Lee DunaGemini : How to wire a plug
onslaught545Whoever thought this would burn your house down didn’t read the diagram. The only wire external to the circuit is the ground.
This is 100% a safe way to wire an outlet, provided you don’t expect it to deliver power.
This picture doesn’t show how to write sticker, but now to write plug. The wire that’s labeled ground is actually attached to live connector, although I guess that doesn’t matter as live and neutral are shorted by white wire.
The wire coming into the circuit is the ground, though. Anything after that is irrelevant since the ground is the only wire present.
Plug, not outlet. It’s even labeled as such
It’s irrelevant for the diagram. The only wire in the circuit is the ground.
Norah (pup/it/she)No, it’s not the only wire in the circuit. If that plug is plugged into an outlet, then the hot live wire is coming into the circuit at the pin labelled live, and connecting to the ground wire of the device. That ground wire is usually connected to the metal frame of an appliance. Because of the white wire connecting the live and neutral pins together, it’s going to immediately flow back to the breaker box. However, if for whatever reason the path from the ground of the device to actual ground is shorter, then the electricity will flow through the device. It is possible for a person to be in the path to ground. The way this is wired might also circumnavigate an RCD, preventing the safety switch from operating correctly.
An RCD measures the difference in current flow between the phase and neutral, so it will trip in this scenario. An alternative path to earth is precisely what they’re designed to detect.
Ah yeah, you’re right, my mistake. It’s wild to me as an Aussie that they aren’t universal in the States. Plenty of houses (or outlets?) don’t have them IIRC?
Plenty of old houses still don’t have them in Australia and NZ, but they’re required on power circuits in new builds.
As they should be, they’re an incredible technology.
I don’t think I’ve ever lived somewhere without them. I’d be willing to bet it’s a requirement for rentals, in Victoria at least.
Darkassassin07This is a plug, not an outlet; and it shorts the live + neutral pins together. There is no ground pin present, though a wire labeled ground is also being shorted to the live+neutral pins. (basing ‘pins’ on shape/colour and ignoring that at least one is in the wrong position)
If this doesn’t immediately trip the breaker when plugged in, it’s because you have an open neutral; and now whatever’s on the end of that ground wire (typically exposed metal) is live.
The live and neutral pins are wired together, so there’s not really a reason for the power to travel to that ground wire. Unless the path to the ground of the device, and then from there to actual ground, is shorter, then nothing will flow that way. It’s absolutely not safe, but a number of other factors would need to be present before it were deadly.
Unless the path to the ground of the device, and then from there to actual ground, is shorter, then nothing will flow that way.
That’s not true. Electricity will take all available paths to return to ground, with current flow relative to the resistance present. In other words, two low resistance paths will share similar amounts of current when both are connected to power.
If you were touching anything connected to that ‘ground’ wire while also connected to a true ground yourself; you could receive a harmful shock from plugging this in, even with a breaker in-line and successfully tripping. A GFCI device should prevent that shock, but a regular breaker will not trip fast enough.
True actually. If this were the plug for a washing machine, and you were touching it and the tap for the water inlet, you would definitely get shocked still. Edit: The washing machine itself also wouldn’t generally have a connection to ground that way, as they usually use plastic hoses.
Why are people up voting this? You’re talking utter nonsense in multiple ways.
Feel free to explain how a circuit with only a ground wire is dangerous.
First, both ‘neutral’ and ‘ground’ are leaving that plug.
Second, that ‘ground’ wire is connected to both live and neutral, with no actual ground connection present. The other end of that wire is presumably connected to the exposed metal of the appliance this plug would be powering. Just calling a wire ‘ground’ doesn’t make it ground nor safe; it has to actually be electrically connected to a grounded point.
The ground wire is connected to ground, per the diagram. This would just trip your breaker, and if it didn’t your house is a fire waiting to happen.
The ground wire is connected to ground, per the diagram.
The ground wire in the diagram is not connected to your house’s grounding device. It is connected to the ground of the appliance, which has no such connection to the actual, physical ground.