Why do so many UK electrical sockets have an on/off switch next to them?

⁨353⁩ ⁨likes⁩

Submitted ⁨⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago⁩ by ⁨FlyingSquid@lemmy.world⁩ to ⁨[deleted]⁩

https://lemmy.world/pictrs/image/fb116ea9-c78f-44a0-b514-891272f7d8a9.png

They’re like that in this apartment we’re renting and I keep seeing them elsewhere. I don’t get it.

source

Comments

Sort:hotnew top

lime@feddit.nu ⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
the UK power grid is weird. mostly due to echoes of the war. used to be that, to save copper, the entire house and sometimes multiple houses on a street would be wired as one big loop of wire, no fuse box or anything. that’s where the individually fused and switched sockets come from. then, since it turned out to be quite a good idea for safety, they kept doing it.

source
- donuts@lemmy.world ⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
  This is the answer. When all sockets are connected to one big loop, there’s fuses in each socket to prevent a device from screwing with the whole system.
  
  source
- Wanderer@lemm.ee ⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
  Why are people saying this?
  
  I’ve lived in multiple UK houses and never once seen a socket with a fuse. Are you saying this was change way way back in the day?
  
  All houses have fuse boxes (which then got upgraded to circuit breakers). Not one fuses in sockets. Would be a fucking nightmare to take the socket off and change a fuse.
  
  source
  - cecilkorik@lemmy.ca ⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
    The fuse is actually in the UK plug (the big brick-like thing with the wire on it), not the socket. But yes, it’s a thing, and most of the rest of the world considers it overkill. Also a lot of cheap junky equipment (ironically the stuff where you’d most want the plug) omits the fuse in the plug, go figure.
    
    source
    -> View More Comments
  - lime@feddit.nu ⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
    sloppy wording, i meant “switched sockets and fused plugs”.
    
    source
- skillissuer@discuss.tchncs.de ⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
  eastern block solution to copper shortages was to wire houses with aluminum instead of copper. this avoided all that bizarre bullshit that brits do, and in principle it’s a good idea since aluminum is used for big time power distribution as well. this worked pretty well until it was noticed that under some conditions hot spots can form on connections over time, requiring replacement of connectors. it’s still legal to use aluminum wires in some places, but copper is more common now
  
  source
- Valmond@lemmy.world ⁨4⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
  When I bought the apartment I’m living in, the previous owner had refused all modernisation, even legal ones (he had mental problems), so the appartment had the original 1 hot wire going everywhere, you just “tapped” off power where you wanted to to ground. 1959 era.
  
  source
- Proprietary_Blend@lemmy.world ⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
  So that switch will trip like a breaker?
  
  source
  - 1rre@discuss.tchncs.de ⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
    No - there’s fuses in the plugs themselves, the switch is largely for convenience and safety - if you want to unplug something broken and potentially live, it’s much safer to switch it off at the wall than risk a shock
    
    source
    -> View More Comments
- x4740N@lemm.ee ⁨4⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
  Sorry but I’m going to need a source on that because there is no evidence of that being the reason UK plug sockets have switches
  
  Other countries have switches on their sockets, Australia being one because I live here
  
  Switches on sockets do make a ton on sense though for safety reasons for example if you need to quickly isolate electricity from the switch and the breaker hasn’t done anything
  
  Switches also prevent arcing when you pull out a plug if an appliance doesn’t have an off switch and you can switch something off that you use commonly say a kettle but don’t unplug because you use it commonly so theirs less chance of an electrical fault happening while no one is there and its also the same reason I’ll demand an isolation switch be installed on electric stoves just incase the switch on the stove fails and the stove turns on
  
  source
  - lime@feddit.nu ⁨4⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
    looking for a source is not hard. anyone can do it.
    
    switches are not required by the bs1363 standard. the provision for them only arrived in the 1960s. there.
    
    source
RandomUser@lemmy.world ⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
Allows you to remove power from the plugged in device without unplugging it. This provides convenience to easily and quickly turn things on and off and prevents arcing when unplugging. 240V 13A can arc a bit, particularly if unplugged under load, or on older sockets where the contacts have worn. While a little arcing doesn’t do much damage immediately, over time it will cause pitting and make a high resistance joint that will generate heat.

