Unravel charging cable?

[acer]

I always fully unwind my charging cable when camping because I read on here that otherwise a dangerous electrical charge can build-up - something to do with amps and other mysterious goings-on to do with physics that I didn't listen to at school.

If all I am doing is charging my battery once a month to look after my battery whilst it is parked on my drive at home, is it still necessary to fully unravel all 20 metres of cable when I only need 6 to be unwound?

(I know that I could get a second, shorter, charging cable, but I'd rather not got to the trouble of buying and storing this if I don't have to).

 

[andyinluton]

It’s heat building up in a coil that’s the problem.

If all you are doing is running the charger you should be fine with the cable still coiled up.

If you start plugging in kettles, electric heater etc then the current in the cable will be much higher & the cable could start getting hot.

Also depends on the thickness of your cable the thicker the better.

 

[kurienp]

I always fully unwind my charging cable when camping because I read on here that otherwise a dangerous electrical charge can build-up - something to do with amps and other mysterious goings-on to do with physics that I didn't listen to at school.

If all I am doing is charging my battery once a month to look after my battery whilst it is parked on my drive at home, is it still necessary to fully unravel all 20 metres of cable when I only need 6 to be unwound?

(I know that I could get a second, shorter, charging cable, but I'd rather not got to the trouble of buying and storing this if I don't have to).

As AndyinLuton mentioned above, you'll be fine.

For heat buildup in a coiled cable, (a) it needs to be wound tightly (see the winding inside a motor), or (b) there needs to be sufficient current . In your case, it is only charging the battery, that does not require high current not will there be a lot of draw on the cable - such as kettle and toasters and microwave and what not ... and it will not be tightly wound. if unsure, touch the cables after an hour of plugin and see if they overheat. Trust me, they will not and you will be fine.

 

[acer]

That’s great. Thanks. I wish I’d asked earlier. I could have saved a lot of “winding time”.

 

[Elly Swanson]

I always fully unwind my charging cable when camping because I read on here that otherwise a dangerous electrical charge can build-up - something to do with amps and other mysterious goings-on to do with physics that I didn't listen to at school.

If all I am doing is charging my battery once a month to look after my battery whilst it is parked on my drive at home, is it still necessary to fully unravel all 20 metres of cable when I only need 6 to be unwound?

(I know that I could get a second, shorter, charging cable, but I'd rather not got to the trouble of buying and storing this if I don't have to).

Yes, always unwind. Imagine a fire that close to your house/garage.

 

[Sad]

Never unwound ours fully, never had a problem... Although never tightly wound either...

 

[BeagleMum]

Yes, always unwind. Imagine a fire that close to your house/garage.

We are old school, we always fully unwind any electrical cable

 

[westfalia]

Yes, always unwind. Imagine a fire that close to your house/garage.

They don't set on fire when overheated.
They just melt a bit in the middle and trip the fuse.

 

[Karlos]

Extension reels and EHU cables should always be fully unwound to prevent overheating.

 

[kurienp]

Extension reels and EHU cables should always be fully unwound to prevent overheating.

Karlos, a very generic statement from the olden times when the cables did not have any standards to follow and were generally of poor quality and we did not understand much about electricity and science.

With not being wound tight, cables adhering to defined ISO standards, with such low load on charging the batteries only in a Cali, overheating cables as mentioned in the context is a thing of the past.

Put lots of load such as microwaves, electric kettles etc, on the cable and the situation will be different.

Sent from my Pixel 2 XL using Tapatalk

 

[acer]

maybe we need a vote!

 

[Wogga]

It takes a fair bit of current to cause heat, normal hook up cable is rated around 24Amp, Hook ups generally top at 16A. However when current is flows an inductive field is formed, more current the bigger the field. when the cable is wound it becomes for want of any other description a coil or one half of a transformer. The tighter the wind and the higher the current heat is the product. Have the cable on a metal drum then even more heat!
For it to catch fire you are looking at high current for a long time, feel the cable it will give you warning. Point to note constantly overheating the cable will cause the pvc insulation to breakdown, which in turn causes

There are plenty of pictures of molten cables but I do wonder how they got so much current? generally caravans and GW's.

