John Rumm wrote:
wrote:

You could squeeze four (maybe even as
many as eight) into the space of a current double socket.


yes, 6, a lot more useful, lower cost and looks better.

Lower cost perhaps, not sure that a huge bundle of 6 flexes
protruding
from a wall outlet will necessarily look better.

2 faceplates instead of 4 is what will look better.
Also 4 or 6 appliances in the socket is tidier because the 4 or 6 way
plugin socket strip is eliminated.


This what Britain needs. It will:

- reduce the use of adaptors, improving safety and cost

Yes, but indirectly... rewiring houses for modern usage would reduce
the
use of adaptors etc. This would be true regardless of the socket
type.

it would, but
a) people dont want a long row of sockets everywhere.
b) it takes several decades to achieve nationwide. Bear in mind there
are still installs in use going back as far as the 50s.

OTOH replacing a socket, which any diy competent could do, is a quick
cheap safer solution.


- reduce the cost of mains plugs on some new appliances

Can't think why...

smaller, less material.

also who cares, they are negligable cost as they are.

All manufacturers of new appliances. Plugs retail 50p each, wholesale
35p, ex works 25p each. Multiply that by just 3 plugs per person per
year, thats 180 million plugs/yr =3D 45million GBP per year. Lower cost
plugs could save these manufacturers a total of around 20-25 million
per year.

Now add the same number of plugs again for commercial use and we get
savings of 45 million/year. And thats just for the plugs, theres
sockets and socket installing labour to add on, see below.


- reduce the cost of house wiring a bit

Again not significant.

yes it is...

80% or more of the cost of wiring is going to be
labour.

Firstly this reduces labour by halving the no of socket fittings
required.


You are still going to need to fit alomst as many face plates as
before so as to position outlets close to where they will be needed.

An install nowadays routinely uses pairs of double sockets per
location. Installing half the no of faceplates reduces both labour and
material costs.

Lets look at materials:

Double socket, cheapest =A31, decent =A32
pattress 80p
present requirement for 4 appliances: =A33.60-=A35.60

new 2/6 way socket, initially no cheaper, but prices will come down to
around =A31.50 when produced in volume.
pattress 80p.
Requirement for average 4 appliances: =A32.30

How many times does this saving occur per house? Rough guess: x12.
Thats =A327.60 per house.

How often are our 30 million houses rewired? Guess 30 years average, so
saving per year to the new installation industry is:
=A327.60 x 30 million / 30 =3D =A327,000,000 per year.

And I havent even touched on saved labour yet, which is a bigger
saving.


- provide householders with twice as many sockets as now

As would a rewire, which would probably be required to safely support

the doubling number of sockets in many cases...

Theres no reason rewiring is needed to use these new sockets. total
current draw is not increased by their use, what is gained is to
eliminate the use of numerous trailing sockets and adaptors. We only
use those because the sockets in todays houses are insufficient.


- reduce material and energy use in manufacturing our present
inefficient mains plugs.

Yup, give you that one.. just. ;-)

By numerous tons every year. Plus cost of distribution, which is
similarly reduced for smaller lighter plugs.


And there will be no compatibility problem.
Appliances with new plugs plug into the existing sockets.
The new sockets will all accept both types of plug.


The trouble is I'm too busy with other things to do much with this.

The trouble is, I would guess, most folks don't feel strongly enough
about it one way or the other to bother with changing what we have
which
in objective terms, works well, and is safe.

Most not caring is true but not a problem. It is the people that stand
to save millions per yaer that will get up off their ass about it. And
the consumer will benefit along the way.

As far as our present system working well, it does have one problem,
and this would solve it. The proliferation of socket strips and
adaptors is a needless consequence of the insufficient number of fitted
sockets and the large size of them.


NT