The switch only disconnects the live terminal, but the neutral terminal should be similar potential to earth (depending on how the building is wired).

Truly the king of plugs and sockets. The plugs are individually fused according to the device needs, ergonomic to use and exciting to stand on.

source
- tourist@lemmy.world ⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
  
  Allows you to remove power from the plugged in device without unplugging it. This provides convenience to easily and quickly turn things on and off and prevents arcing when unplugging.
  
  That’s exactly what I do, because it’s more convenient than unplugging everything.
  
  I live in South Africa, where we had rolling blackouts (called loadshedding) for a few years. It’s easier to switch everything back on when the power comes back than to plug it back into a socket without a switch, especially with my fucked up spine.
  
  The electricity in the place I live was done poorly, so having something plugged in “live” risks a surge or something and then the appliance gets fucked and then everything smells like burnt plastic.
  
  And that’s the best case scenario. Others have had housefires.
  
  Also, the South African plugs aren’t pleasant accidentally to step on. It won’t pierce your foot, but it can still hurt like a motherfucker for a few seconds if you step on it in the wrong way.
  
  Those UK plugs do look a lot more nasty to step on. I shudder at the thought.
  
  I like the EU and US two prong cables ( 🔌?) where the prongs are parallel to the cable, but not the cables with the orthogonal prongs.
  
  source
  - grue@lemmy.world ⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
    
    I like the EU and US two prong cables ( 🔌?) where the prongs are parallel to the cable, but not the cables with the orthogonal prongs.
    
    Non-grounded plugs aren’t that great, though, and once you add the third prong the plug gets much less flat. Compare:
    
    Image
    
    Image
    
    Maybe Italy and Chile have the best idea in terms of slim grounded plugs, although the lack of polarity might be a problem?
    
    Image
    
    Also, IMO right-angle plugs are often better than straight ones because you can put furniture closer up against them and do so without stressing the cable.
    
    source
    -> View More Comments
- Revan343@lemmy.ca ⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
  
  exciting to stand on
  
  Thanks, I hate it.
  
  source
- Etterra@discuss.online ⁨4⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
  Makes sense, American lie voltage (outlets) are 120V. 240V is considered high voltage and isn’t typically fed into residential units. Plugging anything rated for 120V into a 240V outlet is gonna be a bad time, and is why the outlets for high voltage are shaped differently.
  
  I was gonna guess that the switches were too negate so-called vampire power, which is when a truck’s of electricity flows into appliances that are normally off. IMO that trickle is so negligible in a residence that is 6 effectively irrelevant, but that’s just here in the US. I don’t know anything about foreign electrical systems.
  
  source
  - timbuck2themoon@sh.itjust.works ⁨4⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
    240 is used all the time for furnaces, driers, and increasingly EV outlet connections.
    
    It’s just all our “normal” stuff is 120.
    
    source
    -> View More Comments
- jonne@infosec.pub ⁨3⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
  How many devices do you have that don’t have a switch on the device itself?
  
  source
NigelFrobisher@aussie.zone ⁨4⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
To turn them on and off.

source
- wabafee@lemmy.world ⁨4⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
  Fair enough
  
  source
Blackmist@feddit.uk ⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
So we can turn the power on and off.

Why else would you have a switch next to a power socket?

source
- FlyingSquid@lemmy.world ⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
  Most of the places in the world I have been to do without them, or at least did when I was there, so it confused me. But some people have given good explanations now.
  
  source
  - Scott_of_the_Arctic@lemmy.world ⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
    Open one up. There’s also a fuse connected to the live wire. The amperage is dependent on the normal draw of the appliance. Just added safety features. Also the live and neutral holes only open up if you put the earth in first (that’s why it’s longer). British plugs are arguably the safest… Unless you leave them prongs up and step on it accidentally. That makes stepping on Lego feel like a shag carpet.
    
    source
    -> View More Comments
- grue@lemmy.world ⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
  The real question is why did the UK decide that on the outlet itself is the best place for that switch, as opposed to e.g. in the US where outlets are sometimes wired to a switch located next to the door to the room?
  
  source
  - KryptonNerd@slrpnk.net ⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
    Switches located next to the door are for lighting, as opposed to switches on the socket which mean you can fully turn off your rice cooker without unplugging it. We do sometimes have sockets in the UK with the switch at the door, but they are usually a different shape socket that is designed for a lower current and is only intended to be used for floor lamps.
    
    source
    -> View More Comments
  - Tippon@lemmy.dbzer0.com ⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
    Do you have individual switches for each plug socket / outlet wired next to the door? That seems like it would take a lot of wiring, and need a lot of switches.
    