As a lifetime electrical engineer I always unwind my EHU cable, because when I was 16 I had it drilled into me because it is what we do. ON a Cali no probably no need, a kettle boiling for a few minutes won't harm it, but if you have a 3kw fan heater going 24/7, I'd been feeling my cable.

 

[ThomasHJ]

Also, have a look at your cable reel if you own one. There's a good chance that there's a sticker on it, saying how much wattage it can take when unwound and when wound. Te difference will be somewhere around a factor 3. For example: 2250 watt unwound and 750 watt wound.

 

[Ch1pbutty]

The reel should also have a thermal cut out button, which should activate if there is too much heat; If that button fails and the wires inside the cable melt then your earth wire could become live, so as long as no one is touching the metal bodywork on the van during this time then all will be fine. Of course the Campsite RCD should also have tripped by this point provided all has been wired correctly.

We always unwind the cable.

 

[Azteccamper]

I live in Wales so the lead is normally in wet grass!

I always tend to unwind it since my caravan days when we used to have a small collection of goods from Currys working off it. In the Cali it tends to charge the batteries and maybe an iPad.

 

[Hotel California]

It's like many things , use your common sense ....
For all others they put on warning stickers...

 

[trev0rk]

I had the same issue. I bought a 16a plug and coupler for a fiver from Toolstation. I cut the cable at 6.5m so I had 13.5m cable and 6.5m cable.
I have not used the 13.5m length in the last 2 years - it lives under the bonnet by the battery.

 

[bangorlad]

Unless you're running a panoply of high wattage electrical kit the heavyweight cable seems over the top to us who on the occasional hookup are only charging the batteries and running the fridge and lights. I'm thinking of getting a lower spec cable especially for charging the leisures when at home - would be far less hassle running out along the lane and coiling in again the next day....

 

[Wildcamper]

As others have said, it all depends how much current you are drawing. Cable manufacturers and suppliers have to say fully unwind to cover themselves. If one runs the cable at near its max current loading then unwind of course. If in doubt always unwind. At home I use a short cable for charging.

 

[wilburthewombat]

It also matters what the ambient temperature is outside. If the cable is coiled on your drive in mid-winter it's very different from a mid-summer day (though global warming will make that obsolete soon).
In short (from someone with City&Guilds Electrical Installation yonks ago), just use your noddle. Try it out - switch what you want on, leave it coiled, and touch it later on to see if it has warmed up too much. A bit of warmth is OK. if it feels anything like hot, then it isn't.

 

[Spottydog]

As AndyinLuton mentioned above, you'll be fine.

For heat buildup in a coiled cable, (a) it needs to be wound tightly (see the winding inside a motor), or (b) there needs to be sufficient current . In your case, it is only charging the battery, that does not require high current not will there be a lot of draw on the cable - such as kettle and toasters and microwave and what not ... and it will not be tightly wound. if unsure, touch the cables after an hour of plugin and see if they overheat. Trust me, they will not and you will be fine.

Not true I’m afraid. I’ve seen 3 cable reels go up when not unwound. One vehicle was completely destroyed so I would never chance it.

 

[andyinluton]

The OP was talking about topping up the leisure batteries in the drive. For powering just the battery charger the coiled cable will be fine.
When camping where other items may be powered as well I would always uncoil.

 

[Jay20cali]

Yes, always unwind. Imagine a fire that close to your house/garage.

I understand your concern but your not using a welding set just a hook up for a camper

 

[Jay20cali]

Not true I’m afraid. I’ve seen 3 cable reels go up when not unwound. One vehicle was completely destroyed so I would never chance it.

Really did you spot the camper that hadn’t un wound it and sit there waiting.
I have come across this coil effect but only when pulling big juice ie a welder on 240v

 

[westfalia]

Really did you spot the camper that hadn’t un wound it and sit there waiting.
I have come across this coil effect but only when pulling big juice ie a welder on 240v

I doubt that too.
You would have to be feeding the whole campsite
everyone linked into your unwound reel, then when everyone
is using their toasters and kettles the cable reel will get hot
and the fuse will blow.

There ain't no going up in smoke.
I've seen 2 occasions and the cable reel didn't even melt.
Thats why we have fuses.