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Comment by GekkePrutser | Hacker News Reader

I'm just so surprised the outlet supplies power at all when the prongs aren't fully in. With most EU plugs and sockets this couldn't happen because either the prongs are plastic coated with metal tips (UK plug or ungrounded Europlug) or the sockets are so deep nothing is exposed by the time contact is made (German Schuko).

If there can be power on prongs you can touch it's poorly designed imo. Of course I know charging an entire country's plugs isn't an overnight thing but it should be something under consideration.

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> If there can be power on prongs you can touch it's poorly designed imo.

Agreed.

> Of course I know charging an entire country's plugs isn't an overnight thing but it should be something under consideration.

We did that here in Brazil not long ago (and Brazil is a huge country). We changed from a mix of different plug types (a flat blade plug similar to unpolarised NEMA 1-15, a plug with round pins somewhat like CEE 7, or the newer USA plug NEMA 5-15) and sockets (older sockets accepting only flat or only round pins, newer sockets being able to accept either, and even newer sockets also accepting things like polarised NEMA 1-15 and/or NEMA 5-15 together or not with the round pins) to a newer design with round pins and a recessed socket (NBR 14136, based on IEC 60906-1). With this new design, unless you're using an adapter to an older plug, whenever the pins are exposed they're not live. All new installations and devices are required to use this new standard; adapters are available for old devices and old sockets.

> Of course I know charging an entire country's plugs isn't an overnight thing but it should be something under consideration.

Of course changing an entire country from the (slightly more) dangerous 230 to the much safer 110 should be considered as well...

In reality the plugs and also the voltage don't seem to be major safety issues.

(Also fwiw US plugs are generally TRRs now which do prevent the more common situations.)

Uh, 110 was a mistake for efficiency reasons and 230 is basically no more dangerous, since 110 is already lethal. If the US changes all our plugs, we should change to 230 for everything too.

But 110 helps drum up the copper mining and wire making business!

Why not 480 by that logic?

At 480, you get the new hazard of arc flashes.

2 or 3-phase is good question as well.

230V on average is enough and if more is needed adding phases is better option.

> (slightly more) dangerous 230 to the much safer 110 should be considered as well...

Thanks, I prefer my kettle to boil in 3 minutes, not 30.

And 110V is still way more than any "non-lethal" voltage.

Considering what the most deaths from the contact with the electricity is the result of doing something extremely stupid - I don't think it would make a noticeable difference. More so, knowing people it would make more deaths, because "it is safer now!".

We have 240v appliances in the US. We have split phase power where we have 120v going to most things and 240v circuits run specifically to higher power devices. We just don’t put them in bedrooms and living rooms.

I have a 110 volt electric kettle, and it does not take 30 minutes to boil.

TRR won’t help if you deliberately half insert a plug and toss a penny in as suggested in this “challenge”. Also fwiw US residential power is 120/240V. Actual voltage can vary but should be within +/-5%.

UK voltage is 230 which is what I was referencing

> Of course changing an entire country from the (slightly more) dangerous 230 to the much safer 110 should be considered as well...

Eh. So, both are only dangerous where the electrical installation is defective.

At that point they're differently dangerous. If someone is able to make contact with live (via for instance an exposed wire or defective plug design) then 230V is a bit more dangerous. If the wiring is marginal, then 110V is more dangerous (in that, with reasonable household wiring, it will heat more and is more liable to cause a fire).

Given that I have a modern socket type (BS1363) I'm more comfortable with 230V, as, if there's botched wiring somewhere I can't see, it's somewhat less likely to be fire-hazard-y.

Schuko plugs can have exposed metal if they're of poor design. Some have plastic sleeves near the base, some don't.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Schuko#/media/File:Schuko_plug...

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