@TechConnectify It's also used for RV hookups, and to connect larger portable generators for household backup power. Delivering 240 VAC @ 50A it can provide up to 12 kW.
@TechConnectify To be fair, the 10-50 plug is that big for the current, not the voltage. There’s no reason a 15 amp version of this couldn’t be closer to the size of the smaller plug if we wanted it to be. But, typically, in the US, 240v means higher current. So need those chonky plugs.
@TechConnectify As a Brit I find that on a par with an old BS1363 plug without the shrouded pins (which, admittedly, I replace whenever I encounter one).
But since it's the functional equivalent of a 16A IEC 60309 Ceeform connector (ie. one that's rarely unplugged, and usually by people who know what they're doing) that doesn't bother me as much.
It looks like it does a decent job of staying attached to the socket, at least.
@TechConnectify Obligatory unsolicited remainder that in Europe we have much better 380/400 Volt, 32 Amp, 12 kW, 3 phase, 5 pin plugs and sockets. For more info, search for IEC 60309 or for EN 60309.
@TechConnectify that's the standard three-phase/280V plug in canada.
if you want to see a real big scary plug, check out the 300A SOPEX cable that professional audio sometimes use for the biggest concerts.
two-prongs have always been a bad idea, but especially before they were polarised, and made of cheap brass. you could plug something in the wrong way and electrify the chassis.
UK electricals are designed way better and safer, in many ways.
@TechConnectify I have always found them a little unsettling... even more so once I had a toddler in the house... any plug is unsettling then. Yet to my knowlege, none of our kids have ever been shocked. And we have the new safety plugs now... not even the adults can put things in them!
@TechConnectify@Mobile_dom most of the stuff with this sort of current carrying capacity in the UK would be hard wired (oven, hob, EVSE, electric shower). Portable high current is less common in a home, but it would be IEC if it is (design prevents fingers on contacts), and would require a mechanical interlock in non-industrial settings (connector can't be made live until a cable is firmly inserted).
Dryers can operate on a standard 13a plug, nothing special needed.
@TechConnectify i mean i guess, i just meant that the plug being so huge and those terminals being so exposed makes me think how easy it would be to make dodgy connections with bent wire and shit "temporarily" compared to the 240v32a (7.4kw) plugs we have here which are hugely overbuilt
@Mobile_dom eh, I figure the sort of person who is willing to do that is not going to be stopped by a better plug. They'll just take the receptacle apart
Oh most definitely, these things are chonkers but must be handled with care. Preferably if you need to clean out your electric stove/range, it's always safest to turn it off at the breaker temporarily.... but you know, we're all lazy & don't do that, so one really needs to be careful.
@TechConnectify I’m actually much more worried about 240v euro plugs that can pull over 2k watts, and some of them hooked up to thinner cords than my coffee machine! 😱
I saw a melted portable a/c receptacle from someone in Europe, the amount of current that portable unit drew was comparable to my central system which has 6/8 awg wiring, but on a wall plug!
@TechConnectify At least that's the grounded version. Most of my old places have still used the three pin style. I love touching ungrounded appliances!
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