A question on rolled shore power cords
Good morning all, So I've read many stories and posts about the dangers of having your shore power cord rolled up when plugged in. I've even heard that a regular extension cord rolled up when in ...
Forum Discussion
I HAVE used a coiled extension cord that was too long and not of sufficient gauge to handle the load and it did melt the insulation. Any electrical wire carrying current will have some resistance value and will create heat. So long as they are able to shed the heat at the rate it is being created they will operate satisfactorily. Gathering multiple wires in a conduit or cable tray impacts their ability to reject heat and there are tables for de-rating the current capacity of the wires accordingly. If you will take a look at the power pole wires you will see that they are relatively small. Because they are bare and exposed to the air they can easily shed heat so can carry large loads.
