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Home & Garden Articles
Using Extension Cords - Be Smart, Be Safe
Mon 22 Jun 2009 - 15:47
Using Extension Cords - Be Smart, Be Safe
By [http://ezinearticles.com/?expert=Harriet_Hodgson]Harriet Hodgson
Minnesota winters can be fierce, with sub-zero temperatures, high winds, and white-out conditions. When the weather socks in Minnesotans hunker down and wait out the storm. No wonder there are so many poets in the state. Many homes have finished basements and ours is one of them. Our home office is on the lower level and looks out on the yard and wildlife.
Though the office is a wonderful place to work, it is a chilly place in the winter. We bought an electric space heater to keep us warm. Since the cord didn't reach the wall socket, we plugged it into an industrial extension cord we had on hand. The space heater turned the office into a cozy place.
Then the office started to smell. It was an odd, chemical smell that we couldn't identify. We thought the odor was due to the newness of the heater and thought it would go away. But it stayed. Weeks later, we found the source -- the extension cord plug --which had mented the plastic switch plate. Thank goodness we didn't have a fire!
Obviously, we made some safety mistakes. One, we didn't examine the wire or plug because we were in a hurry. Two, we didn't use a special heater cord marked with the letter H. According to the Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA), about 3,300 residential fires in the US are caused by extension cords that are short circuited, overloaded, damaged, or improperly used.
You may prevent a home fire by knowing which cord to buy and how to use it. B. Miller Engineering, in a Website article titled "Extension Cord Safety," offers some buying tips. Never buy a bargain cord. Instead, buy a medium or heavy-duty one. Make sure it has been tested by an independent laboratory. Take the time to read the package safety information and warnings.
Look for the maximum amps on the package and "don't connect cords that exceed 75% of this value." Buy one with a polarized plug (one prong wider than the other), or a three-pronged plug. Always uncoil the cord, the article advises, and never double it up or cover it. If you have had it for a while, check for cracks, fraying, and shaky, pulling-away plug. You can buy an outdoor cord and it should be connected to a ground fault outlet.
The US Consumer Product Safety Commission Website has published more tips on its Website. A fact sheet says an extension cord is a temporary fix, not a permanent one. "Replace cracked or worn extension cords with new, #16 gauge cords that have the listing of a nationally-recognized testing laboratory," the fact sheet advises. When you disconnect the cord, remember to pull the plug and not the wire. Young children should be kept away from wires, plugs, and sockets.
Consumers like you and me need to buy the right cord for the right job. The lamp ones are usually flat, according to Electrical Safety Foundation International, whereas the appliance ones are usually round and have larger diameters. For more information go to [http://www.electrical-safety.org]www.electrical-safety.org.
We didn't know if the space heater was faulty so we threw it out. After we saw the damaged plug we threw the cord out, too. Now we are a lot smarter about safety. Winter is still months away and we don't know if we will buy another space heater or not. Maybe we will just put on woolly socks and bundle ourselves in fleece.
Copyright 2009 by Harriet Hodgson http://www.harriethodgson.com
Harriet Hodgson has been an independent journalist for 30 years. She is a member of the American Society of Journalists and Authors, the Association of Health Care Journalists, and the Association for Death Education and Counseling. Her 24th book, "Smiling Through Your Tears: Anticipating Grief," written with Lois Krahn, MD, is available from Amazon.
Centering Corporation in Omaha, Nebraska has published her 26th book, "Writing to Recover: The Journey from Loss and Grief to a New Life." The company has also published a companion resource, the "Writing to Recover Journal," which contains 100 writing prompts. Please visit Harriet's Website and learn more about this busy author and grandmother.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Harriet_Hodgson http://EzineArticles.com/?Using-Extension-Cords---Be-Smart,-Be-Safe&id=2505934
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