Posted by: chaosmagnet
Lesson Learned: Electrical Safety - 05/11/20 09:00 PM
Mrs. Magnet asked for a smoker for Mother's Day. One of our friends is a professional renowned for his smoked brisket; he recommended a model to me. Mrs. Magnet followed the directions for seasoning it...without reading the directions on what kind of extension cord to use.
She took a 100' light-gauge extension cord used almost exclusively for the leaf blower, and pulled 10' out of the plastic donut cord winder doohickey to fire up the smoker.
Apparently, having 15A going through 90' of 10A cord wound tightly in an enclosed plastic donut is Bad.
The plastic donut cord winder doohickey has been consigned to its ancestors in honor. Visible and tactile inspection of the 100' cord revealed no damage. However, I got to it 15 minutes after it had been unplugged and it was still hot enough to burn my hand, so I threw it out as a precaution after it cooled down.
A heavy gauge, extension cord of exactly the right length has been procured. I will label both the smoker and the new cord in an effort to remind all the Magnets that they can only be used together.
She took a 100' light-gauge extension cord used almost exclusively for the leaf blower, and pulled 10' out of the plastic donut cord winder doohickey to fire up the smoker.
Apparently, having 15A going through 90' of 10A cord wound tightly in an enclosed plastic donut is Bad.
The plastic donut cord winder doohickey has been consigned to its ancestors in honor. Visible and tactile inspection of the 100' cord revealed no damage. However, I got to it 15 minutes after it had been unplugged and it was still hot enough to burn my hand, so I threw it out as a precaution after it cooled down.
A heavy gauge, extension cord of exactly the right length has been procured. I will label both the smoker and the new cord in an effort to remind all the Magnets that they can only be used together.