CHAPTER 3 ■ SAFETY
Saving the Ground Prong
Never cut off the third prong from a power cord (see Figure 3-9). The grounding prong is there to protect
you from shocks in the event that a device’s internal power wire comes loose and touches a metal portion of
the case.
With the advent of the third prong, the metal case can safely dispose of the electricity back into the
outlet instead of into the person touching the device.
- If you have access to the proper three-prong outlet but have an inadequate reach, use
a three-prong heavy-duty extension cord. - If you have the proper connection but not enough outlets, use an outlet strip.
- If you don’t have a working three-prong outlet, have a licensed electrician install one.
A trip to the hospital is going to be a lot more expensive.
Figure 3-8. A classic single-use fuse (left) versus PPTC self-resetting circuit protection devices (right)
Figure 3-9. Grounded three-prong plug