Defeating the "tamper resistant" outlet

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GerryB

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woodbridge, ct. USA
As I was watching my 10 month old grandson he pulled a tablet charger part way out of the receptacle. The prongs were exposed enough for him to get his little finger in there had I not been watching. ( actually the space was big enough for my finger). The indicator light was still on and I tested it afterward, you only need to put it in a little to energize. It's not a TR receptacle, I don't know if a TR would be any different. Also the charger is 2 prong so you can pull it out part way and it hangs down so it is even more accessible. I know TR's have been code for a while, I guess my point is you can't design every single thing to prevent every possible scenario.
 
This is where sleeved pins would be nice and actually should be required. I'll give the British that one. Their sleeved pins on their plugs are a superior design but everything else about them is bollocks.
 
I agree with your last point.
I tell my customers with or without children that the TR receptacle will not prevent someone from getting a "shock/ short".
That they need to install other child proof/ resistant devices on top of what is installed.
 
The purpose of the TR receptacles is to keep someone from inserting a single pin or object into the hot slot. It won't do much good as described in the OP.
 
infinity said:
The purpose of the TR receptacles is to keep someone from inserting a single pin or object into the hot slot...
Click to expand...

And tick off every other adult who knows what they're doing.

As for the OP, I've seen stories like this several times, usually with coins falling:

Cui80LOl.jpg
4evIJza.jpg


When I was working in Papua New Guinea, with Australian devices, the prongs were insulated for that 1/4". Good idea.

I was taught to always install a sideways 120V receptacle with the neutral on top, just in case. Don't know if it's NEC or not, but I've always done it, and I do notice that I often see others that aren't.
 
When I have a new kitten or puppy I confine them to an area if they can't be supervised. I unplug anything with a cord on it and remove it from the area so they can't chew on it. If I do catch them trying to chew on something dangerous, they get yelled at and usually they are smart enough, after a few times to understand that that behavior is unacceptable.

Are you trying to tell me that parents can't take care of their children and their kids aren't as smart as a dog or cat? :blink:

-Hal
 
MAC702 said:
I was taught to always install a sideways 120V receptacle with the neutral on top, just in case. Don't know if it's NEC or not, but I've always done it, and I do notice that I often see others that aren't.
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Which means your ground prong is always set either up or to the left, then... or have I forgotten the rule???
 
Not in the NEC... Just as there in no rule in the NEC over making sure your screws are always straight up and down when you finish installing the covers...

But some of my old bosses... They had their rules... And if I wanted all my pay at end of the week
 
MAC702 said:
And tick off every other adult who knows what they're doing.

As for the OP, I've seen stories like this several times, usually with coins falling:

Cui80LOl.jpg
4evIJza.jpg


When I was working in Papua New Guinea, with Australian devices, the prongs were insulated for that 1/4". Good idea.

I was taught to always install a sideways 120V receptacle with the neutral on top, just in case. Don't know if it's NEC or not, but I've always done it, and I do notice that I often see others that aren't.
Click to expand...

Wicked images... As for receptacle orientation, it is not a code requirement.

Electricity is not 100% safe. Even if you put in twist lock plugs, and armored cable on your Christmas tree lights, somebody is going to trip over that impregnable set of lights and fall down a stairwell, or a bulb will break, setting that dry Pine Christmas tree on fire.

As for partially inserted plugs being a hazard, I am willing to bet the far greater hazard is ones barely making contact and creating hot spots and fires with cord and plug equipment.

Tamper-resistant is not the same as tamper-proof. I know this is not much comfort when your 10 month old grandson is involved, however I am with Hal on this one. While an infant or toddler could stick a finger onto a partially inserted plug, I don't see it being a threat.

Moving the charger to an area where the kid does not play seems to be the easiest solution.
 
hbiss said:
Are you trying to tell me that parents can't take care of their children and their kids aren't as smart as a dog or cat? :blink:
Click to expand...

I've known dogs that were smarter than some children I have known. :D
 
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JFletcher said:
...or a bulb will break, setting that dry Pine Christmas tree on fire.
Click to expand...
In a related story...

At a Mardi Gras party I went to many years ago the host had a fire pit set up in his back yard. MG was in March that year, and the guy still hadn't taken down his Christmas tree, so he figured that it would be a cool thing to do to burn it in the fire pit.

He took the ornaments off the tree and brought it outside. He set it standing in the pit and set a butane lighter to a bottom branch. It lit readily, so readily that after a couple of seconds it went WHUMP! and sent a fireball 20 feet in the air. It was so hot that everyone sitting around the fire pit had to vacate their places in a big hurry.

The guy was stunned. "THAT was in my living room!!??"
 
ggunn said:
In a related story...

At a Mardi Gras party I went to many years ago the host had a fire pit set up in his back yard. MG was in March that year, and the guy still hadn't taken down his Christmas tree, so he figured that it would be a cool thing to do to burn it in the fire pit.

He took the ornaments off the tree and brought it outside. He set it standing in the pit and set a butane lighter to a bottom branch. It lit readily, so readily that after a couple of seconds it went WHUMP! and sent a fireball 20 feet in the air. It was so hot that everyone sitting around the fire pit had to vacate their places in a big hurry.

The guy was stunned. "THAT was in my living room!!??"
Click to expand...

There is a YouTube video or two showing how fast a dry Christmas tree will go up in flames. It is so fast and violent that I seriously doubt a sprinkler system would be able to suppress the fire. Keeping them watered makes an enormous difference.

I'm surprised the fireball only went 20 ft. In the videos I have seen, the tree creates a torch and within 30 seconds, other objects in the room, including the carpet, reach their autoignition temperature and spontaneously combust/flashover. That's probably close to 600 *F at the floor.

Back on topic, wouldn't something like a hospital-grade receptacle work? I thought they had to have a minimum pull tension to keep cords from accidentally coming unplugged, something in the neighborhood of 30 lb? It doesn't solve the problem of partially inserted plugs being a hazard to curious little fingers, though it seems to me it would further minimize the risk of touching energized parts.
 
Personally, I wish the UL would require manufacturers to insulate the plugs for that little bit needed to keep the live energy away from fingers or such... if they can require TR they can require the insulation..lol... they already require the grounding part and the keyed plugs to keep the plug going in only one way..lol..
 
Adamjamma said:
Personally, I wish the UL would require manufacturers to insulate the plugs for that little bit needed to keep the live energy away from fingers or such... if they can require TR they can require the insulation..lol... they already require the grounding part and the keyed plugs to keep the plug going in only one way..lol..
Click to expand...

I agree, this is the only major deficiency of the North American plug.
 
Maybe we should all install with ground pin up?

Maybe we should consider the wisdom of mounting receptacles at 18"? Always hated them ending up behind beds, nightstands, dressers, etc. Don't know code but would it be "illegal" to put them 48" AFF? Not like they are many things that need to sit on the floor.
 
MAC702 said:
And tick off every other adult who knows what they're doing.

As for the OP, I've seen stories like this several times, usually with coins falling:

Cui80LOl.jpg
4evIJza.jpg


When I was working in Papua New Guinea, with Australian devices, the prongs were insulated for that 1/4". Good idea.

I was taught to always install a sideways 120V receptacle with the neutral on top, just in case. Don't know if it's NEC or not, but I've always done it, and I do notice that I often see others that aren't.
Click to expand...


This is the main reason why people install ground up on receptacles
 
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