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North American power outlets are topsy turvy - but does it matter?
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this post was submitted on 28 Sep 2023
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Our outlets are not "death traps." Standard outlets nowadays are grounded and TR (Tamper Resistant) The outlets are designed so that a grounded plug hits ground first before the rest of plug is energized. They look like this. https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-D-hdRZMa2Zo/Vqe-AfvYA5I/AAAAAAAAAM4/I0Ln6JRNRRw/s1600/photojoiner.jpg
Also while I'm sure people are electrocuted every year, it's not because they didn't plug in something correctly and I doubt a more bulky outlet would have save them.
It probably wouldn't hurt to start overmolding the hot and neutral prongs with plastic for the first quarter inch, but otherwise I'm much more concerned with how fucky extension cords are with their AWG; if you've got something heavy, like my 12 amp thickness planer, "can this extension cord handle this load continuously" is a reasonable question that not a lot of them are willing to answer in an accessible way.
I'll tell you what is the first concern coming to mind when I look at those outlets: the appliances plugs have no safety socket to rest in.
Exposed plugs are prone to being easily damaged by accidental pull-outs.