7.5kW -> 13A flex = ?

[DCC]

So just how much current can a ratty old bit of flex carry?

Went to put a new replacement solenoid in a relatives shower that has been installed for at least 15 years. Whoever ran the cable didn't leave it long enough and its been extended inside the shower to reach the proper connectors. Not sure this was the right thing to extend it with though...

Untitled

• DCC
• 19 Oct 2008
• 1

I particularly like the way the installer had cut 3 strands(?) out of the 6mm cable so that the remaining ones would fit into the 13A block he'd used. It's been slowly melting away nicely over the years. Hey ho.

I know its a short length of cable but I'd have expected it to go pop first time the shower was turned on.

 

[Spark123]

The amount it can carry will depend on a number of factors - a cable doesn't melt if you exceed its rating. Hit a level too high though and it may act like a fuse and rupture. The duration of the overload will play a part in how much energy is transferred into the cable hence how hot the cable will get, as will its ability to dissipate the heat.