> **
>
>
> Appliances are "grounded" to earth for safety/
>
> If an appliance isn't earthedd then if the appliance suffered some damage
> that caused a short circuit between the mains power and the case of the
> appliance, the damage would make the case live and it would cause an
> electrical shock to anyone who touched it.
>
> If the case is earthed, if that same damage occurred the mains would be
> shorted to ground and in theory cause the fuse to blow or circuit breaker to
> trip, thus eliminating the danger of a live case.
>
> Many items nowadays have entirely plastic cases and thus the risk of
> electrical shock due to short is nil thus its perfectly reasonable for
> manufacturers to not provide an earth as there is no need from a safety
> perspective.
>
> Regards
> Mike
>
>
> --- In [hidden email], "svetaswan" <svetaswan@...> wrote:
> >
> > Hi,
> >
> > It's not difficult to notice that many electronics and electrical
> appliances that are sold today come with 2-prong power cords (ungrounded) -
> as opposed to the 3-pronged cords that have a prong that connects to
> "ground". Even some relatively-large, major electronics - like TVs, and
> VCR-DVD combo players - are manufactured with 2-pronged cords. Why are so
> many electronics manufacturers opting for the 2-pronged power cords over
> 3-pronged cords? Is it simply a matter of cost-cutting?
> >
> > Are there reasons other than cost-related ones why manufacturers would
> opt for the 2-prong power cord? Are there actually any benefits to having a
> 2-prong cord?
> >
> > I recently bought this VCR-DVD-recorder combo that - unfortunately - I
> often feel when it's in operation (or when it's simply powered on). Back in
> the "good old days" - I would have 2 VCRs in my room at the same time (and
> one of those VCRs was a dual-deck one) with no obvious problems - so I
> didn't really anticipate that this VCR-DVD player would give me symptoms.
> And I noticed, despite it being a relatively-large device (by today's
> standards) that I guess uses a fair amount of power - it has a 2-pronged
> power cord. I'm wondering if figuring out some way to "ground" this device
> would make a difference.
> >
> > But I don't want to do anything to harm or shorten the lifespan of these
> devices. Would "grounding" a device that isn't "supposed" to be grounded
> (that wasn't manufactured with a grounded cord) be harmful?
> >
> > Thanks,
> >
> > ~Svetaswan
> >
>
>  
>