Antex XS25 soldering iron safety issue / recall

[bd139]

Just got sent this. I bought an XS25 a couple of years back as a present for someone. Looks like they have been recalled or there is a safety issue. Probably wrong fuse looking at that. I can't find any more information other than this.



Edit: just got a notification about the Antex C15 as well. Not sure why I bought that. Probably still in the cupboard somewhere.

Edit 2: yep. Called them. Antex notified Rapid of a safety issue with the supplied fuses. So they are sending new fuses out 

So which do you think they installed?

[wraper]

Why do you think it necessarily has anything to do with wrong fuse used? Most likely fuses were properly rated but some issue with them was discovered.

So they are sending new fuses out 

And you want them to send whole soldering irons? 

[bd139]

Just dug mine out and it had a 5A in which is a little high for a 25W device. Wonder if they're sending 3A ones out or something.

[MT]

So they think the difference between 5A and 3A is instant death and severely electrocuted? What does Rapid actually mean by Potential issue?

[bd139]

I don’t thing the guy on the phone knew. Mr Robot. Fuse bad. We sent you new fuse. Make good.

[wraper]

Just dug mine out and it had a 5A in which is a little high for a 25W device. Wonder if they're sending 3A ones out or something.

That fuse is to protect the plug and the cable, nothing else. Has nothing to do with protecting the device. It does not really go nearly as low as fuse needed for device protection. Device may have 100mA current consumption and 13A fuse in the plug, it would be completely ok and legal. And it's purely UK thing because of the ring wiring in the houses. Other countries don't have fuse in the plug.

[bd139]

That’s not actually correct.

The fuse protects against over current in the device as well. Stops fires.

[amyk]

Surprisingly vague. I'd expect people who bought a soldering iron to understand if they wrote something like "the fuse supplied is incorrect rating X, we will send you a free fuse of rating Y but you can replace it with one you have."

[wraper]

That’s not actually correct.

The fuse protects against over current in the device as well. Stops fires.

Nope, you are wrong in this regard. It might blow and protect the device but it's not it's purpose at all. The same iron for non UK market doesn't have any fuses in the plug.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AC_power_plugs_and_sockets:_British_and_related_types#Fuses

There are two common misconceptions about the purpose of the fuse in a BS 1363 plug, one is that it protects the appliance connected to the plug, and the other is that it protects against overloading. In fact the fuse is there to protect the flexible cord between the plug and the appliance under fault conditions
(typical British ring circuits can deliver more current than appliance flexible power cords can handle)

[bd139]

The device is anything past the plug. I am aware of that.

[wraper]

The device is anything past the plug. I am aware of that.

Nope, device is anything past the cable in this context.

[wraper]

It's freaking simple. If device is needed to be fused, for safety compliance you certainly won't get away with placing a fuse in UK plug and no fuse in the device itself. Fuse in the plug is not for device protection, period.

[bd139]

If that's the case then there is no protection on the schuko outlets with an Antex iron connected then?

[wraper]

If that's the case then there is no protection on the schuko outlets with an Antex iron connected then?

Of course no fuses. Socket is not fused and plug is not fused as well. We use star wiring and circuit breakers in electric box that must not allow current more than power cable can handle.
Now thinking about it, if they used 5A fuse and replace it with 3A, it could also be that strands in the power cable might too thin to be supplied with 5A fuse fitted in the plug.

[bd139]

Well that's kind of silly.

Your outlets are clearly designed to shift up to 10A or so minimum so any current less than that is going to not cause the breakers to trip otherwise every time you run your vacuum cleaner it will pop the breakers.

Thus if you put that Antex iron into a socket, and it develops a fault that causes it to consume less than 16A but more than the rated (say insulation breakdown somewhere in the element which is quite common), the breaker will go after your soldering iron catches fire and burns down your house while quite happily sitting there sucking 7A or so.

Where as BS1363 typically includes a 3A fuse in such devices in the plug which limits the overall fault current of the device connected to the plug to 3A. Most "better than consumer crap" devices also have fuses in the device as well and IEC leads so most of the time we have say a 5A rated IEC lead and then a 100mA fuse in the device.

More protection is better than none.

To note my house is wired in a star topology as well, other than the lighting. A lot of newer houses and refurbished houses are in the UK.

[wraper]

Well that's kind of silly.

Your outlets are clearly designed to shift up to 10A or so minimum so any current less than that is going to not cause the breakers to trip otherwise every time you run your vacuum cleaner it will pop the breakers.

Outlets are rated for 16A current. Again fuse is to protect plug and cable, not device itself. Device itself must be designed to fail safely. If fault develops in the cable, for that there is circuit breaker.