Beware, the bright orange camping snake! Forums

peejay · Campsite DB Admin

Now i've got your attention,

On the few occasions that i use electricity (on CC sites to get my moneys worth and in very cold weather) i do what most other people do, get the orange snake out, uncoil it and plug in. Then when leaving, spend ages coiling it up neatly around my old black & decker cable holder (found in skip).
A few questions spring to mind.....

Why does the cable have to be orange? It would look less conspicuous in the camping environment if it was black.

Why does it have to be so thick? Would a thinner cable be sufficinet to carry the power safely? I rarely use alot of power like caravanners seem to and it would make it easier to coil up.

On the continent, everyone seems to use thinner black cable which is easily managed using a retractable drum. You pull out as much as you need then wind it back in when finished, simple.
Why aren't these used in this country? I'm thinking of getting one when we go over in June.

I am aware of the reported dangers about coiled electrical cable overheating etc, but is this really corect when a low current is used? I haven't seen any continentals burst into flames yet, perhaps us brits are a bit over obsessed with safety.
Surely thousands of continental campers can't be wrong, especially those practical Germans, or are they?

Whaddyathink?

pete.

ps, was going to submit this to MMM for possible publication but you get a much quicker and more interesting reply here!

Maxonian

[quote:1d2b1d8d09]Why does the cable have to be orange? It would look less conspicuous in the camping environment if it was black[/quote:1d2b1d8d09]
Exactly - wouldn't fancy cutting the grass with a lot of inconspicuous black cables snaking all over the place.

[quote:1d2b1d8d09]Why does it have to be so thick?[/quote:1d2b1d8d09]
Thick cable = heavy conductors = less voltage drop at 16A (and hence overheating) on 25m+ cables

[quote:1d2b1d8d09]On the continent, everyone seems to use thinner black cable [/quote:1d2b1d8d09]
Because most foreign sites do not offer 16A supplies. Lower current = less voltage drop = thinner cable.

EOR

[quote:b7973a5e9c="peejay"] Why does the cable have to be orange? It would look less conspicuous in the camping environment if it was black. [/quote:b7973a5e9c]You can have it black, white yellow or orange, and for a price purple!
Basically if your going to paint industrial electrical equipment it has to be orange. Black is generally used in mucky conditions, where as white in domestic conditions, Yellow for 110 volt systems on building sites and purple is generally for extreme cold conditions
[quote:b7973a5e9c="peejay"]Why does it have to be so thick? Would a thinner cable be sufficient to carry the power safely? I rarely use alot of power like caravanners seem to and it would make it easier to coil up. [/quote:b7973a5e9c] The smaller the cable, the less current the cable can carry, or it will get warm or even hot to the point of melting under extreme overload conditions. Another factor of undersized cables is voltage drop. The electrical installations on some sites are generally installed to a cost rather than meeting a specification. So if they to have used undersized cable, you and others are all drawing current, the end result can be a voltage of 200volts or less. So to minimise the voltage drop its essential to have a decent/correctly sized supply cable.
[quote:b7973a5e9c="peejay"]On the continent, everyone seems to use thinner black cable which is easily managed using a retractable drum. You pull out as much as you need then wind it back in when finished, simple.
Why aren't these used in this country? I'm thinking of getting one when we go over in June. [/quote:b7973a5e9c] You can use a retractable drum, or any drum for that matter, however leaving it coiled up whilst in use will generate heat very easily and cause damage and even a fire, so its advisable to unwind the whole drum.
[quote:b7973a5e9c="peejay"]I am aware of the reported dangers about coiled electrical cable overheating etc, but is this really correct when a low current is used? I haven't seen any continentals burst into flames yet, perhaps us brits are a bit over obsessed with safety.
Surely thousands of continental campers can't be wrong, especially those practical Germans, or are they?[/quote:b7973a5e9c] Everyone’s perception is different. I had a visitor the other week who I told to reverse down my drive (due to extensive excavations etc). When he finally got to me, he thought I meant about ten yards (as most peoples drives) so was rather shocked to have to reverse quarter of a mile.
So a little current flow, with many turns on a drum which multiplies the emf within the drum causes heat, so are we talking 100watts or 2,000 watts? Either way play safe and unwind.
____________________________________________________
[b:b7973a5 e9c]Steve
aka A very wild....wild camper[/b:b7973a5e9c]
.
[URL=http://tinyurl.co.uk/lpak]Click here for my van website![/URL]
.
[img:b7973a5e9c]http://www.motorhomefacts.com/alb ums/PostingPhotos-1/VanThumbnail01.gif[/img:b7973a5e9c]

[i:b7973a5e9c]I do like a bit of feed back to my posts please[/i:b7973a5e9c]
______________________________________________ ______

peejay · Campsite DB Admin

Thanks for the prompt replies guys. Perhaps these euro set ups are not such a good idea after all.

What about the continental sites that do have higher amps? Are we talking a serious electrical fire here just waiting to happen? Also, these sites, i think, in the main have the higher rating for winter camping, would the cold conditions cancel the risk out?

What happens when europeans come over here and plug into our higher 'amped' supplies, i wonder if wardens are aware of the potential hazards, and advise accordingly?

pete

keng

Hi Pete,

Without too much of a long winded story, I've seen the result of a coiled extension cable Shocked

. My brother has a car valet machine and normally just uncoiled enough cable from the drum to stretch to cars he was cleaning.

I was doing some welding on my car trailer and used the extension cable to power an angle grinder, uncoiled it to the point where it stopped but still plenty of cable, gave it a tug and.....melted plastic, bare wires.....clean underwear required, at the thought of what could have happened Exclamation

peedee

[quote="peejay"]
Why does it have to be so thick? pete.

Thinner is also cheaper, dunno what the comparitive insulation thickness is but thicker may also be more robust and less likely to become damaged and therefore safer.

peedee

Anonymous

Yes, theoretically speaking higher loads can be applied in very cold conditions but this is a very unwise route to follow, experiment have been going on for a long time using encapsulated cables at very subzero temperatures with some very surprising results, but that’s not for us.

I carry two cables, one standard cable for normal use and another heavier one if an extension is needed, using the heavier one at the source when needed

I don’t uncoil my cable, when a short run is needed I spread it out like a deck of cards so the air can get through it and store under the M/H, this way I slide my hand through it and pick it up in one go, not the right thing to do but it works

Ken S.

BarryandSue

Good question, PeeJay, and some really excellent, clear, informative replies. Thanks, folks, I've learned a lot.

I knew that a coiled lead creates heat, so I wondered just how much heat is generated on my set-up (powering battery charger only; no 240v appliances). I couldn't detect any heat at all. I then plugged a 3kw fan heater in and I was lucky to test for heat when I did - it was bloody hot!! Since then, I've applied good sense to the issue. I always uncoil completely, unless I'm just battery charging. In the light of what others have posted, I might just check again.

What an excellent site this is, isn't it? Thanks again.

Barry

twooks

[quote:397c1e320f="peejay"]Now i've got your attention,

Whaddyathink?

pete.

ps, was going to submit this to MMM for possible publication but you get a much quicker and more interesting reply here![/quote:397c1e320f]

quite right - much quicker and far more entertaining!

as for winding up the cable - you don't have to have the 25 metre version, we have a 10 metre cable - and 9 times out of 10 have no problem at all - on the 10th don't plug in [and if it happened to be a CC site would probably insist they gave us a more convenient pitch. Razz

or I'd cry all over their posh sweatshirts]

Cool

ps alright it's probably more like 8 times out of 10