On 22/06/10 21:15, Daddy Tadpole wrote:
Assuming you're in the UK, your basic requirement is a standard 13 amp
socket strip with a 30 milliamp earth leackage circuit breaker.

Some electric garden tools are double insulated rather than earthed.

I live in
a foreign place, but without getting technical or argumentative, the
explanation is that the traditional UK wiring rules don't provide enough
protection for outside sockets or appliances. An ordinary householder
should have no need for plugs other than the normal 13 amp ones.

The mains plug and socket used by caravans is a European standard.


Advice and regulations are based on statistics (dead child count, etc),
which are gathered internationally but don't seem to be adequately
publicised. Rules and regulations go down better if the reasons are
provided.

Nowadays all mains sockets have shutters, which are particularly
effective with the UK design of plug. What I can't understand is the
regulatory insistence on additional childproofing devices.

Dutch mains sockets do not have shutters.