Power strip or no power strip

[mahdnc]

We are aboard Xpedition right now and every stateroom is provided with an extension cord.  Ours is surge protected.  My guess is that they all are. 

 

 

 

Same thing with our FV (now UD) cabin on Constellation in Oct 2022--the cabin had a surge protected power strip which was supplied by the ship.

 

 

Edited November 25, 2023 by mahdnc

[awhfy]

2 hours ago, hrhdhd said:

See post #6. This is not an approved device.

We use this one for our past 10 cruises, never an issue 

[NutsAboutGolf]

1 hour ago, kwokpot said:

People need a multi USB port hub which aren't power strips. People are looking for the WRONG SOLUTIONS. These are what people should bring, not a power strip 

I would imagine for most this is true but there is a minority who lock their phone in the safe and need to use a CPAP.  On the older ships, the only outlet is too far away by the desk

[Honolulu Blue]

50 minutes ago, mahdnc said:

We are aboard Xpedition right now and every stateroom is provided with an extension cord.  Ours is surge protected.  My guess is that they all are. 

 

 

 

Same thing with our FV (now UD) cabin on Constellation in Oct 2022--the cabin had a surge protected power strip which was supplied by the ship.

I'm bringing in the Chief on this, @chengkp75. I am shocked and appalled that ANY crew member on ANY cruise line would actually GIVE OUT a surge protector for use in a passenger cabin. Maybe I'm missing something and this is NOT a strip with a surge protector. But it sure looks like one to my untrained eyes.

[mahdnc]

5 hours ago, Honolulu Blue said:

I'm bringing in the Chief on this, @chengkp75. I am shocked and appalled that ANY crew member on ANY cruise line would actually GIVE OUT a surge protector for use in a passenger cabin. Maybe I'm missing something and this is NOT a strip with a surge protector. But it sure looks like one to my untrained eyes.

Be prepared to be shocked and appalled then.  During our last cruise on Constellation (Oct 2022) I found a 3-prong, surge-protected power strip installed inside a cabinet underneath our stateroom television.  It was put there because there was only one outlet available inside the cabinet while two outlets were needed--one for the TV and one for a component that worked with the TV.  It had the words "AV Dept" hand written on it in black Sharpie.

chengkp75 confirmed that it was surge protected. 

 

 

 

Edited November 25, 2023 by mahdnc

[Honolulu Blue]

18 minutes ago, mahdnc said:

Be prepared to be shocked and appalled then.  During our last cruise on Constellation (Oct 2022) I found a 3-prong, surge-protected power strip installed inside a cabinet underneath our stateroom television.  It was put there because there was only one outlet available inside the cabinet while two outlets were needed--one for the TV and one for a component that worked with the TV.  It had the words "AV Dept" hand written on it in black Sharpie.

chengkp75 confirmed that it was surge protected. 

 

 

 

Thank you for the story, the pictures, and the link. I continue to be speechless about this.

[mahdnc]

1 minute ago, Honolulu Blue said:

Thank you for the story, the pictures, and the link. I continue to be speechless about this.

It’s possible that the surge feature has been disabled.  

[chengkp75]

14 hours ago, markeb said:

No. Do not get that. At all. 
 

Those are all buzzwords for Surge Protection. Which you don’t need and is a fire hazard. And 3 of the four USB ports are horribly underpowered USB A ports. For the rest of our sakes, that should be confiscated immediately. 

No, they are not "all buzzwords for surge protection".  All of these relate to "overcurrent", which is just a "buzzword" for "circuit breaker".  Surge protection means overvoltage protection, and voltage and current are two totally different things.  Overcurrent protection and surge protection handle the abnormal situations differently, and this is the problem with surge protection.  I won't get into the details of how and why, I will just say that your statement is categorically wrong.

[hcat]

1 hour ago, mahdnc said:

Be prepared to be shocked and appalled then.  During our last cruise on Constellation (Oct 2022) I found a 3-prong, surge-protected power strip installed inside a cabinet underneath our stateroom television.  It was put there because there was only one outlet available inside the cabinet while two outlets were needed--one for the TV and one for a component that worked with the TV.  It had the words "AV Dept" hand written on it in black Sharpie.

chengkp75 confirmed that it was surge protected. 

 

 

 

so much for going unplugged on vacay!

 

we use manual and battery tooth brushes.. non elec razors.  It's just the tablet (downloaded reading) and phone (for  photos only) that we need to charge)  The hair dryer need not stay plugged in.

 

other than med devices, maybe folks can  cut back for safety!

