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Appliance Ratings and 13A plug tops

statter
Hello

I looked last year for portable heating and not surprisingly there was little above 2.5kW rating.  All the old 3kW stuff has long gone.

I was surprised however to find a wide range of steam irons rated at 3000W and even 3100W.  (that's almost 13.5A at 230V).  I realise of course that irons are likely to be much more intermittent than heating and that 13.5A is very unlikely to blow a 13A fuse but it cant be good practice to overload plug/ socket like this.  A decent ironing session can still be hours ……   OFC at 240v its under 13A but 230v has been the standard for ages now.   In my experience many socket/ plug combinations are marginal approaching their rating so deliberate overloading will only make matters worse over time.  I would have thought that these appliances wouldn't qualify for CE marking and couldn't be sold legally?  Does anyone know if there is a BS or EN for small appliances?


Thanks


Peter
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    Whilst the exact current of appliances may seem very important, it is as usual not quite as it appears. There is zero chance of the 13A fuse blowing on a 3.1kW appliance because of two factors:

    1: the fusing factor which is not instant at 13A but much more like 17 or 18 A in one hour, there are examples in BS7671 graphs or manufacturers sites.

    2: Irons are not continuously heated, the appliance only draws 3.1 kW when the thermostat is closed, at other times it draws zero. These two times are averaged to give the fusing time of the fuse, and at maybe 14 or 15A that time is very long, more likely never unless you remove heat a lot quicker than ironing your shirt! There is also the point made by Andy above about supply voltage and the actual power used.


    I see no particular reason why the device should not be CE marked, it is obviously suitable to use at this rating. BS1363 does not say that the peak current for a plug may only be 13A, it gives this as the nominal rating. Unfortunately all of this is very badly understood by the trade, and it causes confusion in many discussions here.
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  • 0
    Whilst the exact current of appliances may seem very important, it is as usual not quite as it appears. There is zero chance of the 13A fuse blowing on a 3.1kW appliance because of two factors:

    1: the fusing factor which is not instant at 13A but much more like 17 or 18 A in one hour, there are examples in BS7671 graphs or manufacturers sites.

    2: Irons are not continuously heated, the appliance only draws 3.1 kW when the thermostat is closed, at other times it draws zero. These two times are averaged to give the fusing time of the fuse, and at maybe 14 or 15A that time is very long, more likely never unless you remove heat a lot quicker than ironing your shirt! There is also the point made by Andy above about supply voltage and the actual power used.


    I see no particular reason why the device should not be CE marked, it is obviously suitable to use at this rating. BS1363 does not say that the peak current for a plug may only be 13A, it gives this as the nominal rating. Unfortunately all of this is very badly understood by the trade, and it causes confusion in many discussions here.
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