gs5556 " ... If your equipment -- like most equipment -- has a 15-amp connector (C-14 receptacle) then you cannot use a listed 20-amp cord because it will not fit."
Not necessarily - see the post from jea48. Some manufacturers use 20A cords on 15A gear - presumably to get a tighter connection from the 20A connector. ARC has done this. |
zephyr24069
" ... If you wind up in a situation where you have either a 15 amp or 20 amp cord you need to use and the component takes the opposite, check out Shunyata's high-end C20C15 or C15C20 converter plugs ... definitely can belong to any mid to high-end system ..."
I've seen these before, but putting a 15A connector on a component that really needs 20A current is ill-advised, at best. That's how fires start.
To be fair, some components use 20A plugs even though the component draws much less than 20A, or even 15A. In that case, there should be no problem using the adapter. |
asp307 OP " ... Regarding a twisted pair or standard cable to link the breaker to the outlet, any advantages or is it all about the grounding?"
I do not think that twisted pair is code, at least not in the US. |
jea48
"As for the current handling ability of a NEMA 5-15P 15 amp plug vs. a NEMA 5-20P 20 amp plug there isn’t any. If you look at the size of the hot and neutral blades they look exactly the same ..."
Quite so. But the issue is not the safety of the connector itself. It simply isn't safe to use an adapter to plug a device that requires 20A of current into a 15A outlet.
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A manufacture can build, and does, a power cord that has an IEC 20 amp female connector on one end and a 5-15P plug on the other end. "
Quite so. And, if the device itself draws 15A of current or less, that's perfectly safe.
Some manufacturers use 20A connectors - even though the component draws less than 15A of current - because the 20A connector is likely to make a tighter fit with the receptacle. ARC has done this.
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