Uncoiling electric extension leads

[allen]

My missus says that extension leads, particular those that are wound up into a smallish round container, need to be fully extended for safe use, as heat builds up in the coiled up cables, and it's dangerous.

Is she right? (She often is). My inclination is to just pull out a yard or two of cable, do the job, then wind it back it when I'm done.

Ta.

Allen.

[buildersmate]

No, Paul, you've got the wrong end of the stick regarding the back-EMF from an inductive coil when the voltage is removed. Earthing of the appliance is nowt to do with assisting with removal of the stored energy as the field collapses.

[heathfield]

In fact Paul's inductance is there all the time, and a coil of cable left on the reel acts in the same way as the coils of wire in a transformer. Even with only a metre or so of cable left on the reel, this can result in high voltages being produced. These can cause insulation breakdown and overheating in the cable. Always fully unwind before use.

[alavahalf]

We have a neighbour who used to constantly works on cars from home...he really annoyed everyone with his persistent noise ( all finished now after this incident).
A few years ago he was running a compressor off an extesion lead. It ran all day, driving everyone mad, eventually in the evening he packed it all away in his detached garage.
That night I was sat watching telly and the wife said " I think someone is having a BBQ"... I looked out of the window to see flames were belching out of his garage in every direction ... When the flames were out, one of the fireman emerged from the smoldering ruins, with a coil of wire on the end of a stick. He said "it was the root of the fire" ... the extension lead ..... priceless..!

[gness]

My extension lead is now in the garden next to a fire blanket.