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TonyDuell · 24th Jul 2021, 9:18 pm

The mains lead for this laptop computer failed with an open-circuit live wire. I cut it in half, found the half with the socket to fit the PSU was the good bit, so put a Duraplug on that and have had no further problems.

I would be worried that the earth lead might fail and you'd not realise it until it was too late. Since this can happen at any time, an annual PAT test might not be enough. Nor would testing it everytime you start using it (as if anyone does that). Is it any surprise that I will not use moulded mains leads for anything high-power, safety critical, or similar?

24th Jul 2021, 9:18 pm	#3
TonyDuell Dekatron Join Date: Jun 2015 Location: Biggin Hill, London, UK. Posts: 5,208	Re: Faulty mains plug? The mains lead for this laptop computer failed with an open-circuit live wire. I cut it in half, found the half with the socket to fit the PSU was the good bit, so put a Duraplug on that and have had no further problems. I would be worried that the earth lead might fail and you'd not realise it until it was too late. Since this can happen at any time, an annual PAT test might not be enough. Nor would testing it everytime you start using it (as if anyone does that). Is it any surprise that I will not use moulded mains leads for anything high-power, safety critical, or similar?