wrote in message
ups.com...
Bob Watkinson wrote:
wrote in message
ups.com...
EricP wrote:
On Tue, 8 Nov 2005 19:13:45 -0000, "Bob Watkinson"
wrote:

Any comments please?

2.5mm flat tw/e has a current carrying capacity of 20A.

No, it is rated to carry 20A continuous. That means it has higher
current carrying capacity, but more significantly will happily carry
much more intermittently.

That may be so but when designing circuits we have to follow the
regulations
irrespective of our assumptions of whether or not full load current is
to
be carried intermittently or not. The regs allow diversity in some
situations but not in others and when they do then specific calculations
are
made to determine an assumed load. As an electrical engineer it would
have
been irresponsible to recommend anything other than what I did.

even though the socket on 2.5 is both safe and within regs?

Yes. If you read again my post to th OP you'll find I said the regs covered
it but I don't like to design it that way personally. It's not good practice
to under-rate a cable given a potential load. Far better to do the job
properly. There are many thing that are technically within the regs but you
wouldn't do it. Would you wire a whole house in 16mm and protect it with a
single 60A fuse. Course you wouldn't it would be silly but the regs allow
it.

NT