Skirrow wrote:

Hi,

I was wondering if someone can help me with a problem I'm having.

With the days getting colder I have started using an electric heater
in my garage. The only problem is that it has a very short power lead
so I have plugged it into a 2way extension which is plugged into a
double socket in my garage which in turn runs to a fuse box in the
garage and then into the house (into an old cooker outlet).

Anyway, the other day, after being in the garage with the heater on
for a couple of hours, I unlugged it and noticed that the plug was
warm, rather foolishly I stuck my finger on the prongs and the live
one was bloody hot.

Can anyone tell me whats causing this and what I can do to fix it as
I'm a bit scared of melting the socket or burning the garage down.

Cheers,
Dave
Presuming that the plug etc. are of the correct size and that the
heater is not oversized for a normal plug-in application (as
opposed to permanently wired in electric heaters etc.);
Sounds like a poor connection of some sort, they can build up
some resistance and get warm/hot.
Could be loose wire connection screw inside the plug? Poor
contact between plug pins and the socket?
The plug pin is maybe either dirty/corroded or damaged. Or the
tension of the socket that the pin goes into is weak or worn or
damaged.
If it's getting hot and nothing is done it may well get much
worse. Heat will tend to corrode more or weaken spring tension on
contacts even more.
It may be a simple case of carefully sand papering corrosion off
the pin of the plug right through to replacing the socket AND the
plug to gt rid of a damged part and make sure.
Suggest don't leave it unattended in it's present state.
Cheers.