[chengkp75]

I will confirm that the two instances mentioned above do, in fact, show surge protected power strips.  I, too, am amazed that Celebrity has provided these (and there is no way to "disable" the surge protection, short of breaking the unit to get inside), and anyone who finds one should immediately report this to the Hotel Director, personally, and request that in the interest of safety that the ship provide a non-surge protected power strip.

 

And, while it is almost impossible to tell in the photos, it appears that the black power strip does not have the "protected" LED lit, which means the surge protection MOV's have burned out, but are still in the unit, and may be even more dangerous than a fully working surge protector.

[Z'Loth]

If you are wondering WHY surge protectors are prohibited on marine vessels, see this PDF from the United States Coast Guard. Essentially, the outlets are wired so that each of the two slots are 60v on each blade in a DELTA configuration while the ground outlets have 120v on one blade and 0v (essentially "ground") on the other blade in a WYE configuration. Surge protectors are designed for land use where, if the protector goes off, it dumps the voltage to the ground blade. 

 

If you need to plug multiple devices, you should look at a power splitter cord instead of a surge protector. Alternatively, if you need to charge multiple devices, check out this multiport charging station with rapid charging ports. This particular model works with both 120v and 240v with the proper cable. 

[chengkp75]

My personal recommendation is to take a multi-port USB hub (that has no power outlets on it) and plug this into the 220v outlet with an outlet converter.  Then use a simple rubber 3-way outlet splitter (no cord just plugs into the outlet and has 3 outlets) for your 120v needs.

[zitsky]

11 hours ago, miched said:

We were recently in a Corner SS on the Silhouette.   We could not find any outlets.   The cabin attendant showed us that there was one plug under the desk.  There were 2 USB ports in the base of a lamp.   There was also an electrical outlet in the bathroom that amazingly didn’t kick out my water pick.   It was a challengetrying to charge a IPad, Apple Watch, and IPhone that both of us had.  
 

Happy cruising 🌊🚢🇺🇸🌅

Ok so I read it again.

 

So there were only two electrical outlets plus 2 USB ports in a Sky Suite?

 

Did your cabin have a charging box and where there any 220V outlets?

 

I use one of these multi connection USB chargers.

 

Anker 40W 4-Port USB Wall Charger...

 

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00VH8G1SY?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share

[mahdnc]

1 hour ago, chengkp75 said:

I will confirm that the two instances mentioned above do, in fact, show surge protected power strips.  I, too, am amazed that Celebrity has provided these (and there is no way to "disable" the surge protection, short of breaking the unit to get inside), and anyone who finds one should immediately report this to the Hotel Director, personally, and request that in the interest of safety that the ship provide a non-surge protected power strip.

 

And, while it is almost impossible to tell in the photos, it appears that the black power strip does not have the "protected" LED lit, which means the surge protection MOV's have burned out, but are still in the unit, and may be even more dangerous than a fully working surge protector.

What does it mean when the protection LED becomes lit when the power strip is turned off?

 

[miched]

58 minutes ago, zitsky said:

Ok so I read it again.

 

So there were only two electrical outlets plus 2 USB ports in a Sky Suite?

 

Did your cabin have a charging box and where there any 220V outlets?

 

I use one of these multi connection USB chargers.

 

Anker 40W 4-Port USB Wall Charger...

 

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00VH8G1SY?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share

It is a Corner Sunset SS. The outlet is under the desk behind the chair indicated by the red arrow.  This is on the Silhouette.  There was no outlet box.  I doubt you would find the outlet if someone didn’t show you where it was.  
 

Happy cruising 🌊🚢🇺🇸🌅

 

 

Edited November 25, 2023 by miched

[zitsky]

5 minutes ago, miched said:

It is a Corner Sunset SS. The outlet is under the desk behind the chair indicated by the red arrow.  This is on the Silhouette.  There was no outlet box.  I doubt you would find the outlet if someone didn’t show you where it was.  
 

Happy cruising 🌊🚢🇺🇸🌅

 

 

“I doubt you would find the outlet if someone didn’t show you where it was.”

 

Well I would just look for the red arrow showing me where the outlets are.  🧐

[NutsAboutGolf]

47 minutes ago, mahdnc said:

What does it mean when the protection LED becomes lit when the power strip is turned of

 

That your surge protector is functioning correctly and is providing protection to the devices you have connected to

[someguyfl]

2 hours ago, chengkp75 said:

My personal recommendation is to take a multi-port USB hub (that has no power outlets on it) and plug this into the 220v outlet with an outlet converter.  Then use a simple rubber 3-way outlet splitter (no cord just plugs into the outlet and has 3 outlets) for your 120v needs.

