Home Improvement Asked on June 7, 2021
I purchased a somewhat expensive name brand Beautyrest air mattress. Its electronic pump is at the foot of the bed, and its electrical cord is shorter than the length of the bed, making an extension cord mandatory (ugh). The plug is polarized.
I grabbed a UL-listed polarized extension cord and tried plugging the air mattress into the extension cord. Much to my surprise, the plug does not go in all the way. It stops going in with about 1cm of the prongs exposed.
Thinking perhaps one of the extension cord receptacles had something stuck in it, I tried the other two receptacles available at the head of the extension cord. Same problem.
I then tried plugging the extension cord’s polarized plug into itself: no problem at all.
In all my years, I don’t think I recall this ever happening before. Am I not thinking of something obvious? Is this likely a manufacturing defect, or is there something going on that I’m not considering? Is it safe to use a Dremel to grind down the air mattress’s plug just a little so that it is still polarized, but slightly more narrow?
Since the question is "why" I'll try to answer that at the risk of many irate downvotes .. because one, or the other, or both, is not quite to spec! I guess that's obvious.
This question reminds me of the vast difference in design and engineering between American and British plugs and sockets. Two ends of the spectrum. The British ones with their longer ground pin, little plastic doors on the sockets (live terminals blocked until ground pin inserted), individual switches, individual fuses, finger knurls, 90 degree exits (it's impossible to yank one out by pulling the cord), and physical strength that easily holds even the largest PSU snug to the wall. There is more design and engineering in them than in some cars. And the American ones .... your question says it all. Crappy ill-fitting plugs dangling loosely from walls with people taking dremels to them just to get them to fit.
So much for "why". I've frequently filed down an oversized neutral spade on a power plug to get it to fit in a socket. Use a hand file and be very very subtle. As soon as it fits, stop. Then try to insert it backwards ... if it fits, you've gone too far. Cut it off and install a better plug.
Answered by jay613 on June 7, 2021
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