Plugs and fuses

Question	Answer
All the wires in a plug are colour coded	Image: 68_wiring_a_plug.gif (image/gif)
LIVE WIRE	The live wire is brown. It carries the voltage. It alternates between a high +ve and -ve voltage of about 230 V.
NEUTRAL WIRES	The neutral wire is blue and completes the circuit - electricity normally flows in through the live wire and out through the neutral wire. The neutral wire is always at 0 V.
EARTH WIRE	The earth wire is green and yellow. It works with the fuse (or circuit breaker) for safety.
Earthing	All appliances with metal cases must be "earthed" to reduce the danger of electric shock. "Earthing" just means the case must be attached to an earth wire. An earthed conductor can never become live - the earth wire stops appliances becoming live.
Double insulated appliance	If the appliance has a casing that's non-conductive (e.g. plastic) then it's said to be double insulated. Anything double insulated doesn't need an earth wire as it can't become live.

Resource summary

	Created by eibhlinjones200 almost 11 years ago