My similar recommendation is this:
https://www.amazon.com/European-Adapter-Adaptor-Countries-Netherlands/dp/B008JCVF0U/ref=sr_1_122?keywords=european%2Btravel%2Bplug%2Badapter&th=1

Anything I travel with is 100V-240V (read the markings on the device/charger!), so will work just as efficient, if not more efficient with 240V. (Generally speaking ... higher voltage means lower amperage, which means less waste heat).

This adapter gives you one grounded and two ungrounded american-style outlets from one european outlet. Between that and the two regular american-style outlets, it should be plenty for plugging in all devices.

[markeb]

2 hours ago, chengkp75 said:

No, they are not "all buzzwords for surge protection".  All of these relate to "overcurrent", which is just a "buzzword" for "circuit breaker".  Surge protection means overvoltage protection, and voltage and current are two totally different things.  Overcurrent protection and surge protection handle the abnormal situations differently, and this is the problem with surge protection.  I won't get into the details of how and why, I will just say that your statement is categorically wrong.

 

Thanks for the correction. I've gotten so in tune to this that I can get off track. Looks like I did.

 

Is there any need for or harm in a traditional circuit breaker on ship's power? I'd get the details wrong, but as you say that should be a totally different mechanism than surge protection.

[chengkp75]

58 minutes ago, mahdnc said:

What does it mean when the protection LED becomes lit when the power strip is turned off?

It means that while the circuit breaker has interrupted current to the devices plugged into the strip, the power cord and the internal circuit of the power strip, up until the circuit breaker has a functioning surge protection circuit.  Surge comes from "upstream" (the ship's outlet and the power strip cord plugged into it), so whether the circuit breaker is turned off or on, the surge protector is doing what it is designed to do.

[chengkp75]

3 minutes ago, markeb said:

 

Thanks for the correction. I've gotten so in tune to this that I can get off track. Looks like I did.

 

Is there any need for or harm in a traditional circuit breaker on ship's power? I'd get the details wrong, but as you say that should be a totally different mechanism than surge protection.

No, there is no harm from a circuit breaker in a power strip, and of course there is a need for one to prevent overloading and fire (power strip breakers are rated 15 amp, while ship's outlet circuits are rated for 20 amp, so you could overload the power strip and not trip the ship's circuit breaker, so the power strip breaker is better.

 

The big problem with US consumer type power strips, like those shown, is that the circuit breaker only interrupts the "hot" (black) lead.  On a ship, both "hot" and "neutral" (white) are at a voltage above ground, so if your hair dryer develops a ground fault, you could still be in danger of a shock because the current would continue to flow from the "neutral" to ground.

[markeb]

6 minutes ago, chengkp75 said:

The big problem with US consumer type power strips, like those shown, is that the circuit breaker only interrupts the "hot" (black) lead.  On a ship, both "hot" and "neutral" (white) are at a voltage above ground, so if your hair dryer develops a ground fault, you could still be in danger of a shock because the current would continue to flow from the "neutral" to ground.

 

That's what I was wondering and suspected.

 

Had a geometry/trig professor years ago who loved what he called the "looks like theorem". Two lines, look the same length, angles look the same, etc. and must therefore be the same. Obviously not true. I find that disturbingly true with electricity on a ship. I "looks like" my outlet at home, it must be the same...

[Charles4515]

16 hours ago, NutsAboutGolf said:

USB-C to USB-A adapter or cable which ironically can cost more than an extension cord especially if its an Apple device

I had to buy one for my car as it has USB A and not USB C. Bought a cable not an adapter. All my devices are USB C now so those USB ports on ships and hotel rooms are useless. I was just on a road trip and none of the hotels had USB C. But on the other hand all the devices with USB C fast charge so I don't really need multi outlets anymore. I can charge them one after the other with  one regular outlet. On a ship I have a Euro plug adapter so I can charge from that plug plus the US outlet. That is usually three mains which is enough.

[nijh]

For the cpap - tell Celebrity Special Needs you’re bringing one and they will provide the power strip.  Just takes emailing a form to them.

[cruisestitch]

20 hours ago, NutsAboutGolf said:

 

You're welcome back anytime.  I'm saying not true with your comment that there are plenty.  Also there are some people who need an extension for medical purposes such as a CPAP.  While there are SOME on board, they're first come first serve so good luck getting one unless someone wants to be one of the first ones on the ship

Don’t wait until you get on board to request one. Contact the special-needs department and they will make sure that you have one waiting for you in your state room or it will be delivered shortly by the housekeeping staff along with distilled water.