Warning: Power Cables Are NOT The Same! (4K)

Bought an oscilloscope, but it came with a German electric plug. I need to find a US C-13 type cable, BUT I find that it's not clear from what's on the cable (and what's available on the internet) which cable to use and how many amps it can handle safely!
It’s an easy-to-overlook fire hazard, but the VDE c 13 cables used with TVs, computers, monitors, UPSs, etc. come in several different sizes and load carrying capabilities. Using a too small cable on a device can lead to a damaged cable or fire! Unfortunately, manufacturers of both cables and devices do not make it easy for the average consumer to know which plugs can be used safely with what devices.

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For more info google: Ampacity Charts for your country/state/region

VDE cable: Verband der Elektrotechnik, Elektronik und Informationstechnik – aka VDE – in English is the Association for Electrical, Electronic and Information Technologies.

[tyrgoossens]

2:00 the plug has 2 different ground connectors instead of a ground pin. One is the french style female connector that connects on a ground pin in the outlet and the other is the german style dual indents on the top and bottom which connect to spring clips. Because in Europe we love standards so much we can't get enough of them :)
I think the 16A 250V rating is meant to refer to the plug standard, rather than the wire.

[FiveTrackTape]

So I did some empirical research on Amazon (US & DE) for fun. All being 3 conductor cables: .75mm²-18awg is sold as 10 amps. 1.5mm² -16awg is sold as 13 amps. 2.5mm² - 14awg is sold as 15 amps. The original cord's type F plug is rated at 16 amps as they all are (to my knowledge), but clearly the .75 classifies the cable at 10 amps. So yep, something to be aware of. Good catch on your part! I did see a couple cords on the DE site saying "maximum 250 V 16 A, 3G x 0.75 mm²" so...buyer beware.

[cobybarrett]

An IEC connector is always rated for 10A regardless of the size of the cable. Simply it's because an IEC connector will be manufactured and stamped at 10A because that's what the connector alone is rated for. A shucko connector which is the one you said is for 16A is correct. But again it's because it's manufactured and stamped at 16A. 0.75mm cable is not at all rated for 16A whereas the correct size cable for such a load is 2.5mm. I get it's confusing but no one is lying or trying to deceive anyone.

[craiga]

Yes, there is much confliction in the specifications. Good video to make people aware of what to look for. I suspect the strength of the connector pins within the plugs will also determine the maximum current ( via the tightness / contact area of the plug pins to the the wall socket connectors ) . But here was my 1st line of thought - Oscilloscopes require very low current. Even at 110VAC which uses higher currents than those using 220VAC, one is looking at below 1/2 an amp. Just for my reference, I took three random 2 Channel Analog Oscilloscopes ( Digital versions use even less current ) and compiled their specifications. With them set for 110V AC, they less than 0.44 Amps . I quess knowing this would save a lot of confusion . Had the appliance been a heavier consumer of current, one would have to dig around to find a better factual path in order to make a safe/informed decision 🙂. Thanks

[TrippLilley]

Anyway point is you should choose based on the wire size, since the connectors are already over-spec’ed for the application (otherwise they’d be the next size up). I can’t imagine a scope drawing 10A but maybe I’m out of touch on what modern scopes are like 😋

[Digmen]

I do wish the USA would switch to 240V like the rest of the world
And the metrics for length, height and weight and distance.
It would make things so much easier for us all

[electrogrim]

It's almost as if the British system of having a fuse in the plug, rated to the capacity of the cable is a good idea.
C15 connectors look like C13s with a notch and are used in "hot conditions", that is items that get hot in use like kettles, not for use in warm climates. The corresponding socket has a ridge that prevents C13s being inserted.

[rsofficial]

The 0.75mm2 cords and 0.82mm2 cord are actually all 18AWG. It’s just different methods of measurement. 18AWG wire is generally rated for 10A. The 1.5mm2 cord has 16AWG wire, which is actually rated for 13A, and the 2.5mm2 is 14AWG, which is rated for 15A. Note that these current ratings are based on shorter cord lengths (50 feet or less). The reason the 16AWG cord says 10A on it is because the C13 connector IEC standard only rates the connector for 10A, although they can technically carry as much as 15A, and UL will rate them for 15A. Not sure why the European cord says 16A on it, as that exceeds the ratings of both the C13 connector and the 18AWG wire. Maybe the standards are different in Europe.

[craignehring]

I have hundreds of these cord sets. The rating issue aside, I would like to know how to determine if the conductors are actually copper and not some aluminum wire covered in some copper cladding?
Hard to imagine an oscilloscope depending much current? An old tube set perhaps on in rush >>>

[sorcererstan]

Also check the actual wiring! I found a cheap 3-prong cable that had the live and neutral reversed from what they should be. Could be very dangerous depending on what the equipment assumes about the neutral!

[enginegame]

هل من الممكن تشغيل شاشة حاسوب 100_240v بسلك طاقة 16A 250v او انه امر خطر

[mroreo]

guys i have a japanese region ps5 which writien in the power cable 125V 7a is it good to use in a country that the power voltage in it is 220 ? by the way the power supply i dual voltage it can handle 100-127 220-240 so iam only confused about the power cable . sorry for bad english

[NizarNizo-hi]

Does the 125v Japanese power cord work with a 230v voltage using a transformer cable japon

[menaz]

Sorry if my question sounds stupid ... but in short .. is a 16 amp power cable better than 10 amps?

[anuragnaidu]

I have a Corsair CX 750 80+ Bronze SMPS with 16a 250V power cord but here in India we don't have any UPS with 16a power output sockets So can I use 6a 240V power cord with my SMPS ?

My system specifications
CPU I7 12700K
Ram 16 GB DDR5
Board Gigabyte B760M
SSD nvme WD blue 500gb
GPU RTX 4070 Super

Total power draw is roughly 600w