Jump to content
Cruise Critic Community

Using a Power Strip on a Princess Ship

MsSoCalCruiser

By MsSoCalCruiser,
in Princess Cruises

 Share

Recommended Posts

MsSoCalCruiser

MsSoCalCruiser

Posted
  • Author
Posted
Generally speaking, if it has an on/off switch (like a power bar you plug a computer into), it has a surge protector. An extension cord does not. Or even better, a multi-head power splitter:

 

https://www.amazon.com/Cables-Go-29803-Power-Splitter/dp/B000083KIH/

 

Thank you. I thought so. It was just odd though because some of the packaging said surge protector on it and the others did not. I have never seen a multi-head power splitter before. And that is safe to use on the ship?

Link to comment
Share on other sites
satxdiver

satxdiver

Posted
Posted (edited)

We have used a multi-head power cord splitter with success. Here is one advertised on amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Cables-Go-29803-Power-Splitter/dp/B000083KIH/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1474699342&sr=8-3&keywords=power+splitter so that you can see what they look like. There are several different types depending on how many outlets you want. We now use a portable travel power strip that is compatible with foreign power outlets like Europe, South America etc which use 240 VAC instead of the 120 VAC we use in the USA. It has a built in transformer to reduce the voltage safely along with the plugs needed. One really nice feature is that it has 4 USB ports to recharge our several electronic toys.

Edited by satxdiver
Link to comment
Share on other sites
beg3yrs

beg3yrs

Posted
Posted
Generally speaking, if it has an on/off switch (like a power bar you plug a computer into), it has a surge protector.

 

This is absolutely incorrect. Having an on/off switch in no way indicates the bar has a surge protector. You must read the product packaging. Believe me, if the manufacturer has installed a surge protector, it will be clearly featured.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
beg3yrs

beg3yrs

Posted
Posted
I didn't realize that. Could someone please tell me why using a surge protector is not allowed?

 

This is a long and complicated subject having to do with the difference between maritime electrical systems and land-based systems. The short version is that surge protectors not specifically designed for maritime systems are a fire hazard when used on ship systems.

 

Princess specifically forbids the use of surge protectors in one of their documents.

 

If you really want to get into the techno-geek details (I did), a quick search of this forum will reveal multiple threads on the subject.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
MGnut

MGnut

Posted
Posted
I have used this Belkin device with both power and USB ports for years on Princess and RCI with no issues. You can find it cheaper than here.

 

http://www.belkin.com/us/BST300-Belkin/p/P-BST300;jsessionid=C2D3E88898EC1962F3F1EC8BA089584A/

 

That device does have a surge protector circuit and should not be used on a ship!

Link to comment
Share on other sites
triptolemus

triptolemus

Posted
Posted
Thanks trip, it is a good concise write-up. We stopped using our Belkin after reading about danger here on Cruise Critic. We are still looking for a suitable non-surge replacement with USB capability.

 

Most folks that want a power strip want it to plug in all their USB chargers. I use this:

 

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00OJ79UK6/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o04_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

 

Works with my, iPad, iPhones, Android, Kindle, Beats Pill...the usual stuff.

 

You don't need all those power bricks for each device.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
SadieN

SadieN

Posted
Posted
I have used this Belkin device with both power and USB ports for years on Princess and RCI with no issues. You can find it cheaper than here.

 

 

 

http://www.belkin.com/us/BST300-Belkin/p/P-BST300;jsessionid=C2D3E88898EC1962F3F1EC8BA089584A/

 

 

This is no longer allowed. We use ours on land based vacations.

 

We bring a simple the outlet extension cord.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
beg3yrs

beg3yrs

Posted
Posted
I have used this Belkin device with both power and USB ports for years on Princess and RCI with no issues. You can find it cheaper than here.

 

http://www.belkin.com/us/BST300-Belkin/p/P-BST300;jsessionid=C2D3E88898EC1962F3F1EC8BA089584A/

 

Yeah, no issues. And it is true, ignorant folks continue to use surge protectors on a ship and nothing happens thank goodness. But, just because bad things did not happen to them doesn't mean surge protectors on a ship are safe. What an attitude ... :mad:

Link to comment
Share on other sites
taxatty "Live from...." Rare

taxatty

Posted
Posted (edited)
Yeah, no issues. And it is true, ignorant folks continue to use surge protectors on a ship and nothing happens thank goodness. But, just because bad things did not happen to them doesn't mean surge protectors on a ship are safe. What an attitude ... :mad:
With regard to your reference being "ignorant," as you undoubtedly know, here is the Princess policy (at least the only one I have seen to date) on surge protectors: "The use of extension cords fitted with surge protection devices are prohibited in staterooms." The Belkin unit has no extension cord. Knowing this policy in advance, I've had the unit checked out and approved more than once by Princess personnel on that basis. If I got incorrect advice, and the Coast Guard thinks that any surge protector is dangerous, which was news to me after all of that, I'll stop using it. Edited by taxatty
Link to comment
Share on other sites
beg3yrs

beg3yrs

Posted
Posted (edited)
With regard to your reference being "ignorant," as you undoubtedly know, here is the official Princess policy on surge protectors: "The use of extension cords fitted with surge protection devices are prohibited in staterooms." The Belkin unit has no extension cord. Knowing this policy in advance, I've had the unit checked out and approved more than once on multiple cruise lines at a purser's desk and cruise boarding check-in counters, who approved using the Belkin unit on that basis. If I got incorrect advice, and the Coast Guard thinks that any surge protector is dangerous, which was news to me after all of that, I'll stop using it.

