How can extension cords be a fire hazard?

Question

If an extension cord is plugged into a surge protector then into the wall, and it is less than 6 ft long, is that still considered a fire hazard? Also, how exactly can the fire be started? Both the surge protector and the cord are grounded.

Answer 1

current draw produces heat. a hot cord can start a fire. many dimwits use them for air conditioners and large draw items, and they are sure to get hot.
end of story.

Answer 2

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It is not safe and it could also damage your a/c unit. I would not use a long extension cord for this application. They do make some heavy gage appliance extension cords that would work, but they are usually only a few feet long. The cord you are using may look heavy duty, but what is important is the size of the wire inside. An ac unit uses a lot of electricity. You need at least a 14 gage wire or maybe 12 gage wire. The longer the extension cord the heavier the wire needs to be in order to deliver the amps needed for your unit. If the wire or the plugs feel warm that is a sure sign that the wire is too small and so it is overheating and could be a hazard. Look on the edge of the extension cord. The gauge of the wire is usually printed on the cord. 16/3 means 16 gage wire. Not heavy enough for your application. 18/3 would be even less.

Answer 3

I'll use my own experience and this should illustrate it for you.

Extension cords are sold by length and the average wire gauge (AWG). The higher the current draw the lower the gauge number you will need. An AWG12 cord is way heavier than AWG16. The trouble is when you pull too much current (amperage) through the cord, it will heat up. Sometimes it will melt, burn and blow the circuit, other times it burns the wire up in the wall. Which ever is lighter will probably burn up first.

Now for my story. I wanted to use a wire feed welder in the garage. Think really high current draw. I grabbed a regular cheapo extension cord that was on the tv and used it in the garage, a few minutes into welding the circuit breaker pops, I step on my extension cord and it sticks to my shoe and pulls like cheese on a fresh baked pizza. That cord was ruined, pulled way too much current. Had the circuit not blown and had flammable stuff been around, that is prime conditions for a fire. Later I made a cord using 12 gauge wire and no more overdrawing the current on the circuit. Moral of the story, use a cord that is rated for higher current than the total current draw of all the devices you will use on it. Make sure it is rated for lower current than the wire in the wall otherwise if you overload it will be the interior wire that burns rather than the extension cord.

Answer 4

Cheap Extension Cords

Answer 5

It depends on what you're pluggin in to it. If you're usin an ordinary 16 or 18 gauge extension, and have a lamp and a TV and a radio plugged into it, it's great! But if you are pluggin an air conditioner or an electric heater into a 16 or 18 gauge cord, you will have BIG TROUBLE! You would need 12 or 14 gauge cord. As far as length goes, you can use long cords, 25, 50, 100 foot cords, as long as the gauge is heavy enuff to carry the current! :)

I have a microwave and a frige plugged into a 25 foot 12 gauge cord with no problems. I also have an air conditioner plugged into another 25 foot 12 gauge extension cord.

Ya just haveta keep your amps in line with the gauge of the extension cord! :)

Remember, the bigger the load, the bigger the cord has to be. The lower numbers are fatter cords that can handle more current. A 12 or 14 gauge cord can handle 15 or more amps. Medium cord is 16 gauge, and lighter is 18 gauge. :)

~Cindy! :)

Answer 6

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RE:
How can extension cords be a fire hazard?
If an extension cord is plugged into a surge protector then into the wall, and it is less than 6 ft long, is that still considered a fire hazard? Also, how exactly can the fire be started? Both the surge protector and the cord are grounded.

Answer 7

I know you have a lot of answers to this question. I am a Fire Marshal for the State of Rhode Island, and have seen this cause many fires. I have seen up to 6 surge protectors plugged into one another to create plugs in a room that had very little. The surge protection is then compromised instead of becoming greater. A extension cord is something again like said before used as a Temporary fix. (christmas lights, shop tools, vacuum cleaner etc. To use one on a permanent basis is asking for trouble. First off, any abrasion to the insulation can cause fire. If you kink the wire the wrong way, you run the risk of cracking the insulation, and or causing the wire to arc. If you overload the draw on the cord (plugging something that takes a lot of juice) by using the inappropriate sized wire, you can brown out the applicance causing fire. One final thought on extension cords are kids and pets seem to be very attracted to them. It is scary to see the ammount of pets that have chewed through wire and not died, or the ones that have arced and caught fire to the families furniture.
Be safe and if you need additional power, do it correctly. Run the wire in a conduit if needed, never under a carpet. For best results, hire an electrician to snake a wire to the circuit panel, and cut a new outlet to the desired location.

Answer 8

The surge protector will only protect you against "sudden decreases of voltage" in the line. An outlet has 120 volts, if there was a surge in the line, the voltage would drop to say 90 volts. This is where the surge protector does its job it will take the sudden drop in voltage instead of your appliances.

The way an extension cord is dangerous is by overloading the extension cord. If you had one of those cheap Christmas cords and you plugged a radio into it there is no problem because those kind of cords are meant to handle small things like that. If you plugged your electric stove into it, you will melt the cord because the conductors are not rated for that kind of amperage. Another way they are dangerous, and this is very common at Christmas, is you have a real cheap cord, and if you loop the cord, the cord will over heat, melt and start a fire.

Another way an electrical fire starts is by having a junction box that has loose connections. What happens is that over time a loose connection starts to heat up. When the box gets hot enough its starts a flash fire.

Answer 9

Extension cords are designed for temporary applications, due to there pliable nature they are not rated for as high of current as the wires in the wall feeding them. So for example an extension cord is plugged into a heater drawing 12 amps at 120 volts from a fifteen amp outlet. The wire in the wall is a solid #14 AWG NM Cable. The extension cord is #16 gauge or #18 Gauge.. So the heater shorts out. POOF, the extension cord draped across the wall behind your couch and through the curtains that has been stepped on , driven over, bitten by the dog and dragged in and out of your vehicle is now seeing a high current for all the time it takes before the breaker trips. If you calculate the Fault currents for a specific period of time it can reach some tremendous currents before that breaker trips. Plenty of time to flash all over start the couch on fire, burn thru the curtains, kill the dog. Etc. Hope this helps, if your using them don't overload them and unplug them at night. Good Luck

Answer 10

There are many issues with extension cords, the outside can bes cut or scuffed, causing a short, but mainly the weight of the wire most are 18 gauge, and to light, house wiring is usually 12 or 14 gauge. It can carry the amperage, required for heaters, hair driers etc. The lamp cord (18 Gauge) is very light weight and can over heat, and the plugs can over heat trying to carry to much amperage, like heaters Surge protectors will not do any thing, nor grounding. It just heats up slowly can the resistance can work like a heating element, a lamp will not cause to much draw, but a load of only a few amps is recommended, the length also causes resistance and can cause the wire to heat up. So be careful where you place it and also use a heaver cord than necessarily, like a tool extension cord.

Answer 11

Surge Protectors With Long Cords