4

I know the correct answer is to always run a separate ground wire to properly upgrade a 10-30 receptacle to a 14-30 receptacle. However I noticed amazon sells many of these adapters which instruct you to plug in the separate ground wire to an existing ground slot on a normal 5-15 outlet. I suppose in theory this all checks out other than looking really odd. And I don't think they could get away with selling these if they were illegal. But can you think of a reason this would not be up to code? What about the ground wire having a smaller gauge on the 5-15 outlet compared to a normal 14-50 outlet?

enter image description here

Fred
  • 53
  • 5

2 Answers2

10

Don't buy electrical gear via mail order

Absolutely not. Dangerous rubbish. You can tell from the obviously Photoshopped spiral on the ground lead, and the use of a "banana plug" on the end of the ground lead ROFLMAO. This is a "cheap Cheese junk" found on a scummy mail-order site such as eBay. (and yes, I know you used Amazon; the problem there is Amazon Marketplace, which is is 3rd party listings exactly like eBay and their results are blended in with regular results. Amazon bundles their "Amazon Fulfillment" warehousing and shipping service for the seller, which is why it ships with Prime, so it feels like an Amazon item. The text which mentions it being a 3rd party seller is right under the "Buy" button, but it's also the smallest text on the page.

If shipped direct from those people helping Russia, Customs could intercept and confiscate the items (if they had unlimited resources). But Amazon's warehouses are able scoff the law due to legal chicanery. (government agencies must choose their fights carefully, lest they have to go back to Congress to ask for more funding for lawyers).

But it says UL!

If I build you a "Suicide Cord" using two UL-listed NEMA 14-30 plugs and UL-listed 10/4 cordage, is that assembly UL-Listed? LOL of course not, UL doesn't list suicide cords for obvious reasons.

Same deal here. All they are claiming is that instead of using random Chinese cordage, they are actually getting a proper UL-listed 10/3 cordage imported. That may or may no be true, but by making the claim that particular way, they make it difficult for UL's lawyers to force them to stop.

But that assembly is absolutely not UL-Listed. No way, no how. The item will not have a label on the cord indicating UL Listing.

But all they need to do is say a little for "wishful thinking" will take over. We live in a post-fact world. Reality is anything you want! Don't like who won the election? Easy, they didn't win the election! Don't want to believe humans are causing climate change? Blame it on anything! Don't want to wear a mask? Germ theory is only a theory! So that listing will nicely appeal to that sensibility.

Harper - Reinstate Monica
  • 313,471
  • 28
  • 298
  • 772
9

Amazon sells stuff all over the world from vendors all over the world so what's legal elsewhere might not be legal here in the USA. In the USA, it would have to be UL listed to be used. You'd have to check the listings for each adapter to see if it qualifies. Amazon is famous for selling junk that's not UL listed and since you don't have a link to the adapter, we can't check it.

JACK
  • 89,902
  • 21
  • 80
  • 214