    The room I’m currently in has six double sockets spread out around the room. They each have one switch per socket like in the post’s image. If they were wired back to the door, they would need a lot more wiring, and one of the two entrance doors would have to be chosen. You’d then have to walk to that door every time you wanted to turn something off.
    
    It seems like a lot more work for no real benefit.
    
    source
    -> View More Comments
  - stephen01king@lemmy.zip ⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
    So you don’t get confused which outlet the switch turns off.
    
    source
  - Aggravationstation@feddit.uk ⁨4⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
    I know some sockets in US homes have switches next to the door for lamps which would be useful if you are indeed using them for lamps but not very if you’re using them for anything else. But sockets can be wired differently if required. The sockets for my oven and fridge in my old house were under my kitchen counter and the switches were on the wall above them.
    
    source
    -> View More Comments
- polarpear11@lemmy.world ⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
  Why can’t you just unplug it? If you have to go to the socket anyway… maybe I don’t understand because I’ve never lived with the convenience?
  
  source
  - Michal@programming.dev ⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
    It’s easier to flip the switch to turn it back on than to fumble with the plug. You can get a variant without the switches if you don’t like, or simply leave the switch always on.
    
    source
  - reddit_sux@lemmy.world ⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
    Even if you unplug it, the socket is still live at more than 200 V.
    
    source
    -> View More Comments
  - rarbg@lemmy.zip ⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
    Lots of wall warts suck down 5w unused. I could see this being nice
    
    source
  - Blackmist@feddit.uk ⁨4⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
    Depends on the device.
    
    Something like a vacuum, sure. You’re probably going to move it around anyway.
    
    But I used to have a Spectrum computer, and it had no power switch. If you plugged it in then it was just on. Much simpler to power off at the switch than unplug it and risk the plug falling down the back of the table into a rats nest of cables.
    
    Plus I guess it’s one more step a toddler needs to do to electrocute themselves…
    
    source
    -> View More Comments
Zip2@feddit.uk ⁨4⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
To turn things on and off.

source
- Chadus_Maximus@lemm.ee ⁨4⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
  Big if true.
  
  source
  - YungOnions@lemmy.world ⁨4⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
    Massive if correct
    
    source
    -> View More Comments
- FlyingSquid@lemmy.world ⁨4⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
  I remember when I was young and bending down all the time was a thing you could do painlessly. Ah, youth.
  
  source
  - kofe@lemmy.world ⁨4⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
    Have you tried using your toes?
    
    source
    -> View More Comments
  - Zip2@feddit.uk ⁨4⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
    I can still bend down ok, but getting back up off my knees however….
    
    Smart plugs are awesome!
    
    source
WorldwideCommunity@lemm.ee ⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
This is virtually standard in Australia

source
- DesertHermit@lemmy.world ⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
  Depending on who built the house, it’s the standard for a “good” house in Ghana, Nigeria, Zambia and I think Kenya.
  
  source
- Splenetic@lemm.ee ⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
  It is standard in NZ
  
  source
JimVanDeventer@lemmy.world ⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
I like them, personally. You don’t have to use them but they are sometimes handy. I just spent 30 seconds feeling around a TV to turn it off only to discover it doesn’t have buttons. Killed it at the wall.

It’s not a deal breaker, in any case. The weird foreign convention I would like to shame is doors that require a key to open from the inside.

source
- Squeebee@lemm.ee ⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
  I usually see keyed from the inside locks when there is glass in/near the door to prevent someone from breaking the glass, reaching in and unlocking the door.
  
  source
  - chonglibloodsport@lemmy.world ⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
    Can’t that be prevented by safety glass instead? Doors that need a key to open from the inside risk trapping people inside the building.
    
    source
  - jol@discuss.tchncs.de ⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
    If a burger is gonna break the glass, a keyed lock isn’t going to deter them. Unless it’s like only a tiny glass window on the door.
    
    source
    -> View More Comments
- FlyingSquid@lemmy.world ⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
  
  I just spent 30 seconds feeling around a TV to turn it off only to discover it doesn’t have buttons.
  
