curling irons

[mannyb]

A customer at a beauty shop recently complain about curling irons buring
out to fast. I figured she has them on all day the life time on these things
should be short. But do you guys have any ideas? the voltage is 120v
@ panel and I see no problems @ service only one outlet having problems
other outlets, no complaints. Any Ideas ?

 

[iwire]

Have her buy better curling irons.

My guess here is she is buying whatever she finds at Wal-Mart and not commercial equipment.

Of course that is just a guess but if you have 125 or less at the receptacle I would say your part is done.

 

[chris kennedy]

Did you test voltage at the suspect receptacle under load and with no load?

 

[augie47]

Have her buy better curling irons.

My guess here is she is buying whatever she finds at Wal-Mart and not commercial equipment.

Of course that is just a guess but if you have 125 or less at the receptacle I would say your part is done.

But Bob, you forget, he wired a circuit for a sign or drink machine , etc
6 months ago so ANY electrcial problem that occurs in the entire shop will be his until someone else wires something (this include items that plug in)
Isn't that the way it works ?

 

[K8MHZ]

Have her buy better curling irons.

My guess here is she is buying whatever she finds at Wal-Mart and not commercial equipment.

Of course that is just a guess but if you have 125 or less at the receptacle I would say your part is done.

That was my first thought, but the problem seems to be centered around only ONE of the receptacles.

If that receptacle gets no more use than the others and it is the only one that elicits a complaint, there may be something for an electrician to tend to.

If it were me, I would perform an autopsy on one or more of the irons. I would also check V under load at the receptacle in question. It may be an intermittent issue and tough to nail down.

More info is needed and some sleuthing may be required as the irons may be failing for a reason not related directly to electricity. Things like vibration, humidity and rough use come to mind.

The real question should be is how are you going to get paid?

What if you spend several hours on the dilemma only to find that it is purely operator error that causes the early demise of the equipment?

 

[mxslick]

The issue with ONE receptacle tells me to look there first. As suggested, measure voltage AT THAT RECEPTACLE both no-load and under load.

I'm willing to bet it's part of a MWBC with a bad neutral connection. Look for an up-stream junction box or splice.

(And before you jump down my throat slow your roll Bob, this has nothing to do with my position on MWBC's.) :grin:

More questions to ask:

Are the irons rated for commercial use? (Good call on that Bob.)

Are the SAME irons failing as fast in other locations?

Are all the failing irons in use by the same stylist who is perhaps banging them around or otherwise being careless?

 

[iwire]

The issue with ONE receptacle tells me to look there first. As suggested, measure voltage AT THAT RECEPTACLE both no-load and under load.

I'm willing to bet it's part of a MWBC with a bad neutral connection. Look for an up-stream junction box or splice.

(And before you jump down my throat slow your roll Bob, this has nothing to do with my position on MWBC's.) :grin:

You are right, it could be. It definitely could be, as an overvoltage is the only problem that could kill a curling iron. Under voltage, over or under frequency, electrical 'noise', harmonics etc. are all things the curling iron would tolerate without a problem.

So in my mind we have one of two issues, overvoltage at the receptacle or cheap curling units.

My money is on the curling units.

Are the irons rated for commercial use? (Good call on that Bob.)

Gee thanks. :roll:

 

[mxslick]

Gee thanks. :roll:

LOL you're welcome. I know how much my approval means to you. :grin:

 

[LarryFine]

If you like treading on thin ice, you could offer to make them simple "warm-hot" switch boxes, using a power diode to reduce power during idle time.

The smallest package would be a combo SP switch/receptacle in a handy box, with the switch in series with the receptacle and bypassing the diode.

Of course, the diode would have to be able to handle the appliance current, and the curler would have to be just a heating element, and no motors.

 

[petersonra]

I would be looking at the operator of the station that receptacle serves.

 

[mxslick]

I would be looking at the operator of the station that receptacle serves.

I think someone already suggested that...:grin:

More questions to ask:

Are the irons rated for commercial use? (Good call on that Bob.)

Are the SAME irons failing as fast in other locations?

Are all the failing irons in use by the same stylist who is perhaps banging them around or otherwise being careless?

Deja vu all over again.

If you like treading on thin ice, you could offer to make them simple "warm-hot" switch boxes, using a power diode to reduce power during idle time.

The smallest package would be a combo SP switch/receptacle in a handy box, with the switch in series with the receptacle and bypassing the diode.

Of course, the diode would have to be able to handle the appliance current, and the curler would have to be just a heating element, and no motors.

Larry's suggestion is good, but my experiences with my brother-in-law's salon tells me that the irons need to be in constant readiness and they don't like to wait for reheat time (which in real terms is only about 4-5 minutes, but in a busy salon it could be costly.)