Originally Posted by
yellowtriumph
In the UK, I think you're supposed to fit round pin socket outlets to use with floor and wall lights etc if you want to operate them in conjunction with a conventional wall switch (5 amp max?)
In the US, most circuits are 15 amp. There are some 25 amp circuits, but most of the kit you can buy which takes that kind of power will also plug into a 15 amp outlet.
It's a dog's breakfast, in other words.
Normally, everything's pretty abuse tolerant, meaning you can usually draw enough to trip a 15 amp breaker without heating the wiring up too much.
Unless, of course, you've failed to tighten the screws on the outlets and switches.
Then you build up a lot of heat.
One thing that bothers me is that it's perfectly okay to use plastic junction boxes. They supposedly won't support flame once the source of heat is removed, but I've tossed a few of those blue bastards into a fire on occasion, and they'll burn like candles as long as they're hot enough.
Like when there's a pair of arcing wires inside, creating little pulses of sun-hot copper and brass plasma.
Go figure.
I've been thinking about this, too. Some of these little power supplies -- chargers, adapters, so forth -- have a lot of leakage from the mains to, say, the shell of a USB port. This is mostly true of inexpensive replacement units.
You could fry yourself just by using one and standing on a wet surface, or touching something with a good ground. Like a faucet, or the water in your bathtub.
Be careful!