Cleaning pins on UK mains plugs

[Piotr Makley]

I am in the UK and was wondering if there was any merit in cleaning
the brass pins of my three-pin mains plugs.

In many cases the pins look tarnished and I must have had some of
these plugs for 10 or 20 years.

The plugs all seem to work well and they do not heat up. But I
thought it would be good practise to sandpaper the pins so they
were shiny.

Am I wasting my time?

 

[Bob Eager]

I am in the UK and was wondering if there was any merit in cleaning
the brass pins of my three-pin mains plugs.

In many cases the pins look tarnished and I must have had some of
these plugs for 10 or 20 years.

The plugs all seem to work well and they do not heat up. But I
thought it would be good practise to sandpaper the pins so they
were shiny.

Am I wasting my time?

In this group (uk.comp.vendors), probably...it's massively OT. Perhaps
you meant to post to uk.d-i-y ?

 

[Alun Harford]

I am in the UK and was wondering if there was any merit in cleaning
the brass pins of my three-pin mains plugs.

In many cases the pins look tarnished and I must have had some of
these plugs for 10 or 20 years.

The plugs all seem to work well and they do not heat up. But I
thought it would be good practise to sandpaper the pins so they
were shiny.

Am I wasting my time?

Yes.

Alun Harford

 

[Paul]

The plugs all seem to work well and they do not heat up. But I
thought it would be good practise to sandpaper the pins so they
were shiny.

Am I wasting my time?

ROFL !!

Yeah I reckon you should sandpaper them. It's extremely important that they
look good and fit in with the decor of the home whilst they're plugged in. !
LOL

 

[Trev]

I am in the UK and was wondering if there was any merit in cleaning
the brass pins of my three-pin mains plugs.

In many cases the pins look tarnished and I must have had some of
these plugs for 10 or 20 years.

The plugs all seem to work well and they do not heat up. But I
thought it would be good practise to sandpaper the pins so they
were shiny.

Am I wasting my time?

Unless you finish off with Brasso yes. and don't forget to do the wire
inside too

 

[Alex Fraser]

I am in the UK and was wondering if there was any merit in cleaning
the brass pins of my three-pin mains plugs. [snip]
Am I wasting my time?

Unless you finish off with Brasso yes. and don't forget to do the wire
inside too

One strand at a time, for optimal effect.

Alex

 

[Ken Weitzel]

I am in the UK and was wondering if there was any merit in cleaning
the brass pins of my three-pin mains plugs.

[snip]

Am I wasting my time?

Unless you finish off with Brasso yes. and don't forget to do the wire
inside too

One strand at a time, for optimal effect.

Alex

Yes. Shininess reflects electricity, sort of like a
mirror. Hence for maximum energy efficiency once must
use highly polished wire.

And no bends in the wire, either. No slowing down for
the corners no stop or yield signs needed.

Ken

 

[[email protected]]

| I am in the UK and was wondering if there was any merit in cleaning
| the brass pins of my three-pin mains plugs.
|
| In many cases the pins look tarnished and I must have had some of
| these plugs for 10 or 20 years.
|
| The plugs all seem to work well and they do not heat up. But I
| thought it would be good practise to sandpaper the pins so they
| were shiny.
|
| Am I wasting my time?

Why not just buy a shiny new plug and replace the old tarnished one?

 

[Bob Eager]

And no bends in the wire, either. No slowing down for
the corners no stop or yield signs needed.

And fit the sockets near the ceiling, because gravity will help the
leccy come down the cable. (it gets pumped up there by those miniature
pumps they call MCBs).

 

[Devil's Advocate]

Unless you finish off with Brasso yes. and don't forget to do the wire
inside too

But don't forget, if they are very clean and make better contact - they will
use more electricity, which in turn will lead to global warming. You have
been warned and if we are flooded in the UK we will lay the blame at your
door.

 

[Malev]

I am in the UK and was wondering if there was any merit in cleaning
the brass pins of my three-pin mains plugs.

In many cases the pins look tarnished and I must have had some of
these plugs for 10 or 20 years.

The plugs all seem to work well and they do not heat up. But I
thought it would be good practise to sandpaper the pins so they
were shiny.

Am I wasting my time?

Under the terms of The Clean Pins Act 2003, you are legally obliged to ensure
that all 3 pins are exempt of any deposit whatsoever and shine to BS 6907
specifications.
The newly formed Pin Inspection Special Squad (P.I.S.S.) has power of entry to
inspect all your plugs, whether connected to the mains or not.

 

[Pool Champ]

Under the terms of The Clean Pins Act 2003, you are legally obliged to ensure
that all 3 pins are exempt of any deposit whatsoever and shine to BS 6907
specifications.
The newly formed Pin Inspection Special Squad (P.I.S.S.) has power of entry to
inspect all your plugs, whether connected to the mains or not.

And further more the Pin Inspection Special Squad have the power to remove
offending items to be safely disposed of. This is known as taking the
P.I.S.S.

