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CPSC warns consumers to stop using male-to-male extension cords sold on Amazon

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Re: CPSC warns consumers to stop using male-to-male extension cords sold on Amazon

#51

Post by GnarfGnarf »

h2odragon wrote: post #2

I recall a holocaust among hand crafted toys, a few years ago: They were enforcing "materiel origin" labeling or something and you couldn't sell home made toys without a lot of paperwork to certify they were lead free. Amazon is too big for laws to apply, and its umbrella apparently covers foreign sellers on its platform. Another fun toy they sell is the "heated shower heads", a tankless water heater element integrat…

In 1968 Bolivia, the only way you could shower is with these heated heads, because there were no hot water tanks. 220v, with exposed connectors.

So anyway I'm standing in the shower under one of these heads, feet in a puddle. I raise my arm to wash an armpit, and the back of my hand touches the bare connector.

It tingled a bit.

Re: CPSC warns consumers to stop using male-to-male extension cords sold on Amazon

#52

Post by falcrist »

isoprophlex wrote: post #40
elzbardico wrote: post #27

How can folks not see that using such contraption is obviously a shitty idea? That’s why we need to completely overhaul the teaching of physics in middle and high school. Every citizen should have at least a basic understanding of basic physical concepts that allow then to understand why this kind of thing is a bad idea

One look at the image and my immediate reaction is "no way anyone would be stupid enough to buy something like this" It's like an utterly evil version of that "HDMI to Gardena" meme, only it actually exists and Amazon carries it... https://external-preview.redd.it/AOlxnd9E3WMW3KID3LhjpL3o70s...

My undergrad was electrical engineering. I work as an engineer. I'm not inclined to buy one of these (and not just because I could simply make one if I wanted).

Re: CPSC warns consumers to stop using male-to-male extension cords sold on Amazon

#53

Post by fullstop »

mmastrac wrote: post #5
h2odragon wrote: post #2

I recall a holocaust among hand crafted toys, a few years ago: They were enforcing "materiel origin" labeling or something and you couldn't sell home made toys without a lot of paperwork to certify they were lead free. Amazon is too big for laws to apply, and its umbrella apparently covers foreign sellers on its platform. Another fun toy they sell is the "heated shower heads", a tankless water heater element integrat…

At some point they just became too big for government to manage compliance with existing laws - that should have a sign that it was time to start looking at breaking them up. I cannot believe the volume of crap I'm getting from Amazon. The quality of products has nose-dived and I no longer trust them for purchasing easily-counterfeited items (like SD cards).

That, and the brands are clearly from a Chinese Name Generator, so you end up with Rabbitgoo branded products. Once those start to fail or enough people leave bad reviews the company disappears and pops up again as Luckyfang. It's whack-a-mole, and untrustworthy.

If I wanted those products I'd shop aliexpress.

Re: CPSC warns consumers to stop using male-to-male extension cords sold on Amazon

#54

Post by [deleted] »

josephcsible wrote: post #24
zibby8 wrote: post #8

Back feeding seems insane. Most residential circuits are rated for 15A. A 5000 watt generator can produce over 40 amps at 120V. Seems like a good way to start an electrical fire.

There's not a big risk of overcurrent here, since the 15A breaker will trip on overcurrent even when it's being backfed. The main hazard with these suicide cables is of electrocution, both inside your house due to the exposed blades being energized, and of linemen working to restore the power.

[deleted]

Re: CPSC warns consumers to stop using male-to-male extension cords sold on Amazon

#57

Post by drewzero1 »

kuschku wrote: post #32
TOGoS wrote: post #20

Earlier quoted context omitted.

NEMA power inlets are weirdly expensive and therefore hard to come by. So if you want to have a wall-powered device with a detachable cord, using an outlet as an inlet and a male-to-male cord is a simple solution. (And yes, I'm aware of other solutions, like using IEC inlets, but it just feels a little wrong to use one of those on e.g. a power strip with NEMA outlets.)

Expensive? https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07DCXKNXQ/ That's 60ct a piece. Rated for 250V 10A. You can just buy any cheap cord like https://www.amazon.com/dp/B003MGB0IK/ to connect to it. There's no excuse for suicide cables.

That's an IEC inlet... I think OP is referring to something specifically intended as a generator inlet, like this: https://www.homedepot.com/p/Reliance-Controls-30-Amp-Power-I...

Not impossible to get, but certainly a bit more expensive.

Re: CPSC warns consumers to stop using male-to-male extension cords sold on Amazon

#58

Post by transcriptase »

Scoundreller wrote: post #41
josephcsible wrote: post #24

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There's not a big risk of overcurrent here, since the 15A breaker will trip on overcurrent even when it's being backfed. The main hazard with these suicide cables is of electrocution, both inside your house due to the exposed blades being energized, and of linemen working to restore the power.

Isn’t the usual advice to turn off your main breaker? Both to protect a lineworker and to avoid stalling your generator by trying to power up the neighbourhood?

I’m not sure I want to see the Venn diagram of people who would buy this cable, and people who would know they need to do that.

Re: CPSC warns consumers to stop using male-to-male extension cords sold on Amazon

#59

Post by nisegami »

Scoundreller wrote: post #41
josephcsible wrote: post #24

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There's not a big risk of overcurrent here, since the 15A breaker will trip on overcurrent even when it's being backfed. The main hazard with these suicide cables is of electrocution, both inside your house due to the exposed blades being energized, and of linemen working to restore the power.

Isn’t the usual advice to turn off your main breaker? Both to protect a lineworker and to avoid stalling your generator by trying to power up the neighbourhood?

Do you think the people using this sort of cable acknowledge things like "the usual advice"?

Re: CPSC warns consumers to stop using male-to-male extension cords sold on Amazon

#60

Post by Scoundreller »

abracadaniel wrote: post #7
h2odragon wrote: post #2

I recall a holocaust among hand crafted toys, a few years ago: They were enforcing "materiel origin" labeling or something and you couldn't sell home made toys without a lot of paperwork to certify they were lead free. Amazon is too big for laws to apply, and its umbrella apparently covers foreign sellers on its platform. Another fun toy they sell is the "heated shower heads", a tankless water heater element integrat…

Funny how quickly the sales tax loophole was fixed, since it directly affected legislatures, but bypassing consumer protection laws at massive scales gets ignored.

Once Amazon went national and retail is already on life support, the sales tax loophole didn’t have much protection. It just made it easier for smaller competitors to take some of their business.

Especially nowadays when eBay even collects sales taxes on sales into states (even sales from me as a Canadian).

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