My daughter was unplugging her laptop's power cord from an outlet in her room. It's a three-prong plug and the center prong broke off and was stuck in the outlet. I was able to remove it safely, but my question is this. Can she continue to use the power cord safely with just the two remaining prongs? She would prefer to not have to buy another power cord because they're kind of pricey and hard to find for her laptop. The laptop company, Tangent, went out of business which is why the cords are hard to find. She plans to replace the laptop itself in a few more months when she graduates from college and becomes gainfully employed. (Aren't I the optimist!) Any feedback will be appreciated.
Power cord question
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She'd have to be grounded, and have an internal short between the [metal] computer case and the hot side of the line for her to get a shock. If there was such a short, the computer would have tripped the breaker.
And if the now-ungrounded computer is plugged into a GFCI outlet it is even safer.
Why not just put a grounded plug on the end of the cord, available from any h/w store?
http://images.orgill.com/200x200/2849271.jpg
When you make the repair, pay attention to what color cord wires go to which prongs (ground, short slot[hot side], long slot[neutral]) of the existing plug so you can duplicate the connections. The conductor colors might be white, black and green.
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Post a pic of the end plug
Might be a good idea to put a new end on it
The only exposed metal on my laptop is the screws that hold things together
I myself would not be concerned with using it for a few more months
Might be a good idea to put a new end on it
The only exposed metal on my laptop is the screws that hold things together
I myself would not be concerned with using it for a few more months
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And to skip the risk lecture, don't click on the link below:laughing:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zero-risk_bias
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Tangent probably was using a generic cord. If it's detachable post a pic of the machine end...if it's just a straight cord or if it's part of a battery charger it may also detach. Send us a pic and drop the model number in if you decide not to replace the plug.
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I skipped it
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One of the problems with a missing ground on a computer is that the noise filtering built into the computer is no longer effective. Chances of getting shocked is very slim because the 120 vac only goes to a power supply not the body of the computer.
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With no ground, line to line transients should still be suppressed, but these might be in the minority.
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Come on folks! Let's be realistic. The ground on the plug likely runs to a shield around the power supply circuit board, and no further. I would say that there is ZERO electric shock hazard from this particular lost ground. The ground is likely included to reduce noise generated by the switching power supply. So without, grandma's AM radio is a little buzzy. No one is going to die if some static drowns out Rush Limbaugh.
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Component created electrical noise, static, and induced signals are also filtered to ground in a computer. The loss of ground removes that filtering and can lead to data corruption. Line noise is generally taken care of in the power supply. This is the only real problem with lose of ground and definitely not a safety issue for the user.
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Right, but a laptop is designed to operate on a battery, with absolutely no connection to ground, so a laptop without a ground is fine. A desktop without a ground is another matter, IMO.
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Unless it has in internal power supply which is not used while the battery is in use. If it has an external power supply you may be correct.
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Most laptops operate with some sort of power supply unit contained within the cord.
The output of which is probably 12 Volt DC or thereabouts.
If this is the case, then the lack of a grounding connection in the line cord probably won't much any difference in its normal operation.
The output of which is probably 12 Volt DC or thereabouts.
If this is the case, then the lack of a grounding connection in the line cord probably won't much any difference in its normal operation.
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