# Electrical appliance



## Diane Avery (Aug 13, 2014)

Hello 
Hoping to move to spain in April, can we buy plugs to change our electrical appliances over, most of our plugs are moulded on now, so will need to cut them of and transform to plug we are able to use in spain (Valencia area), dont wont to use adaptables all the time. Advise please.


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## thrax (Nov 13, 2008)

Yes, Spanish people use plugs so they are available pretty much everywhere. Not quite as easy to wire as UK plugs but you'll get the hang of it!!


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## Madliz (Feb 4, 2011)

Cut them off before you leave the UK and offer them to family and friends. There's no call for UK plugs here!


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## VFR (Dec 23, 2009)

Madliz said:


> Cut them off before you leave the UK and offer them to family and friends. There's no call for UK plugs here!


No good to man or beast as they are the molded type nowdays.


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## larryzx (Jul 2, 2014)

Or you could buy an adapter for each one, so that would in effect be just like fitting a new plug to each appliance but easier (I know you said you cannot be bothered but it will be about the price) and that way you will have the 'fuse in the plug protection' which is not available in Spain.


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## saj51 (Dec 27, 2012)

Before we left we bought adapters from e-bay - very cheap, think paid £5 for ten and they have been fine.


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## snikpoh (Nov 19, 2007)

saj51 said:


> Before we left we bought adapters from e-bay - very cheap, think paid £5 for ten and they have been fine.


But why bother? 

It's much safer to use an approved plug on the end of the cable rather than one plug pushed into another and then into the socked (where they don't fit sometimes).

(Good) Spanish plugs can be as little as 60 cents each if you buy in bulk which is about the same price (if not slightly cheaper).


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## larryzx (Jul 2, 2014)

duplicated post deleted by Larry


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## larryzx (Jul 2, 2014)

snikpoh said:


> But why bother?
> 
> It's much safer to use an approved plug on the end of the cable rather than one plug pushed into another and then into the socked (where they don't fit sometimes).
> 
> (Good) Spanish plugs can be as little as 60 cents each if you buy in bulk which is about the same price (if not slightly cheaper).


Firstly some people are not sufficiently skilled to safely fit a plug. And secondly, a good quality adapter is safe and it would also mean that each appliance has a fuse, appropriate to its consumption, to safeguard it.

There is also the potential problem in that Spanish plugs do not differentiate between negative and positive. So when used the negative can be live. In some appliances (my desktop computer for instance) are ‘alive’ if plugged in the wrong way. If I get shocks off the case I have to rotate the plug. Of course using an adapter with a 13 amp plug does not protect against that, but if one ensures, say with a volt meter, that the polarity is correct, and then the adapter is left in the wall socket, then a 13 amp plug can never have the wrong polarity. 

Also, Spanish sockets are prone to becoming loose, so that the pins on the plugs are not gripped sufficiently tightly, thus producing arcing which could result in a fire. A plug/socket should never get warm. If it does, check it out, or if you do not have the skill then get someone who has to check it, or you may have a fire.


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## snikpoh (Nov 19, 2007)

larryzx said:


> Firstly some people are not sufficiently skilled to safely fit a plug. And secondly, a good quality adapter is safe and it would also mean that each appliance has a fuse, appropriate to its consumption, to safeguard it.


Not all UK plugs have fuses - these days many devices have the fuse rather than the plug itself.


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## davexf (Jan 26, 2009)

Hola

I bought some UK extension leads with between four and eight sockets each; then I simply changed one plug - it works very well for my guests who need to charge phones, laptops and the like. One word of caution, do not put too many three bar electric fires etc., on one socket 

Davexf


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## larryzx (Jul 2, 2014)

snikpoh said:


> Not all UK plugs have fuses - these days many devices have the fuse rather than the plug itself.


Having left UK 25 years ago I cannot comment with certainly, but I did check on line and it appears that plugs without fuses are dangerous fakes. Of course if the fuse is built-in to the appliance then it is fused, but I suspect that does not apply in all, cases.

BS 1363 Plugs and Sockets, 

quote:- .................._ three versions of another type of very dangerous plug. These plugs have no fuse at all. All of these were available from various trade vendors on eBay.co.uk in March 2012._


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