Power strips.. Help!

[Yunah]

Two things to add. The ships that are getting dry docked like the Jade are coming out with a USB port at the desk. You can now charge USB charged devices directly. Second, you can only do that if you are in the room. Someone on the Jade "Right Now" posted a snap of the Daily which states that you can only have devices/appliances plugged in if you are present. Housekeeping will unplug anything they find if no one is around.

 

"Sadly" (this, of course, is relative) we will be on the NCL Sky so I don't think we will have USB ports in the rooms. And fair enough, I normally don't charge anything at home when I'm not around either so that makes sense to me. I work at an insurance company and more specifially in the department that handles business insurance directed at buildings, inventory, goods that are stored, etc so I'm always (hyper)aware of anything that might cause a fire. I've seen businesses burn down due to a simple, aviodable mistake or oversight. :(

[old nutter]

Actually, due to the differences in wiring between ships and homes, use of a surge protector can cause a fire, as noted in this USCG Safety Notice:

 

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0ahUKEwi-2s6l76TTAhVQJ1AKHRTLCwsQFggiMAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Ficefloe.net%2Ffiles%2FSurge_Suppressors_USCG_Safety_Alert_April_2013.pdf&usg=AFQjCNFTdM9t3zHyzee0z3Q5ezpVGkIBVg&bvm=bv.152479541,d.ZWM

 

 

As a professional engineer I fully support the conclusion above that normal terrestrial surge protectors on power strips represent a fire hazzard on board ships. However the explanation in the USCG Safety Notice is a little confusing.

 

The main electrical difference between a ship and a house is that a ship is a highly conductive metal box whereas bricks and mortar in a house surrounded by air is nowhere the same chemical mix. The electrical systems in houses are predominately configured so that there are two conducting power wires and a safety "Earth" connector. If everything is OK, there should be no current in the earth conductor so some safety devices rely on that so will open the whole circuit if they detect small currents in the earth lead. Others will check that the current in the two conductors are identical and none is leaking away to earth and will also break the whole circuit if there is a fault. Both of these systems are designed to protect the humans when there is an insulation failure and are nothing to do with surge protection from sudden short overvoltage pulses.

 

Ship electrical systems do not have any power connections to safety earths and rely only on power being provided via the main power conductors. This has to do with the fact that the ship exists in a very effective electrolyte (salt water) and if current flows around the ship's hull, it can create chemical reactions that can increase hull/prop corrosion. To make sure, this doesn't happen, the hull is not used as any part of electrical safety system.

 

Surge protectors are devices that montitor for overvoltages on the two power conductors. They normally do this by dumping excess current from the higher voltage to earth. Each time they do this, they tend to deteriorate a bit and eventually will fail all together and can catch fire. The other problem is that because an earth connected to the device is not a connected part of the power system and the voltage can wander a bit, particularly if there is a fault somewhere else on the ship that connects the third wire "earth" system to one of the main power lines. When this happens, the voltage monitored by the protector can go and stay too high for safety and a lot of current can be accidently diverted into the protector device - result another way of catching fire!.

 

The final type of power strip fire danger is one where there are inbuilt USB connectors. These systems can be deadly in themselves. I know of at least one example where one of these connectors suddenly exploded because of an internal component failure.

 

Leaving aside the well known issue of batteries catching fire while being charged, the bottom line is never leave a portable device charging when you are out and never ever use a power strip that has a surge protector or built-in USB onboard a ship.

 

Happy and safe cruising.

[crayola1932]

Two things to add. The ships that are getting dry docked like the Jade are coming out with a USB port at the desk. You can now charge USB charged devices directly. Second, you can only do that if you are in the room. Someone on the Jade "Right Now" posted a snap of the Daily which states that you can only have devices/appliances plugged in if you are present. Housekeeping will unplug anything they find if no one is around.

 

When we were on the Jade in January, they told us that they would unplug any devices left plugged in when we were not in the room. And they did!! These were at their regular plugs--no power strip involved.

[ncklhaus]

I hope that now you know its a fire hazard and not something that should be brought you will think twice about it regardless of if you are caught or not

 

I was in no way trying not to get caught. I didn't know they weren't allowed. Where does it say that they aren't allowed onboard NCL ships? I don't see it in the FAQ's.

[fredflint]

I was always sceptical of the ban on large ships until I found this

http://www.seafarers.org/news/2013/Q%202/MarineSafetyAlert.htm

 

A marine casualty investigation of two separate stateroom fires onboard a U.S. Flag Container ship revealed that the sources of the fires were attributed to the use of SPDs plugged into a lighting circuit. It was discovered that a ground had developed on another circuit that was connected to the same distribution panel providing power to the staterooms. This ground created an imbalance of voltage between the two power conductors supplying the SPDs which caused excessive currents, overheating, and subsequently, a fire. In this instance, even if the SPDs automatically tripped as designed, only one power conductor would have been secured while the other would continue to provide power, possibly shorting to the device’s ground wire and the structure of the vessel.

