Should you ever be looking for information on a weird old plug or socket, or are just interested in such things, the online "Museum of Plugs and Sockets" is one of those sites that makes the Internet seem like less of a terrible mistake than usual.
The page on old British "BS 546" is unmatched, in particular: https://plugsocketmuseum.nl/OldBritish1.html
@kadin
The three pin 5A is common in churches and halls for microphones!
The 5A is also still common for lighting in Ireland, which also has used the German socket.
I think the UK & Ireland shaver sockets take the 2 pin 5A UK, 2 pin Europlug and also the US two blade. The transformer is 2K V isolated and lamination design with a thermistor limits power to less than 20W.
I've not seen the 2A for decades. Often on fireplace mantles for a mains driven clock.
@dec23k @kadin
I have a couple of shaver outlets in boxes for old vintage radios. I drilled a third hole for the earth pin of a 3 pin 5A plug, with an earth added. They need an isolation transformer for safety. The 2-pin version of the 5A plug absolutely fits the unmodified socket.
The BS1363 (plug) to shaver (socket) adapters have no isolation and are unsafe for some older electric shavers. They should only be used for chargers.
The worse adaptor is BC light socket (un-polarised) to Euro ES.
@raymaccarthy @kadin
"Depending on the tariffs it could be attractive to plug an electric iron into a light socket. Because bayonet sockets have no earth connection it was a dangerous method of saving money."
https://plugsocketmuseum.nl/OldBritish4.html
I have 2 each of no.2 and no.3 on this page. I never used them for anything other than lighting.
@dec23k @kadin
""Depending on the tariffs it could be attractive to plug an electric iron into a light socket."
That wasn't why it was done from 1920s to 1960s. The light sockets were used because some rooms had no sockets, or only one, or none at the location needed. So used for any kind of electrical gear. A radio was common.
In UK and Ireland the most common separate tariff was timed on a separate meter for storage radiators, not lighting.
@raymaccarthy @kadin
I was skeptical of that quote (about the tariffs) but the second sentence was why I put it in, and probably why those devices are no longer available.
I had never heard of separate tariffs for lighting circuits anywhere, but I have definitely seen houses in Ireland with a mechanical timer on the fuse board for night-rate storage heating.
One appliance socket per room (whether you needed it or not!) was standard in new builds in Ireland well past the 1960s unfortunately.
@dec23k @kadin
Our 1984!
Clock in UK with separate meter for storage in the past.
Some people still have them.Smart meters are optional in Ireland.
I've never heard of lighting tariffs, anywhere. There are UK & Ireland unmetered tariffs. Obvious is street lighting etc. But a transmitter, mobile mast or a remote farmer's power for a light, fencer or pump can be without a meter. Cheaper to have an estimated fixed charge than send someone up a mountain to read a meter.
I'm no spring chicken.
Kadin
Ray McCarthy
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