Category: Plugs & Receptacles

Understanding Different Power Cord Connectors: A Comprehensive Overview

Power cord connectors come in all shapes and sizes. They have many uses across a wide array of industries for many different applications. Knowing which connector suits your project is essential to avoid creating electrical hazards. This overview will help you determine which cable connecter or power adapter is suitable for your needs.

Initial consideration

Before you can determine which type of connector is correct for your power cords and electrical cables, you’ll need to consider a variety of factors. Each type of connector has its unique properties.

Voltage

Power cable connectors can be categorized by their ability to carry voltage. The three main categories of classification for connectors and their capacities are:

  • Light-duty: up to 250V
  • Medium-duty: up to 1,000V
  • Heavy-duty: hundreds of kV
Continue reading Understanding Different Power Cord Connectors: A Comprehensive Overview

What is Piggybacking an Outlet?

Piggybacking an outlet describes passing power from one plug into another. The piggyback plug has both male pins and a female receptacle. The male connecter is plugged into an outlet or power source, and an additional source can then plug into its female receptacle. Piggybacking involves adding extra electrical plugs or devices to the original outlet’s receptacles to expand the number of available electrical connections.

Piggybacking Benefits For Outlets & Wall Sockets

Piggybacking uses an additional electrical device by plugging into an existing outlet, usually by an adapter or power strip.
Piggyback designs are space-saving features that allow devices to be powered while leaving the outlet or receptacle free to power other appliances. This is crucial when your equipment must not power down or requires ongoing electricity. It’s quick, easy, and space-efficient.
A piggyback cord allows you to tap into the AC power outlet and an additional piece of equipment while maintaining a usable AC power outlet.

Continue reading What is Piggybacking an Outlet?

A Guide to International Power Cords and Plug Types

At Quail Electronics, we supply commercial and industrial customers worldwide with premium electronic products. As an electronic component manufacturer, we produce high-performance power cords, adapters & converter plugs, and other electronic resources that meet international requirements. This guide will provide insight into the various international power cords and plug types styles.

CEI 23-16 ITALIAN_BLACK.jpg

Plug Types for Each Global Region

There are 15 different models of plugs in the international market. It’s important to note that while most countries have primary plug styles, other plug types may also be utilized due to variations or exceptions in specific regions or electrical installations. Always double-check the power requirements and plug types for the location you are visiting to ensure compatibility with your devices.

Continue reading A Guide to International Power Cords and Plug Types

Identifying Male and Female

For electrical power cords, technicians refer to the ends as male and female. The male being the plug and the female being the receptacle or socket.

Almost every electronic device that you use in your home or office or anywhere for that matter, have ends that come in male and female components. I bet you’re a little confused as to what that means. This standard design ensures that one end fits only with the opposite gender, helping to regulate cables for power and digital signals.

The male differs from the female in that it has one or more projecting pins designed as a live contact, a neutral contact, and an optional earth (ground) contact, separated by a plastic insulator. The female has one or more sockets just big enough to accept the male pins and provides a connection point that delivers electricity once the plug is placed into it. Males can also have 2-3 conductors (pins) and females also, can have 2-3 holes (sockets).

The images below show an IEC connector that refers to the power supply inlet which is commonly seen on desktop PC power supplies.

C14 (male) power inlet, the gender of the end is defined by the pins within the hood – either 2 or 3 conductors

c14 end

Continue reading Identifying Male and Female

The Difference between C13 and C15

The power cord industry can be confusing. But the more you know, the better. Today we will discuss the differences between IEC-C13 and C15 connectors.

First, the obvious difference is the notch on the C15 connector. It is similar in form to the C13, except with a notch opposite the earth in the C15 connector. IEC-C15 connectors will work in the C14 inlets however,
IEC-C13 connectors won’t fit into C16 inlets. Think of it like this: an electric kettle cord can be used to power a computer, but an unmodified computer cord cannot be used to power the kettle.

c13blog      c15blog

Second, the Ic15bloggEC-C15 differs from the C13 because of the temperature rating. These C15 connectors are specifically designed for higher temperature devices, for example: electric kettles, computing networking closets or server rooms, and PoE (Power over Ethernet) switches with higher wattage power supplies. The temperature rating for these connectors is 120°C. Continue reading The Difference between C13 and C15

GFCI Plug: A Cord For A Safe Surge

NEMA 5-15P GFCI_BLACKEver made a mistake and wish life had a reset button? In the power cord industry, Quail Electronics understands that life isn’t perfect. However, when dealing with electrical equipment, safety is a vital frame of thought we take seriously when powering your items. Regardless of the utility, assuring a safe solution in your home to potential health hazards from electronics is an important topic that necessitates just the right powering configuration. A ground fault circuit interrupter, or a GFCI, is a device that is designed primarily to prevent electric shock. GFCI outlets are often found in living rooms, kitchens and bathrooms.

You’ve probably noticed a GFCI near your sink area. The device automatically disables an electric circuit when it detects that electrical current is flowing along an unintended path. The GFCI measures the current leaving the hot side of a power source and juxtaposing it with the current returning to the neutral side. Any discrepancy in electric current flowing will activate the GFCI and shut the power off. If there is any imbalance, the GFCI trips the circuit. It is able to sense an electrical current mismatch as small as 4 milliamps, and it may react as quickly as 1/30th of a second. Continue reading GFCI Plug: A Cord For A Safe Surge

We Got Your Piggyback – No More Squealing!

PiggybackACBunk beds. Cargo pants. Perhaps even rearranging that walk-in closet into a storage unit. We’re always looking to find ways to save space while increasing efficiency. With this in mind, Quail Electronics proudly offers a space-saving solution for your power cord needs. The piggyback plug will allow you to tap into the AC power outlet and power a piece of equipment holiding a usable AC power outlet. Continue reading We Got Your Piggyback – No More Squealing!

I come from a land down under – the great wall – socket

“Paper or plastic?” We’ve all been asked this paradoxical quandary at the checkout counter. Both are similar in nature, and serve the same purpose. However, both are mutually exclusive, and derive from different materials. Yet, either solution offers strikingly similar functionality.

This is also true in the power cord industry. As a worldwide leader in power cord configurations, Quail provides scores of North American and international combinations to fulfil your home or office’s electrical solutions. Two power cord configurations from cross-continental hemispheres in particular may appear identical in design, yet are fraternal in operation. After all, everybody knows you don’t play ping pong with a boomerang.

The Australian three-blade conductor power cord mirrors its Chinese three-pronged equivalent for domestic or industrial power cord configurations. Despite their similar architecture, the primary difference is the Australian model features insulated live and neutral blades. Continue reading I come from a land down under – the great wall – socket