Electrical Safety Devices

Safety devices help protect us against things that may go wrong with electricity.

Safety Switches

Safety switches* are devices designed to provide increased protection for you and your family against the most frequent cause of electrocution - shock from electricity passing through the body to earth.

Safety switches monitor the current flow. When the device detects a current leaking to earth it cuts off the power in both the active and neutral lines in 30 milliseconds (or about 1/30th of a heartbeat). Safety Switches save lives. Any home less than two years old will almost certainly have a safety switch fitted to the main switchboard. Safety switches are now mandatory in all new homes. Portable safety switches are also available to provide protection when using power tools, at caravan sites, around the pool, etc.

Safety switches are not a substitute for surge protectors, circuit breakers or fuses. A circuit breaker "trips" or a fuse blows when the circuit is overloaded (when too many appliances are being used or a short has occurred in the wiring or appliance). Many homes may have a circuit breaker, a safety switch should be installed by an electrician to provide increased family safety.

Safety switches are not a substitute for care and common sense. Nothing is 100% fail-safe. You should always treat electricity with respect and regularly test your safety switch to make sure it is operational. Just like a smoke detector, if it doesn't work, it can't save you.

Safety switches should be used:

• where flexible cords are vulnerable to damage;
• where portable appliances, tools and flexible cords are used in potentially dangerous situations such as wet or damp conditions, outdoors, etc;
• where wiring is of a temporary nature. eg. pool parties, barbecues, etc;
• in the workshop

* Also known as Earth Leakage Circuit Breakers, Residual Current Devices or Core Balance Circuit Breakers.

Power point protectors: are installed by a qualified electrician and replace regular power points to provide protection in key areas.

Portable protectors: plug into a standard power point to provide protection. However, some low-level portable power point protectors can suffer damage after only one surge and become ineffective.