  Ugh. That annoys the shit out of me. Our dog chewed up the TV remote when she was a puppy, but only got to the power button. But since the TV had no physical buttons, we couldn’t turn it on and off anymore until we got a new remote.
  
  source
  - Glitterbomb@lemmy.world ⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
    I have an old android phone I keep around because it has an IR LED on top and I loaded it with a few free universal remote apps. They all work offline and it’s come in handy so many times.
    
    source
    -> View More Comments
- Kusimulkku@lemm.ee ⁨4⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
  
  The weird foreign convention I would like to shame is doors that require a key to open from the inside.
  
  Huh. Where have you seen those? Seems dangerous.
  
  source
  - Rivalarrival@lemmy.today ⁨4⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
    They’re used where there are windows close enough that, if broken by an intruder, the intruder would be able to operate the lock.
    
    The better solution is, of course, to not use such doors.
    
    source
  - Blackmist@feddit.uk ⁨4⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
    We mostly just leave the key in them unless I’m going on holiday.
    
    If somebody is going to steal my stuff while I’m away, I’m going to make them work for it.
    
    source
- BuboScandiacus@mander.xyz ⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
  
  The weird foreign convention I would like to shame is doors that require a key to open from the inside
  
  You can’t lock yourself out with those
  
  source
  - GreenAppleTree@lemmy.world ⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
    But you can lock yourself in. During a house fire.
    
    source
    -> View More Comments
  - hitmyspot@aussie.zone ⁨4⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
    You can burn to death, though.
    
    source
Flax_vert@feddit.uk ⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
Americans don’t have this???

source
- _skj@lemmy.world ⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
  Not just Americans. You won’t even commonly see them in mainland Europe
  
  source
- lime@feddit.nu ⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
  most places don’t. it’s a very british empire thing.
  
  source
- FlyingSquid@lemmy.world ⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
  Not that I have ever seen.
  
  source
- rumba@lemmy.zip ⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
  We just don’t unplug anything ever. We usually have an room that’s on a wall switch near the lights.
  
  source
- bobs_monkey@lemm.ee ⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
  Nope. We’re also on 120v so that could be part of it.
  
  source
- spankmonkey@lemmy.world ⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
  Sometimes we have specific plugs that are wired to a wall switch that can be used to turn those specific outlets on and off. All the examples I know of are for standing lamps, so they can be turned on an off like ceiling lights.
  
  source
  - bobs_monkey@lemm.ee ⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
    It’s been code for a long time that every room must have a switched lighting source, and before recessed lights became more common or if the original builder didn’t put a ceiling light or wall sconce, you’d have a switched outlet for a lamp. Typically it’s only half of one outlet though, unless your house was wired by a crackhead like mine.
    
    source
    -> View More Comments
y0kai@lemmy.dbzer0.com ⁨4⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
I present to you my favorite YouTube person:

The GFCI/RCD, a simple but life saving protector:

youtu.be/ILBjnZq0n8s?list=PLv0jwu7G_DFU62mIGZNag5…

In defense of the Switched Outlet:

youtu.be/2DGqVbTHX-k

Electrical topics playlist:

youtube.com/playlist?list=PLv0jwu7G_DFU62mIGZNag5…

I could just watch this guy all day lol

source
- dbx12@programming.dev ⁨4⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
  I expected Technology Connections or ElectroBOOM, was not disappointed.
  
  source
  - y0kai@lemmy.dbzer0.com ⁨2⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
    One teaches what to do, the other teaches what not to do.
    
