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Old 2nd Jul 2019, 6:26 pm   #46
TonyDuell
Dekatron
 
Join Date: Jun 2015
Location: Biggin Hill, London, UK.
Posts: 5,188
Default Re: 13 amp fuse for 1.5mm mains flex?

My worry about those 10A distribution board leads is that 10A fuses are not common. Yes RS sell them, but you probably won't find them in a high street shop. So if said fuses blows for whatever reason then j-random-public is likely to put a 13A fuse in its place. I prefer it if things are safe and operational with either a 3A or 13A fuse (as appropriate) and no other value.

Mind you some of those so-called 10A leads don't look as though they would carry 1A.

The only '10A' distribution board I have here is a rather expensive (when new) thing with a dozen IEC C14 sockets on it. It's useful on the bench for running test gear, etc, off (most instruments take <1A of course). It has a fuseholder containing a 10A ceramic cartridge fuse (20mm long). When I got it second-hand, the mains lead had been cut off, so I replaced it with 1.5mm^2 cable (I have a reel of that) and fitted a plug with a 13A fuse. To me that is safe. The plug fuse protects the cable (which will stand 13A), the internal fuse protects the sockets/load.
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