Surge protector

We just got off of a Royal Caribbean cruise. We were called down to the naughty cruisers room where they had confiscated our power strip from our checked luggage. (The same device I've brought without incident on at least 20 prior cruises on more than one line.) I tried to reason with him that we needed it for my husband's CPAP machine, let alone the fact that there were two, yes only two outlets in the cabin. They said it was a fire hazard, yet an hour later I saw the ship's photographer plug one in! Has anyone had a problem with this type of confiscation? We met a man on the elevator who says he packs his in his CPAP machine travel bag.

Used one a few weeks ago on Emerald Princess; and used one on Norwegian Jade. No questions asked by cabin steward

The strip without surge protection are OK but they often miss the ones with surge protection when boarding.

If it had been in your carried on luggage most likely the port scanning wouldn't have said a word.

We just got off of a Royal Caribbean cruise. We were called down to the naughty cruisers room where they had confiscated our power strip from our checked luggage. (The same device I've brought without incident on at least 20 prior cruises on more than one line.) I tried to reason with him that we needed it for my husband's CPAP machine, let alone the fact that there were two, yes only two outlets in the cabin. They said it was a fire hazard, yet an hour later I saw the ship's photographer plug one in! Has anyone had a problem with this type of confiscation? We met a man on the elevator who says he packs his in his CPAP machine travel bag.

I always carry a UL rated extension cord for my CPAP and have never had an issue. I also have a small 3 outlet adapter that we use to charge phones, nooks, etc. but only when we're in the cabin, none have surge protectors. I think their issue is, 1) surge protectors mess with the onboard power system and 2) with strips they fear the use of multiple devices plugged in at the same time possibly overloading the circuit? JMHO

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I always carry a UL rated extension cord for my CPAP and have never had an issue. I also have a small 3 outlet adapter that we use to charge phones, nooks, etc. but only when we're in the cabin, none have surge protectors. I think their issue is, 1) surge protectors mess with the onboard power system and 2) with strips they fear the use of multiple devices plugged in at the same time possibly overloading the circuit? JMHO

Pretty sure it's just the "surge" protector feature that's the issue.

I always carry a UL rated extension cord for my CPAP and have never had an issue. I also have a small 3 outlet adapter that we use to charge phones, nooks, etc. but only when we're in the cabin, none have surge protectors. I think their issue is, 1) surge protectors mess with the onboard power system and 2) with strips they fear the use of multiple devices plugged in at the same time possibly overloading the circuit? JMHO

 

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That's kind of what I've been told by a couple of different crew members on a couple of different ships.....:):):)

Bob

I always carry a UL rated extension cord for my CPAP and have never had an issue. I also have a small 3 outlet adapter that we use to charge phones, nooks, etc. but only when we're in the cabin, none have surge protectors. I think their issue is, 1) surge protectors mess with the onboard power system and 2) with strips they fear the use of multiple devices plugged in at the same time possibly overloading the circuit? JMHO

 

 

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I actually had Royal Caribbean provide us with a long extension cord and distilled water for the CPAP. I have that same request with Princess on our February cruise on the Star. (I did get it back after the cruise.)

For future reference I believe you can ask for extensions and maybe adapters for a cpap machine and for distilled water if needed - RCCL have a form you email them.

Not sure why you posted this in the Princess forum?

Royal Caribbean also took our power strip ( no surge protection) on our first RC cruise this year. Same one we have used on Princess and Carnival for years. Our friends had theirs in their carry on and it was not taken.

This seems to be the new go to item for the naughty room, as the topic is starting to pop up as frequently as the dress code and beverage package treads. Riddle me this Batman....If passengers carrying power strips and outlet extenders is such a problem why aren't they installing power stations in the staterooms? USB ports can easily be installed with the outlet and there is no excuse to not plan for them in new builds. I am scheduled for a sleep study and may be joining the CPAP club which seems to have a lot of members who are cruisers.

You don't need surge protection on a ship. Just additional outlets. So bring along an extension cord that has two or three outlets on the end and you're all set. Plus,on Princess, you will have more than two outlets in your cabin. Not all of them are easy to get to, but that is where the extension cord comes in handy. Plug it in once at the start of the cruise and unplug it at the end of the cruise.

Once brought a Belkin power strip on my carry-on but was not flagged. Learned here it has surge protection and don't bring it anymore.

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Next time on any ship just bring along an extension with multiple outlets, not a surge protector. This is a technical explanation of why ships frown on true surge protectors. It was provided by a CC poster.

"In order to monitor the condition of electricalequipment onboard, there is a single connection between the current carryingconductors and ground (hull), which has a fixed resistance on it, and a meter.Any accidental ground anywhere on the ship will change this resistance toground, and show up on the meter as a low insulation resistance. Most surgeprotectors divert voltage surges to the ground wire, so these will show up asalarms in the engine room as low insulation resistance. Only surge protectorsthat use the "series circuit", which stores current and then slowlylets it to the current carrying conductors will not bleed current to the groundwire"

For future reference I believe you can ask for extensions and maybe adapters for a cpap machine and for distilled water if needed - RCCL have a form you email them.

Not sure why you posted this in the Princess forum?

I posted here because my next cruise is with Princess and wanted to know if perhaps policies have changed since I was on the Regal last fall. And I also thought it was funny how the ship's photographer was using one. I do believe that ships need more outlets though. (My extension had lots of company too. Maybe a dozen friends to keep it company while we were away!)