    ElectroBOOM keeps me alive sometimes, and Technology Connections told me how to properly use a dishwasher.
    
    source
- UnsavoryMollusk@lemmy.world ⁨3⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
  A fellow human of great and distinguished taste I see
  
  source
Noel_Skum@sh.itjust.works ⁨4⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
UK household electricity is pretty spicy compared to many other places - it has more safety features as a result. (3 pinned fused plug, socket switches etc)

source
dragonfucker@lemmy.nz ⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
As any cautious parent could tell you, these are helpful when the toddler starts sticking things in places where they don’t belong. Such as metal cutlery. In the power sockets.

source
gAlienLifeform@lemmy.world ⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
Kind of off topic, but I’ve just gotta add that the safety shutters over the positive and negative terminals that only open when the ground pin (which is longer than the others on the plug) is inserted up top is brilliant, it basically makes short circuiting impossible. Electrical outlet design is one of the few things I’ll concede the UK does better than the rest of the world.

source
serpineslair@lemmy.world ⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
Safety, easier to switch things off without unplugging them. Why not have one if it’s more convenient? Not all of them have switches though.

source
slurp@programming.dev ⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
Great for turning off a device or several devices without having to unplug (e.g. if the sockets are behind a bookcase, this is much more convenient). Not a super common need but when it saves moving furniture it helps. Given that UK switches are tougher to plug in and unplug than most (due to safety features), I prefer using a switch. Also, the switches are cheap and give more options, so may as well!

I rely on one for a light where the switch broke and wasn’t easily replaceable, so being able to fall back on the mains switch meant I can keep using the light.

source
vrighter@discuss.tchncs.de ⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
“so many”?

isn’t it all of them?

source
takeheart@lemmy.world ⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
I like the integration of the switch, should be standard. I use many switch plug-ins just to avoid stand-by consumption (it really adds up over the year) and to avoid high pitch humming on some devices.

YSK: there’s also remote controls for these switches, very handy 1000083879

source
Embarrassingskidmark@lemmy.world ⁨3⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
To turn shit on or off

source
Cooljimy84@lemmy.world ⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
Being a uk person its cause they can & its also in to building / electric code. Its just a switch that breaks the live leg, stops sparking when plugging in stuff.

source
Blue_Morpho@lemmy.world ⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
Everything you’d want to know about British wiring and my introduction to Tom Scott:

youtu.be/UEfP1OKKz_Q

source
Brewchin@lemmy.world ⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
Safety and convenience versus the cost of including them, I expect.

The Wikipedia page for BS 1363 says they’re optional and weren’t added to the standard until 1967. I can’t recall having seen a domestic socket without one.

But it seems the only legal way to read the actual standard is to pay for it, and even the HSE website isn’t much help.

source
teije9@lemmy.blahaj.zone ⁨4⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
when any electricity leaks out (for example through your body) it switches off. the eu also has the same system, but its one switch for your entire house. the us also has this but only in bathrooms.

source
finitebanjo@lemmy.world ⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
That’s to make up for how incredibly dangerous they are.

source
iAvicenna@lemmy.world ⁨4⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
small child/baby protection.

source
viking@infosec.pub ⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
I thought that’s building code, literally never seen any other outlets in the UK, as well as in Malaysia where they adopted the system. Though why it is or became code, I’ve no idea.

source
funkless_eck@sh.itjust.works ⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
in America many houses have the on off switches with the lights on the other side of the room for lamps etc

source
skillissuer@discuss.tchncs.de ⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
at least in part it’s an end result of decades of crud and tech debt, so to speak, accumulating in british power grid and home wiring. they do it this way because otherwise it won’t be safe. continental euro home wiring usually has thicker wires, residual-current circuit breakers and no ring circuits so we get away without fuzes and switches. sometimes we do have ring circuits kind of thing, but not in house wiring, instead it’s in medium voltage distribution grid, and it’s sized so that it can serve most of loads after single failure.

explanation
in normal state, medium voltage line (like 15kV, 20kV) might branch out in rural terrain from substation to two or more places. in case of single failure, mildly common after storms, everything downstream would be down. instead, to increase reliability, every few km there’s a switch and some of the far ends have line between them that is usually disconnected. in case of single failure, damaged segment is cut off, and the far end of the loop switch gets closed. this way power is delivered the long way around the loop, allowing for repairs of the damaged sector in the meantime. this also specifically avoids some of problems of ring circuits especially in situation when some lines might be damaged.

source
cmgvd3lw@discuss.tchncs.de ⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
For safety I guess?

source
nieceandtows@lemmy.world ⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
All plug points in India also have (regular sized, not these tiny ones) switches to control them

source
Maiq@lemy.lol ⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
Not positive but those could be GFI outlets.

source
muntedcrocodile@lemm.ee ⁨5⁩ ⁨days⁩ ago
We got wm in Australia as well.

source

-> View More Comments