Broken plug pin in the socket

calleyw

I took out a 3 way plug out of a wall socket yesterday and its a left one pin in the top hole.


Silly question how do I remove it as I can no longer use the socket.


Thanks in Advance


Yours


Calley x

Fire_Fox

Buy another socket, turn the electricity off at the consumer unit/ circuit breaker and swap them over?

Robin9

calleyw wrote: »

I took out a 3 way plug out of a wall socket yesterday and its a left one pin in the top hole.

When you've repaired the socket - throw this adapter away !

Get an electrician to fit additional sockets rather than use adapters.

thorganby

calleyw wrote: »

I took out a 3 way plug out of a wall socket yesterday and its a left one pin in the top hole.


Silly question how do I remove it as I can no longer use the socket.


Thanks in Advance


Yours


Calley x

It appears that posters #2 & #3 have not read the original post correctly, which clearly states that "one pin has been left in the top hole".

The socket does not require replacing because the adapter has broken.

The top plug pin simply needs pulling out with pliers if necessary and the "3 way plug" adapter discarded.

ciderboy2009

thorganby wrote: »

The top plug pin simply needs pulling out with pliers if necessary and the "3 way plug" adapter discarded.

Can I just add - "After turning off the power at the consumer unit" to the beginning of this.

It may sound obvious but I've seen somebody try this with the power on and then wonder why they got one hell of an electric shock!

thorganby

ciderboy2009 wrote: »

Can I just add - "After turning off the power at the consumer unit" to the beginning of this.

It may sound obvious but I've seen somebody try this with the power on and then wonder why they got one hell of an electric shock!

What is obvious to anyone who actually understands our UK BS 1363 13A plugs, is that the top pin is earth, so "turning off the power at the consumer unit" is not necessary.

onomatopoeia99

ciderboy2009 wrote: »

Can I just add - "After turning off the power at the consumer unit" to the beginning of this.

It may sound obvious but I've seen somebody try this with the power on and then wonder why they got one hell of an electric shock!

I can imagine they would be surprised, getting a shock from the earth pin.

onomatopoeia99

Despite my previous post, the advice to isolate the circuit is sound, you never know what spectacular bodges lurk in household wiring.

Robin9

onomatopoeia99 wrote: »

Despite my previous post, the advice to isolate the circuit is sound, you never know what spectacular bodges lurk in household wiring.

I agree - you don't know how it is broken and what loose bits might be lying around in the socket.

Quite how you break the earth pin which is a lump of solid metal and molded to the multiway plug I don't know.

unforeseen

You have metal moulded into plastic. Plastic breaks quite easily if force is applied incorrectly. Or even if dropped at some point then there is a crack that eventually gave way.

ed110220

thorganby wrote: »

What is obvious to anyone who actually understands our UK BS 1363 13A plugs, is that the top pin is earth, so "turning off the power at the consumer unit" is not necessary.

For the sake of avoiding the effort of flipping a switch in the consumer unit, do you really want to risk being electrocuted? There is no guarantee debris from the breakage hasn't entered the back of the face plate and lodged in, bridged or otherwise interfered with the electrical contacts.