PC

 

[Kevin Lawton]

| On Sun, 25 Apr 2004 19:18:44 +0100, Piotr Makley <[email protected]>
| wrote:
|
|| I am in the UK and was wondering if there was any merit in cleaning
|| the brass pins of my three-pin mains plugs.
||
|| In many cases the pins look tarnished and I must have had some of
|| these plugs for 10 or 20 years.
||
|| The plugs all seem to work well and they do not heat up. But I
|| thought it would be good practise to sandpaper the pins so they
|| were shiny.
||
|| Am I wasting my time?
|
| Under the terms of The Clean Pins Act 2003, you are legally obliged
| to ensure that all 3 pins are exempt of any deposit whatsoever and
| shine to BS 6907 specifications.
| The newly formed Pin Inspection Special Squad (P.I.S.S.) has power of
| entry to inspect all your plugs, whether connected to the mains or
| not.

But doesn't BS 6907 specify leakage tests for condoms ?
You will also need to make sure that your mains plugs comply with the
Specification for Home Insulation Testing (S.H.I.T.) white paper, and that
your mains sockets comply with the Connection Receptacle Accessability
Parameters (C.R.A.P.).
Kevin.

 

[G. Morgan]

But doesn't BS 6907 specify leakage tests for condoms ?
You will also need to make sure that your mains plugs comply with the
Specification for Home Insulation Testing (S.H.I.T.) white paper, and that
your mains sockets comply with the Connection Receptacle Accessability
Parameters (C.R.A.P.).

Ahhh .. British humour (notice the "u") .. how refreshing

 

[Franc Zabkar]

I am in the UK and was wondering if there was any merit in cleaning
the brass pins of my three-pin mains plugs.

In many cases the pins look tarnished and I must have had some of
these plugs for 10 or 20 years.

The plugs all seem to work well and they do not heat up. But I
thought it would be good practise to sandpaper the pins so they
were shiny.

Am I wasting my time?

Not long ago my brother's [very old] rented flat could have burnt down
had he not been at home. The power plug for his washing machine
overheated in the GPO, causing both to melt and catch fire. The
problem was most likely due to fatigued, high resistance connections.
Had he been able to inspect the mains plug prior to the incident, he
may have noticed some tell-tale darkening of the pins. Some of my
cables have shown similar signs. I have also had a 20A timer melt in
the fusebox while supplying its rated load. Fortunately it went OC and
nothing else was damaged. Anyway, I've just made my coffee and noticed
that the kettle's detachable cord is arcing. Time to change it ... and
the kettle, perhaps.


- Franc Zabkar

 

[Stan]

}I am in the UK and was wondering if there was any merit in cleaning
}the brass pins of my three-pin mains plugs.
}
}In many cases the pins look tarnished and I must have had some of
}these plugs for 10 or 20 years.
}
}The plugs all seem to work well and they do not heat up. But I
}thought it would be good practise to sandpaper the pins so they
}were shiny.
}
}Am I wasting my time?

Of course not!!! although you may be wasting the time of all of the people
in all of the newsgroups you cross-posted to.

Polish those pins super-bright, gold-plate them (and all the other plugs
in your home), and then, for extra longevity, give them several coats of
spray-on laquer to prevent tarnishing!

HTH. HAND.

Stan.

 

[Peter Rossiter]

}I am in the UK and was wondering if there was any merit in
cleaning }the brass pins of my three-pin mains plugs.
}
}In many cases the pins look tarnished and I must have had some
of }these plugs for 10 or 20 years.
}
}The plugs all seem to work well and they do not heat up. But
I }thought it would be good practise to sandpaper the pins so
they }were shiny.
}
}Am I wasting my time?

Of course not!!! although you may be wasting the time of all
of the people in all of the newsgroups you cross-posted to.

Polish those pins super-bright, gold-plate them (and all the
other plugs in your home), and then, for extra longevity, give
them several coats of spray-on laquer to prevent tarnishing!

The audiophile/hi-fi community know the importance of clean
connections but I do not now if it affects PCs or other
applicances.

 

[Peter Rossiter]

I am in the UK and was wondering if there was any merit in
cleaning the brass pins of my three-pin mains plugs.

In many cases the pins look tarnished and I must have had some
of these plugs for 10 or 20 years.

The plugs all seem to work well and they do not heat up. But
I thought it would be good practise to sandpaper the pins so
they were shiny.

Am I wasting my time?

Not long ago my brother's [very old] rented flat could have
burnt down had he not been at home. The power plug for his
washing machine overheated in the GPO, causing both to melt
and catch fire. The problem was most likely due to fatigued,
high resistance connections. Had he been able to inspect the
mains plug prior to the incident, he may have noticed some
tell-tale darkening of the pins. Some of my cables have shown
similar signs. I have also had a 20A timer melt in the fusebox
while supplying its rated load. Fortunately it went OC and
nothing else was damaged. Anyway, I've just made my coffee and
noticed that the kettle's detachable cord is arcing. Time to
change it ... and the kettle, perhaps.

I wonder how much resistence there is in a tarnished brass pin
compared to a shiny one.

Can't imagine the tarnish has no resistence at all.

 

[exray]

The audiophile/hi-fi community know the importance of clean
connections but I do not now if it affects PCs or other
applicances.

Ah, yes. They sell cord sets in that circle than can cost over US$1000.
And some of them aren't even cryogenically treated!

-VN

 

[Rob S]

-I am in the UK and was wondering if there was any merit in cleaning
-the brass pins of my three-pin mains plugs.
-

Absolutely! It's vital, however to polish the Live and Neutral to the same
degree, else a small imbalance in the Fermi velocities could cause everyone in
China to jump up and down at the same time.

And whilst you're there, putting earth on the Earth pin will increase its
effectiveness.



-Rob
robatwork at mail dot com