Wiring plugs
I can never get it right. When I was younger, I assumed that blue=live because blue is the colour of electricity, brown=earth because earth is brown and yellow/green is therefore neutral.

No matter how many mnemonics I learn or times I have to look it up, I always, always, have to phone my father.
(Unit, Thu 15 Jul 2010, 20:35, 15 replies)

FACT: The earth lead is striped so that colour-blind people have a foolproof way of distinguishing it from the other two.

( The Mock TurtIe ™ --- Thinks you are a cunt, on, Thu 15 Jul 2010, 20:38, closed)

colours
I agree!
I remember and preferred the old (British) wiring colours
Red was live (that made sense, red is for danger)
Black was neutral (Black, pretty neutral colour really)
Green was earth (well plants go in the earth and most of them are green)

If colour-blind people need stripes to know which cable it which I'd of thought putting stripes on live make more sense, after all that's the one that bites you!
(jethou1, Thu 15 Jul 2010, 22:20, closed)

If your colour blind
you could become a bomb disposal expert. Cut the red wire. No sorry. cut the red wire instead
(boarders You won't catch me with my trousers, Thu 15 Jul 2010, 22:38, closed)

"Looking it up"
You can also unscrew the plug from an appliance you know works, and copy that.

This would have been my submission for a 'top tip' before the days of info-matic search engines on everyone's personal pocket communicators.
( Marn, Thu 15 Jul 2010, 22:56, closed)

Fuck that
I've seen how some other people have wired stuff.

Blind leading the blind.
(waxdart hello., Fri 16 Jul 2010, 12:27, closed)

I know the colours
But still managed to put the neutral/earth mixed up on my cooker.

Spent a day swapping circuit breakers for higher rated ones, doing continuity tests on the wiring in the house, then tried to get into the cooker to test for a short....
( thistle, Thu 15 Jul 2010, 23:05, closed)

Just remember
Brown is live and is the colour of shit because that's what happens when you touch it
(libman, Fri 16 Jul 2010, 0:20, closed)

Use the spellings of the wire colour.
The BLue goes on the left, the BRown on the right.
Green (if it has it, so many don't nowadays) is alone at the top.

First 2 letters of BLue = B L (Blue Left)
First 2 letters of BRown = B R (Brown Right)
(Mensa Reject has gone out, I'll be back on, Fri 16 Jul 2010, 2:17, closed)

Does it make any difference with AC?
I'd thought that as long as you don't miix the earth with either of the others, then it'd be fine. Certainly worked out fine for me in Switzerland with their odd wiring schemes on the older plugs...
( Colonel Boris "...a desperate Buzzfeed imitation...", Fri 16 Jul 2010, 3:25, closed)

Yes, it does
Even though it's AC, the neutral line is tied to earth potential (although over long cable runs, some voltage can build up). The live then alternates + and - from the earth point. Most switches work in single pole mode, i.e. breaking the live line only.

If you swap the live and neutral, then you'll be breaking only the neutral line, so the equipment is effectively still live. It won't work because there's no circuit, but were you to rummage around inside, you'd be liable to get a shock.
( K2k6 has a proper job these days, Fri 16 Jul 2010, 8:30, closed)

Instead of calling your Dad ...
call an electrician. Pricey, but no burny burny.
(Que?, Fri 16 Jul 2010, 3:40, closed)

The way we got taught it at school was
A live brown bear stood on the green and yellow earth looking at a neutral blue sky.
(Iaino, Fri 16 Jul 2010, 9:24, closed)

Is blue the colour of electricity?
or is it just in your head?
( e.m.m.y. foxtrot uniform charlie kilo india tango, Fri 16 Jul 2010, 10:55, closed)

Explain this
www.youtube.com/watch?v=_xYQBTwP3t0
( Sextant goes to him is emotionally erect, on this day, Sat 17 Jul 2010, 17:32, closed)

Its going to kill you
if you can't remember that. STOP.
(waxdart hello., Fri 16 Jul 2010, 12:28, closed)