For shipboard applications, it is critical for a device to interrupt both power conductors. Underwriters Lab Standard - UL Marine 1449 – addresses this issue and applies to the use of SPDs.

The Coast Guard recommends that vessel Owners, Operators, Class Society Surveyors, Insurers, and other inspection personnel examine the risks associated with the use of SPDs aboard their vessels, and if necessary ensure their organizations have policies and procedures relating to their use. Vessels should have defined procedures for checking the condition and grounding capabilities of personal/portable electrical equipment, and trained shipboard personnel should be assigned to check and approve all SPDs in use or brought on board for compatibility with the vessel’s electrical distribution system prior to use. Routine checks of switchboard and distribution system 120 VAC ground detection systems are necessary to detect the presence of grounds that may cause similar circumstances with non-marine type SPDs. These recommendations are not mandated rather just an advisory based on lessons learned from the casualty.

 

 

I found this which looks pretty nice

 

 

https://www.amazon.com/HULKER-Outlets-Protection-Universal-Extension/dp/B01LO5SB1Y/ref=sr_1_7?ie=UTF8&qid=1492310843&sr=8-7&keywords=european+extension+cord

 

 

This surge protector is US Navy approved $89.00

 

Edited April 16, 2017 by fredflint

[hftmrock]

I was in no way trying not to get caught. I didn't know they weren't allowed. Where does it say that they aren't allowed onboard NCL ships? I don't see it in the FAQ's.

 

Certain items that generate heat or produce an open flame are not permitted onboard. This includes clothing irons, hotplates, candles, incense and any other item that may create a fire hazard. Curling irons and hair dryers are allowed and may require a converter.

as many times as has been talked about here I think its very established that its a fire hazard.

and I realize that you didnt know before and I didnt want to imply you did anything wrong. I just asked if you now were not going to bring it anymore knowing what you know now.

I apologize if it seemed like I was telling you that you were wrong for bringing it without knowing. you were not.

[hftmrock]

having looked at the NCL site, there is not much to discourage people from bringing power strips with surge protectors on.

 

if fact they dont mention it at all and encourage power strips so how is someone to know until it gets confiscated (if it does).

 

pretty poor job on NCL to not be specific and to confiscate it

 

Yes a power strip is allowed! Staterooms on board will not have as many outlets as you’re probably used to, and sometimes they may not be located in the most convenient place. If you are traveling with a large family or many electronics of your own, think about bringing a power strip.

[ncklhaus]

Certain items that generate heat or produce an open flame are not permitted onboard. This includes clothing irons, hotplates, candles, incense and any other item that may create a fire hazard. Curling irons and hair dryers are allowed and may require a converter.

as many times as has been talked about here I think its very established that its a fire hazard.

and I realize that you didnt know before and I didnt want to imply you did anything wrong. I just asked if you now were not going to bring it anymore knowing what you know now.

I apologize if it seemed like I was telling you that you were wrong for bringing it without knowing. you were not.

 

 

Thank you! :D

[Bitterman]

having looked at the NCL site, there is not much to discourage people from bringing power strips with surge protectors on.

 

if fact they dont mention it at all and encourage power strips so how is someone to know until it gets confiscated (if it does).

 

pretty poor job on NCL to not be specific and to confiscate it

 

Yes a power strip is allowed! Staterooms on board will not have as many outlets as you’re probably used to, and sometimes they may not be located in the most convenient place. If you are traveling with a large family or many electronics of your own, think about bringing a power strip.

Found that too and it certainly says nothing about what "type" of power strip you can bring. I believe on the Carnival site they actually specify power strips without surge.

 

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[ackelster]

Found that too and it certainly says nothing about what "type" of power strip you can bring. I believe on the Carnival site they actually specify power strips without surge.

 

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While they may not say what "type" of power strip, they will take and test them. I went out of Tampa on the Star last April and had my power strip with surge protector, I didn't know about the rule, confiscated and never returned to me.

[Bitterman]

While they may not say what "type" of power strip, they will take and test them. I went out of Tampa on the Star last April and had my power strip with surge protector, I didn't know about the rule, confiscated and never returned to me.

You would think with the way they worded the info on their website, almost comes across like they're recommending people bring power strips, they would be pretty specific about what was allowed. We're on the Gem in a couple months and will have to make sure we have an acceptable strip.

 

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[fshagan]

Found that too and it certainly says nothing about what "type" of power strip you can bring. I believe on the Carnival site they actually specify power strips without surge.

 

Celebrity doesn't allow any power strips on their site, while the NCL blog encourages you to bring one! Looks like Carnival at least clarifies the issue with the type you can use!