 

First of all, "ignorant" is not an insult, it just means not being educated about a particular subject. No insult was intended.

 

Next, I'm glad you read Princess' statement about surge protectors. Here unfortunately is where the word ignorant applies, even to those who wrote the Princess statement. Those who DO understand electrical items know that it is the surge protector itself that is the problem, not that is embedded in an extension cord versus residing with a multiple outlet. At this point you're just playing with semantics and risking people's safety.

 

Folks at the pursers desk and check-in counters have no training in such things and really don't know there is no difference electrically. However, I would say that you are one in a million when you ask these people about your Belkin product.

 

Finally, the Coast Guard doesn't think "any surge protector is dangerous", just those that are not designed for maritime electrical systems. Your surge protector most likely falls in the category of not being designed for maritime electrical systems.

Edited by beg3yrs
Link to comment
Share on other sites
triptolemus

triptolemus

Posted
Posted (edited)
First of all, "ignorant" is not an insult, it just means not being educated about a particular subject. No insult was intended.

 

Next, I'm glad you read Princess' statement about surge protectors. Here unfortunately is where the word ignorant applies, even to those who wrote the Princess statement. Those who DO understand electrical items know that it is the surge protector itself that is the problem, not that is embedded in an extension cord versus residing with a multiple outlet. At this point you're just playing with semantics and risking people's safety.

 

Folks at the pursers desk and check-in counters have no training in such things and really don't know there is no difference electrically. However, I would say that you are one in a million when you ask these people about your Belkin product.

 

Finally, the Coast Guard doesn't think "any surge protector is dangerous", just those that are not designed for maritime electrical systems. Your surge protector most likely falls in the category of not being designed for maritime electrical systems.

 

This.

Edited by triptolemus
Link to comment
Share on other sites
SadieN

SadieN

Posted
Posted

ChengKP75 has a great post about extension cords, surge protectors and circuit breakers.

 

Circuit breakers are ok. They act like a light switch.

 

Land Surge Protectors act as a lightening rod, rerouting the current. Land buildings are wired differently than sea faring 'buildings' (ships).

 

When we did bring our Belkin I noticed in a few occasions that it would get hot.

Link to comment
Share on other sites
neverbeenhere

neverbeenhere

Posted
Posted (edited)

The technical side of things. Also, remember to change your Yahoo and Google Docs passwords or someone might do something nefarious. :rolleyes:

 

The "surge protectors only" assumption is just because of a misleading NTM that the USCG put out. There are differences, HOWEVER the CG meant both of these devices (I'm an electrical engineer in the Coast Guard, both devices are prohibited unless they are marine rated) See below:

http://www.omao.noaa.gov/noaafleetinspection/safety_alerts/Surge%20Suppressors%20USCG%20Safety%20Alert%20April%202013.pdf

Essentially this article is a huge safety concern. I don't know if it explains it well. Basically ships do not use a grounded systems to get 120V. In your house, you have three hole in the outlet. 1 is hot (usually the left), one is neutral (typically the right), and the other in the bottom middle is the ground. if you stuck your hand in all the holes, only one of the holes would shock you (assuming a proper system- who knows how jacked up your grounds and distribution system may be). This is important to understand, only ONE of the conductors can shock you.

Now, let's say that I'm an electrical component manufacturer, and I want to save money by installing an automatic breaker in the protector (like most have). Why would I ever want to install more than just the one on the hot lead? Why waste the money installing a pointless breaker for the neutral line, when I can electrically isolate the entire strip by breaking the one wire?

Now, here it comes! On a ship, there is no "neutral" line in the traditional sense. In a house, you have a grounded center tapped transformer. Now a ship is a big hunk of metal that rusts quickly. You can't have a ground to the hull of the ship (or the ocean), because the electrical potential in the hull would rust the entire ship. very fast. To mitigate this (along with other, more confusing benefits) ship use an UNGROUNDED system. The consequence of this is that instead of having one line that jumps up from -120V to 120V, you now have two lines that are both -60V to 60V. This is really hard to grasp for some people. The two lines are completely out of phase, and that means that when one line is at +60, the other is at -60 (creating a potential difference of 120V). This is how every outlet on a ship is. If you stuck your finger in a ship outlet, 2 of the holes would give you a shock (albeit a little less painful).

Now, let's take your single breaker power strip on a cruise, and plug your toaster into it. Now remember, that third bottom center prong still exists, solely for safety. Being plugged into a normal outlet (surge protector not in the system), if a hot wire inside your toaster comes loose touches the metal shell of the toaster and you touch the shell, bad day. If the shell is grounded to the hull (connections inside the toaster run to that middle bottom wire), the hull is a better conductor than you, and will dissipate the current, until some grumpy electrician onboard hunts your toaster down as the ground in his system (and the culprit who is rusting the ship).

