Question about explosion

[hyxr]

Hi,

I recently sold a mains charger to someone which was a cheap, yeah, my bad. Anyway, the mains charger apparently exploded, and it supposedly electrocuted the person. However, is it even possible they got electrocuted by the mains charger if they had a good cable? I think they are trying to make a false claim that they got electrocuted by it. Please see attached a photo of what it looks like.

Thanks a lot for any help!

 

[hyxr]

Also, what is the worst that could've happened from such explosion?

 

[SparkyChick]

Electrocuted implies death, so if they are still around, they got a shock.

Yes it's entirely possible. Cheaper supplies don't necessarily provide electrcial separation from the mains supply voltage and so they could have had a shock even without it exploding. Looking at the board in the charger, it's through hole tech and there doesn't appear to be too many parts, it's possibly just a basic capacitive dropper. You should go and check out Big Clive (and maybe John Ward - I think John has done some tear downs on these things as well) on YouTube and get the low down on these sorts of devices.

The moulded plug is also left hanging in the socket, which means there is an easily accessible live point right there on their desktop. And why were they using it when the sockets have USB outlets on them anyway?

The worst case... the thing could have set fire to the property in which it is located... someone could have been electrocuted at worst or severely burned.

I hope you're insurance covers you for the supply of faulty products.

Just out of interest, was it the same type of charger that exploded when you asked about inspection/testing etc. back in March because you felt your landlord was ripping you off? If so, did you sell this one after that?

 

[Marvo]

Is that USB cable a male-to-male with one end plugged into the charger and the other plugged into the USB outlet in the socket?

Bad Idea....

 

[SparkyChick]

Is that USB cable a male-to-male with one end plugged into the charger and the other plugged into the USB outlet in the socket?

Bad Idea....

Have to admit I did wonder that but ruled it out thinking no one could be that stupid... I could be wrong

 

[Marvo]

The cheap nasty plug-in charger should have been made with internal physical separation between the high voltage circuit and the low voltage circuit, it should also have had internal protection to prevent that type of damage.

I'd guess if you sold it in good faith that it was fit for purpose and it was used outside of your control then you wouldn't be legally liable for its performance. For useful legal advice I'd suggest the citizens advice bureau....if you still have them in the UK.

 

[Marvo]

Have to admit I did wonder that but ruled it out thinking no one could be that stupid... I could be wrong

When it comes to the depth of stupidity, from bitter experience I find assumptions are best avoided....

 

[Marvo]

The question occurs to me as to why you'd even be using the plug-in charger when there's at least 4 USB outlets in the sockets it was plugged into.....

 

[Marvo]

Thinking about it, it's an inherrent issue with USB cables that you often get a male plug on both sides. This is almost unheard of with any other type of power cable including ELV because it specifically prevents one power source being directly connected to another. I guess USB primarily started life as a data connection so it wasn't necessary to follow this protocol in its original design. Maybe with it regularly being used for power supply nowadays it would be a good idea to revisit the design.

 

[SparkyChick]

Thinking about it, it's an inherrent issue with USB cables that you often get a male plug on both sides. This is almost unheard of with any other type of power cable including ELV because it specifically prevents one power source being directly connected to another. I guess USB primarily started life as a data connection so it wasn't necessary to follow this protocol in its original design. Maybe with it regularly being used for power supply nowadays it would be a good idea to revisit the design.

I'd never thought about that aspect of it because all the USB leads I have are male to female or mixed size male to male for phone charging etc. and the adapters are normally just the standard USB (type A is it) socket.

 

[Des 56]

Is this the second explosion that's being highlighted
Correct me if I am wrong

Originally the issue was a compensation case for costs incurred by a landlord for damage to an outlet by a tenants faulty charger
This current case is compensation being claimed off the tenant for the sale of an exploding charger to a n other

What is going on in the world of usb chargers, or more to the point,what is going on in the world of compensation claims ?

You blew up a usb and damaged a socket,then sold this charger to a n other for a n other to now make a claim against you

 

[David M]

Is it my eyes? the base plate of the charger appears to be still plugged in - exposing the live terminal. Most likely cause of getting the electric shock, especially if the circuit protection device did not trip, or they reset it while the socket was still switched on and that part of the charger is still plugged in.

 

[Sooby2]

The question occurs to me as to why you'd even be using the plug-in charger when there's at least 4 USB outlets in the sockets it was plugged into.....

It looks like a fake Apple charger and some Apple stuff doesn't like non-proprietary chargers. So I guess the guy bought it thinking it was genuine and would deliver genuine Apple electricity to his device.

 

[Rpa07]

Quite an amusing other thread. I got nothing to say except 'learn from mistakes in your past' if one blew up before - don't buy or use the same type.
Where's the emoji with the head banging the wall when you need it.

 

[Pat H]

Lots of these chargers around. Mostly from China.
They often have no fuses or protection in them.
Basically you are buying kit outside the EU with no checks on safety.
We are happy to moan about EU rules but without them this is what you get. The drive to the bottom for price with safety not even a consideration.

 

[Flanders]

Here Rpa you can use mine

 

[westward10]

Anyone selling these fake chargers want more than being sued. They know the cost of genuine products and are fully aware they are fake and likely to be dangerous. I can only describe these individuals as parasites, that is being kind.

 

[Marvo]

^^ agreed, I've come across a lot of these cheap chargers that have either melted or burst into flames. I have a special shelf for chargers in our house and the sockets there are on a timer because I don't trust the chargers to be powered up when nobody is around or everone is sleeping. There's also a smoke alarm above the shelf. Paranoid.....maybe but I've seen the aftermath of numerous charger fires, some of them even genuine chargers, over the past few years and I personally think they're high risk items.

 

[DPG]

The problem is these days that the fakes can be hard to spot. Also they can end up in legitimate supply chains, as has also happened with counterfeit car parts.

 

[DPG]

Agree with Marvo's post. Can't be too careful. Certainly don't leave chargers plugged in when you go out or go to bed.