6 Feb
2011
6 Feb
'11
8:36 a.m.
On 5 Feb 2011 at 16:48, Andy Holt wrote:
One of my madder inventions is the 'remote control lampholder'. No, I
don't mean one with a remote control switch. I mean one that can eject
the bulb under remote cotnrol. And yes, I've designed an ES version too
;-) I really must make them sometime.
I am not that surprised given that at some time
(in the past 20
years?) ES lampholders appear to have become legal in the UK (I'm sure
they never used to be) and they have a large _easily_touched_ metal
part that could randomly be connected to live or neutral (I suspect
that if Tony found himself having to install one he would make sure
that the screw part went to neutral - I'm also sure that most
installers don't bother)
I liked the way the bayonet lamp sockets were used in British comedy
skits, with the bulb popping out.
In the US, there are still plenty of table lamps with non-polarized
plugs wandering around. I just checked the table lamp by my bedise
and it's not polarized--and it has exposed metal parts.
Oh well :-(
In fact, the ES socket came before the US 2-blade receptacle.
Residential electrical service initially was intended for lighting
only, so early appliances were screwed into lamp sockets. I used to
have one of the old connectors in my hellbox--two wires coming out of
an Edison screw plug. I know I've got a couple of bakelite adapters
I've got some rperints of old (1910-ish) American books which show the
wall outlets as being ES sockets. The plug was somewhat later made in 2
parts, a part that screwed into the socket and a part tht carried the
cable with 2 flat plats to fit into the first part. This esems to have
developed into the normal US mains socket of today.
that are inserted between a lamp and the socket and
provide two
ungrounded receptacles, along with a pull-chain type of on-off
control for the lamp. I don't know if they are still sold.
I am pretty sure I have some of those for BC lampholders. No I don't use
them. I also have some BC plugs which let you run non-earthed appliances
from UK lampholders. I've seen those on sale in the
last year or so.
Again, I don't use them...
My house was constructed in 1980 and the lighting
circuits (15A) are
separate from those of the wall receptacles (20A). Twenty years
earlier that was not the practice in residential construction.
Ovr here, power and lighting circuits have been separate for a very long
time. Our lighting circutis are typically fused at 5A, power circuits are
'ring main' ones, fused at 30A.
-tony