From Devon Live

 
In the past I have seen someone using hair straighteners for their intended purpose on a train.  Quite apart from the electrics, it is an accident waiting to happen as they take time to cool down after use (I am told).

 
Ah. I would have expected those sockets to have protection so that they are unable to deliver currents unacceptable to them. (More than a bit hazy on how this would be done in an appropriate way though). Provision of USB 'c'... would that be happier because doesn't the connection between two of those mutually negotiate what each is capable of and come to an agreement as to what's best.

Fresh in my mind is a certain brand of not cheap rechargable Bluetooth speaker that advertised the ability to recharge other devices via the USB socket that it provided. Not advertised was that plugging a device in that overloaded the speaker's USB supply circuit simply blew an internal fuse protecting the battery, immediately and permanently killing the (not user serviceable) speaker. It was very important to do this within the guarantee period as the manufacturer wouldn't replace them once that had passed, but how they let the device out of the door in the first place I don't know.

Mark

 
Anecdote: siblings on an intercity train to Bath in the distant past. No idea of the form of the catering on offer - this wasn't restaurant car stuff and nor were we, but around Reading we asked for (and were granted) a boiled egg. It was in the cutting by Pangbourne - I recall the chalk cutting sides, sunshine and was it an autumn afternoon - anyway, passing through that cutting it emerged that while the egg was on its way, the catering crew were unable to source a teaspoon with which to eat it, this was the start of a hunt for a teaspoon along the entire length of the train, to their great credit one was found.

This may have been the same trip that started from Kingston, and our (Edmondson) tickets were lettered to the effect 'Via Swindon or Devizes' - the latter, even then, had not been possible for several years

Mark

 

The quote attributed to GWR was "could have blown the electric circuit for everyone on board the carriage". In other words, it might have tripped the circuit breaker protecting the circuit feeding all these sockets is one carriage.

Why didn't it do that? I think these are pretty low-power things, though I can't find a figure listed on line. After all, a soldering iron gets pretty hot (if slowly) with much less than 100W.

As an 80x has a pretty chunky 3-phase inverter, sized to feed all auxiliaries including the heating/cooling, it would not need a very low current limit. So it will be the cable that determines the breaker rating, e.g. 6A or 10A (or 20A to make it a standard radial circuit).

 
In my personal (and to some extent professional) opinion the issue that actually concerns GWR is the thermal risk from the appliance, not the electrical consumption or potential circuit trip.

RCD/fuses are there to keep consumers safe from electrical malfunction but it is possible that a thermal overload takes place, or the appliance torches a combustible material, without tripping the RCD. 

The risk to passengers is from fire, not electrocution.

 

I wondered about that - after all, don't they cook food (on a few trains) in the kitchen on the IETs - is that electric these days?

 
If the thermal transfer has taken place ie. The plug has melted and torched the carriage lining, then no RCD can put that ‘back in the box’ and a proper emergency is then underway.

Incidentally do GWR trains carry fire extinguishers in passenger carriages? I recall them being stripped out of TFL trains many years ago due to misuse.

 

They do, yes.

 
My understanding is that fire extinguishers, among other emergency equipment, are kept within compartments accessible to train staff on board.

To avoid their misuse, understandably. 

 
At the risk of digressing from the original point, I’d love to know how a train manager would make it through some of the packed commuter trains that we know occur on a daily basis, waving a bunch of keys for the fire extinguisher cupboard, potentially with hundreds of passengers coming in the opposite direction to avoid a fire.

 

I believe that hair straighteners use relatively little power - in the region of 100w. I've had laptop chargers in the past which used more than that.

In this case, I think GWR might have had more sympathy if they'd encouraged customers to think of others and not consume (or cook) strong smelling food onboard!

 

 

They wouldn't need a bunch of keys: just one (redacted). 

 
Way off subject.

Many years ago I had a job arranging travel for our overseas engineers. The occasion that sprang to mind in this case was an engineer travelling across the Middle East on a cheap flight during the Haj was a little disconcerted when one of the passengers apparently fired up a primus stove in the aisle. I said he was joshing but insisted that was the was the case. Another result of not providing catering?

 

They don’t have to.  A rare slip up from CfN as extinguishers are readily available in each carriage…no key waving from staff required.  Their location is indicated by red signs in the carriage.

 
Thank you for your very tactful correction, IndustryInsider.