Now take that same instance and plug your grounded toaster into the power strip into the ship system. Right off the bat, the breaker in the power strip trips (and your ground-wire is touching the tripped hot). There is still half of that 120V bumping around in your toaster. Since you have effectively made a new path (hot wire, to the shell of the toaster, through the ground wire, into the hull), that 60V's worth of current will be traveling through your toaster, and into the hull. This would heat up the toaster, and depending on the location of the ground, could melt things and cause fires. Hope you learned something!

This is also explained in the NTM link I sent you at the bottom, you can see the outlets with the "60V" potential to ground.

Edited by neverbeenhere
Link to comment
Share on other sites
triptolemus

triptolemus

Posted
Posted (edited)
The technical side of things. Also, remember to change your Yahoo and Google Docs passwords or someone might do something nefarious. :rolleyes:

 

The "surge protectors only" assumption is just because of a misleading NTM that the USCG put out. There are differences, HOWEVER the CG meant both of these devices (I'm an electrical engineer in the Coast Guard, both devices are prohibited unless they are marine rated) See below:

http://www.omao.noaa.gov/noaafleetinspection/safety_alerts/Surge%20Suppressors%20USCG%20Safety%20Alert%20April%202013.pdf

Essentially this article is a huge safety concern. I don't know if it explains it well. Basically ships do not use a grounded systems to get 120V. In your house, you have three hole in the outlet. 1 is hot (usually the left), one is neutral (typically the right), and the other in the bottom middle is the ground. if you stuck your hand in all the holes, only one of the holes would shock you (assuming a proper system- who knows how jacked up your grounds and distribution system may be). This is important to understand, only ONE of the conductors can shock you.

Now, let's say that I'm an electrical component manufacturer, and I want to save money by installing an automatic breaker in the protector (like most have). Why would I ever want to install more than just the one on the hot lead? Why waste the money installing a pointless breaker for the neutral line, when I can electrically isolate the entire strip by breaking the one wire?

Now, here it comes! On a ship, there is no "neutral" line in the traditional sense. In a house, you have a grounded center tapped transformer. Now a ship is a big hunk of metal that rusts quickly. You can't have a ground to the hull of the ship (or the ocean), because the electrical potential in the hull would rust the entire ship. very fast. To mitigate this (along with other, more confusing benefits) ship use an UNGROUNDED system. The consequence of this is that instead of having one line that jumps up from -120V to 120V, you now have two lines that are both -60V to 60V. This is really hard to grasp for some people. The two lines are completely out of phase, and that means that when one line is at +60, the other is at -60 (creating a potential difference of 120V). This is how every outlet on a ship is. If you stuck your finger in a ship outlet, 2 of the holes would give you a shock (albeit a little less painful).

Now, let's take your single breaker power strip on a cruise, and plug your toaster into it. Now remember, that third bottom center prong still exists, solely for safety. Being plugged into a normal outlet (surge protector not in the system), if a hot wire inside your toaster comes loose touches the metal shell of the toaster and you touch the shell, bad day. If the shell is grounded to the hull (connections inside the toaster run to that middle bottom wire), the hull is a better conductor than you, and will dissipate the current, until some grumpy electrician onboard hunts your toaster down as the ground in his system (and the culprit who is rusting the ship).

Now take that same instance and plug your grounded toaster into the power strip into the ship system. Right off the bat, the breaker in the power strip trips (and your ground-wire is touching the tripped hot). There is still half of that 120V bumping around in your toaster. Since you have effectively made a new path (hot wire, to the shell of the toaster, through the ground wire, into the hull), that 60V's worth of current will be traveling through your toaster, and into the hull. This would heat up the toaster, and depending on the location of the ground, could melt things and cause fires. Hope you learned something!

This is also explained in the NTM link I sent you at the bottom, you can see the outlets with the "60V" potential to ground.

 

So you copied/pasted from Reddit? Nice work... :rolleyes: It's kind of irresponsible to do since there are a couple points in there which are somewhat inaccurate. The one I would mention is the USGC article which is not in any way misleading.

 

Next time, just cite your source and post a link rather than pasting it into the forum as your own text.

 

Edited by triptolemus
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Please sign in to comment

You will be able to leave a comment after signing in



Sign In Now
 Share
Go to topic listing
  • Forum Jump
    • Categories
      • Welcome to Cruise Critic
      • Hurricane Zone 2024
      • Cruise Insurance Q&A w/ Steve Dasseos of Tripinsurancestore.com June 2024
      • New Cruisers
      • Cruise Lines “A – O”
      • Cruise Lines “P – Z”
      • River Cruising
      • ROLL CALLS
      • Cruise Critic News & Features
      • Digital Photography & Cruise Technology
      • Special Interest Cruising
      • Cruise Discussion Topics
      • UK Cruising
      • Australia & New Zealand Cruisers
      • Canadian Cruisers
      • North American Homeports
      • Ports of Call
      • Cruise Conversations
×
×
  • Create New...