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Hazards of Electricity

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14 views3 pages

Hazards of Electricity

Uploaded by

Pri Ngie
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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1

HAZARDS OF ELECTRICITY

i) Damaged Insulation: This can result in a short circuit if wires come into contact or a person
can be shocked if he/she touches the bare wires.
ii) Overheating of Cables: The cables can catch fire.
iii) Damp Conditions: Water is a good conductor. It is dangerous to hold sockets with wet
hands.
iv) Overloading of Sockets: This result in the cables overheating because the current becomes
high.

SAFE USE OF ELECTRICITY

The Fuse

It is a short piece of thin wire which overheats and melts if too much current flows through it. Fuses
have different fuse ratings e.g. 3A, 5A, 10A, 13A and the value tells the current needed to blow the fuse.
The fuse value should always be indicated on the fuse.

The Earth wire

It is a safety wire. It connects any metal part of an appliance. If a fault develops the metal case will
become live and can shock.

Double Insulation

Some appliances like vacuum cleaners and hair dryers have an insulating plastic casing covering metal
parts inside. As the cable is insulated, this is double insulation.
2

THE THREE PIN PLUG

When wiring a three pin plug, the wires should be connected to the correct terminals.

The live wire: It is brown/red. It is alternating (-) and (+) as current passes i.e. current changes direction
50 times in a second (50Hz).

Neutral wire: It is blue. It is earthed at the power station. Current passes through the wire but voltage is
zero. If you accidentally touch the neutral wire you should not get a shock.

The Earth wire: It is yellow/green

SWITCHES AND FUSES

These are always in the live wire. If they were in the neutral, light switches and power sockets would be
‘live’ when switches were ‘off’ or fuses ‘blown’. You could get a shock for example when you touch the
element of a heater when it was off.

SAFETY FIRST

If an electric fault happens to the appliance

i) First switch off at the socket


ii) Pull out the plug
3

CIRCUITS IN PARALLEL

Every circuit in the house is connected in parallel.

The advantages are:

 Each appliance gets the maximum full voltage from the supply.
 Each can be switched on and off independently.
 Each appliance is connected to a circuit with a recommended fuse e.g. 5A for lights, 15A for
immersion heater, 30A for ring main circuit and 30A for a cooker.

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