I have been on 20 plus Princess cruises. I always brought a extension with a surge protector. Never had problem. Just found out about this issue a couple of months ago. So I am going out and buying an extension without a surge protector before our next cruise in Oct. I will pack it with my three bottles of Jack Daniels, my portable coffee maker and my medical marijuana, LOL

This seems to be the new go to item for the naughty room, as the topic is starting to pop up as frequently as the dress code and beverage package treads. Riddle me this Batman....If passengers carrying power strips and outlet extenders is such a problem why aren't they installing power stations in the staterooms? USB ports can easily be installed with the outlet and there is no excuse to not plan for them in new builds. I am scheduled for a sleep study and may be joining the CPAP club which seems to have a lot of members who are cruisers.

Something like one in every 10 adults has sleep apnea (a lot of kids, too). A lot of that is a result of obesity.

If you're a male with a neck size greater than 17 inches or a female greater than 16 inches, you almost certainly have OSA. That number includes almost every professional football player in the US.

I have been on 20 plus Princess cruises. I always brought a extension with a surge protector. Never had problem. Just found out about this issue a couple of months ago. So I am going out and buying an extension without a surge protector before our next cruise in Oct. I will pack it with my three bottles of Jack Daniels, my portable coffee maker and my medical marijuana, LOL

Should be fine. [emoji1]

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I too bring a long (10ft.) regular household extension cord for my cpap machine. 31 cruises on Princess and no problems with machine not being surge protected. On the subject of cpap machines, I also bring a small roll of duct tape in case the hose springs a leak, and I also bring along an extra mask and headgear in case one of those little clips decides to break. Saved my butt on one cruise. :o

I have been on 20 plus Princess cruises. I always brought a extension with a surge protector. Never had problem. Just found out about this issue a couple of months ago. So I am going out and buying an extension without a surge protector before our next cruise in Oct. I will pack it with my three bottles of Jack Daniels, my portable coffee maker and my medical marijuana, LOL

This may sound stupid, but how do you know if your power strip has a surge protector? Mine is not like that real expensive one I bought for my computer or giant TV.

Units with surge protection such as this one are NOT ALLOWED:

Get something LIKE THIS and you will be FINE:

Many power strips look alike. Some are surge protectors some not.

Surge protectors are on the list of prohibited/banned items for Princess.

Just because you were not called on it for however many cruises you brought it onboard does not make it allowable.

It's banned and it's a fire hazard. End of story.

This may sound stupid, but how do you know if your power strip has a surge protector? Mine is not like that real expensive one I bought for my computer or giant TV.

For a US compatible device, the easiest way to tell is if it only has two flat prongs. A surge protector requires the third round prong to do it's job. For three prong devices, it should state clearly that it is a surge protector. There will be some description on the label on the back that it will protect up to a certain amount of current. It will have a rating in Joules of energy, as well as the maximum voltage it can take from a power spike.

Many power strips look alike. Some are surge protectors some not.

Surge protectors are on the list of prohibited/banned items for Princess.

Just because you were not called on it for however many cruises you brought it onboard does not make it allowable.

It's banned and it's a fire hazard. End of story.

Bob

Once brought a Belkin power strip on my carry-on but was not flagged. Learned here it has surge protection and don't bring it anymore.

Units with surge protection such as this one are NOT ALLOWED:

 

Get something LIKE THIS and you will be FINE:

 

That's the surge protected Belkin device I used until learning from a career ship chief engineer (chengkp75) who regularly posts on this forum about the dangers of them.

Inexpensive power strips are generally fine. Those with on/off switches are fine. If the packaging or the fine print on the back mentions things like "joules of protection" or "clamping voltages", then it is surge protected. If these are not mentioned, then it won't be.

 

There is also a lot of mis-direction with regards to multi-USB chargers. Many manufacturers claim their devices are surge protected, when in fact they are "voltage regulated". If the multi-USB charger does not have a 3-pin plug (no ground pin), then it is not surge protected, since a surge protector needs a path to ground, not relying on the "neutral". Hopefully, yuccaman can help me with this, this is based on as much information from the manufacturers as I can get a hold of.

 

I tend to harp on this subject because I have fought shipboard fires, and have trained crew in fire prevention, and the last thing I want to see is a general fire on a cruise ship, so if I can train the passengers in fire prevention as well, we are all ahead of the game.

Unlike the chief, I've only had shipboard firefighting training when in the USN but it's nothing you'd want to risk happening.

The Princess safety letter states: "The use of extension cords fitted with surge protection devices are prohibited in staterooms".

And based on the chief's information the same danger exists with all surge protected devices. Whether anyone has been able to use them isn't the point, they're hazardous & should not be used.

That's the surge protected Belkin device I used until learning from a career ship chief engineer (chengkp75) who regularly posts on this forum about the dangers of them.

 

 

 

Unlike the chief, I've only had shipboard firefighting training when in the USN but it's nothing you'd want to risk happening.

 

The Princess safety letter states: "The use of extension cords fitted with surge protection devices are prohibited in staterooms".

 

And based on the chief's information the same danger exists with all surge protected devices. Whether anyone has been able to use them isn't the point, they're hazardous & should not be used.

Ok. Just checked my power strip. It does say surge suppressor so I will no longer bring. My options would be that "outlet to go" thingy or a regular skinny extension cord. Of the 38 cruises I've been on, the only line that had sufficient outlets was Oceania. With a CPAP, sound machine, clock (just bought a battery because ship electric surges play havoc with electric clocks), hair dryer and curling iron, only two or three outlets could be a problem. And I'm not talking about charging two phones, two iPads and a Kindle. Would feel very guilty if my actions caused even a small fire.