Does your dollar store extension cord provide enough power to run your vacuum cleaner? Do you need to plug your printer into a surge protector? If you're using the same kind of extension cord to pick up slack for your entire apartment, you're doing it wrong. Every piece of tech in your house—from the hair dryer to your laptop—has different needs for its power supply.
If you need a cheat sheet for sourcing the right size, or "gauge," of extension cord for a specific device, tech blog Gizmodo has come to the rescue. Using resources from the National Electric Code, they've de-mystified the process of choosing sufficient cords around your home.
As a general rule, anything that provides heat, like a hair dryer or space heater needs a ton of power. Usually, it's not safe to plug those into an extension cord at all. But most small household appliances can get a little extra range with a basic 14-gauge, three-prong cord.
• Read More: How to Choose The Right Extension Cord for Anything from Gizmodo
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Thanks so much for sharing this! I don't know anything about this kind of stuff and it never occured to me that I should be choosing different extension cords. My hair dryer and toaster oven are both plugged into extension cords and apparently that's a no-no! I did notice my lights dim for a moment when I turned my hair dryer on the other day......probably shoulda thought about that one for a moment.
Heat appliances are too strong for typical *indoor* extension cords, but there's no reason you can't use a heavy-duty outdoor cord inside.
Warning. This list is for USA only. In most other parts of the world (now few Americans are scratching their heads, wondering what I mean :D ) the voltage is double than what they use in USA. This means that for the same power the current is halved so you can use much smaller "gauge" wire for similar products, like toaster and hair dryers. Also "gauge" has little meaning outside USA, most of the rest of the world use better ways of measuring wire thickness.
If the lights dim when you turn something on it is not the fault of the extension cord you're using (unless the lights are also on the same extension cord). You might have faulty wiring in your house and you should have it checked by a professional.
"most of the rest of the world use better ways of measuring wire thickness"
And yet another non-US snob. Why do you delusional losers always think you're somehow "better"? You're not better. It's called being delusional to make up for what you're lacking.. Also "gauge" is defined way of measuring and therefore another method will not be better. Next this was obviously written for people in the U.S., note it's not written in some other language. You snobs really need to be blocked from using the popular internet sites in the US, as you tend to litter them with your nonsense. If only there was a way...