stack Overflow, the largest, most trusted online community for developers to learn, share their knowledge, and build their careers. What was the color of Dooku's lightsaber when he was Jedi? As I see this question, this is not an "how to use an extension cord" question. How can a technologically advanced species be conquered by a less advanced one? In this article, we will look into the difference between a power strip and an extension cord, and the right choice for your intended purpose. Never use a three to two prong plug adapter! Also make sure that your smart plug isn’t so heavy that it’s weighing down the extension cord and making the connection loose. If you only have two prong outlets, contact Facilities Management & Construction for assistance. Power Strips or Surge Protector? You are right about lots of warnings being written everywhere on the subject. xreginabethx is correct. It is like asking if a given component can be used beyond its specs in the datasheet (but here the "datasheet", i.e. To save my battery can I plug my iPad pro charger with prongs into an extension cord to reach wall outlet while using? Voting to reopen. When is it better to use the backquote, `(…), and when to use (list …)? a document for professionals, is not provided). Use appliances the cord can handle perfectly. So manufacturers don't take any chances. Due to the variety of outlets available and the high wattage of some generators, you can plug almost anything into them directly. Is it OK to plug a fridge into a power strip? Another potential problem is that if the outlet is equipped with an earth-leakage circuit breaker safety device, that may also trip "on it's own" as the current in neutral wire is diminished due to excessive resistivity in the circuit. So it would plug in in this order: 100 or so watts of CFLs (pulling very few amps I imagine) -> 15 amp timer -> 13 amp extension cord -> surge protecting power strip -> power outlet. And in case it just crossed your mind, Portablepowerguides discourages you from solving this problem by plugging one extension cord into another extension cord. Is a public "shoutouts" channel a good or bad idea? Using power strips can be even more dangerous than using an extension cord in case you have more devices than just your space heater plugged in. I have been running various multiple extension cords setups for ages, without the slightest problem. You run the risk of overloading your system and starting a fire. You can plug a power strip or extension cord to a surge protector to provide protection to all your electronics provided you do not overload the surge protector. So, I wouldn't be surprised is my electrical usage exceeds 50% of the entire household (8 people). Power strips, multi-outlet adapters, and uninterruptible power supplies (UPSs) are acceptable. Just a bit of context, I am a technology enthusiast. If you plug a light duty extension rated at 5 Amp into the wall, then plug a 15 amp surge protector into that, you should not draw more than 5 amps total. Interest: what is the most strategic time to make a purchase: just before or just after the statement comes out? For safety reasons an electric fireplace should not be plugged into any form of extension from an electrical outlet, such as a surge protectors or power strips. site design / logo © 2021 Stack Exchange Inc; user contributions licensed under cc by-sa. Coworker is trying to get me to sign his petition to run for office. Answer Save. Is it Safe to Plug an Extension Cord Into a Power Strip? Maybe, I thought, I could plug some of the things on my surge protector into the extension cord, and then the extension cord into the surge protector. Plug the extension cord directly into the outlet. The timer pulls 15 amps and I'd like to plug the timer into an extension cord rated for 13 amps, then into the power strip. Of course, extension cords, plugs, sockets and similar "electrical connection things" follow Ohm's law and Joule's law. If the power strip needs to be at the end of the circuit, plug the extension cord into the wall outlet, and then plug the power strip into the receptacle end of the extension cord. [closed], I followed my dreams and got demoted to software developer, Opt-in alpha test for a new Stacks editor, Visual design changes to the review queues, 2021 Moderator Election Q&A - Question Collection, Is it possible to repeatedly use a schottky diode at its surge current without damage. 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