mbbowie
Active member
What do the "experienced" 5vr's do to keep that 50 amp cord controlled?
brmike said:our new 2012 Stone Ridge 38fl came with a powered cord reel. It freewheels when you pull the cord out. You pull out only as much as you need.
I am not sure the quality of the cord has anything to do with how hard it is to roll up. I think the temperature of the cord has more to do with it. If I roll my cord up first thing in the morning when it is cold it is very difficult to roll up. If it lays in the sun all day then it is very easy to roll up.bucks2 said:I watch people fight even 30 amp cords and I see that one of the biggest hassles is the quality of the cord. The cheaper the cord it seems, the stiffer and less manageable it is
Better safe than sorry, I suppose, but I also suspect there was something wrong with the extension cord. Being a 12/3, it would have had to draw a lot of current to overheat, probably more than the circuit breaker rating - assuming there was a proper circuit breaker. Most likely, the cord had a section where many of the wire strands were broken or the insulation bad between wires.denmarc said:A possible safety question...
I was taught to always extend a service or extension power cord to full length to keep the cord cool. Assuming the power cord is sufficient for power demand, of course.
I did see the result of not extending an extension cord once. A 50' 12/3 outdoor extension cord with approx. half of it's length coiled up and layed on top of a tire to a trailer. It was plugged into a dedicated outlet for an engine block heater and was being used for that reason (Winter time). The coiled half of the extension cord overheated, started to melt and caught fire. Luckly, someone noticed the fire before any drastic damaged resulted.
I am thinking there will be many replies of "been doing it for years without any problems" type of answers. I have been fully extending any service or extension cords since seeing the results of the fire. I just never wanted to take any chances.
Thoughts or suggestions?
zzyzx said:I am not sure the quality of the cord has anything to do with how hard it is to roll up. I think the temperature of the cord has more to do with it. If I roll my cord up first thing in the morning when it is cold it is very difficult to roll up. If it lays in the sun all day then it is very easy to roll up.
The amount of inductance in a coiled up 50' extension cord would be neglible. Besides, if I recall (there's that IIRC I mentioned in another discussion), inductance alone would not cause heat generation, only the resistance of the wire would. For inductance to cause heating, it would have to generate eddy currents sufficient to generate the heat across internal wire resistance (or ferrous core if wound on one) and I really don't think there would be enough inductance or current in the situation you describe. Here's a Wiki on the subject.denmarc said:I thought the same thing. But the cords were bought new every Fall for the up coming cold season. Not to say that a manufacturer defect wasn't the culprit in this case.
I had also heard it might have something to do with the fact that the coiling the cords by not extending them created an inductance issue creating heat. Too much heat caused the fire. I can find my way around electrical things. But an electrial pro, I am not!