English plugs/French plugs

Hi, not sure if this is right forum for this question but… we have a holiday home in Charente and have a number of small electric items in the UK which we could save money by taking to France, eg Kettle, toaster, air conditioner, table lamps etc.
Of course we could use adaptors, but just wondering if you can wire up an English item to a French plug?
Or maybe easier just to stick to adaptors at £2 each!
Thanks

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Yes you can buy re-wireable French plugs, just pop down to your local brico.

I bought some of mine from CPC in the UK but it doesn’t look like they do them any more - Farnell has a lot of stuff but I don’t see just the plugs. They do do moulded plug to wire ends though

If in any doubt as to your ability to wire the plug get an electrician to do it (but, at that point, you might as well just buy French stuff).

https://www.castorama.fr/search?Ntt=fiche&Nrpp=96

I bought a load from here:

https://www.lumimania.fr/legrand-50416-fiche-male-arrivee-laterale-230v-16a-2p-t-blanc/

They are Legrand so of good quality and way cheaper than the Brico.

Much better to cut off the UK plugs and replace them with French ones. The adaptors are only suitable for appliances with a very low current draw, radios shavers etc, definitely not for toasters or electric kettles !

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Use the adaptors. Otherwise you have to buy French plugs, chop off the UK plugs, strip the wires and screw them into the French plugs (will they have fuses?). Why bother?

Personally, I would change the plugs.

Having been involved in a ghastly House Fire aftermath - I am aware how closely the experts question every aspect of the electrics. :zipper_mouth_face:

Play safe, give them no “ammunition”. :wink:

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I am no goodie-two-shoes though. I do have one trailing lead with a French plug and two UK sockets.

The trailing lead is used at Christmas, for the tree lights and an illuminated decoration - both of which have great sentimental value.

The Experts told me in no uncertain terms - never to have a trailing lead with more than 2 sockets and NEVER use a trailing lead for anything other than minor electrics… and NEVER use the trailing lead as a “permanent fix” - get the job done properly! :zipper_mouth_face::upside_down_face:

Phew, thought I … just as well Christmas comes but once a year :thinking::rofl:

As with many things in life there isn’t a single solution which fits all sizes.

Anything with a mains lead which plugs into the equipment - i.e with an IEC “kettle” style plug, a cloverleaf plug or the 2-pin Phillips plug - just replace the lead in France, all of these are easy to find.

For small low current devices - phone chargers especially, by all means use adapters but aim to slowly replace with French equivalents.

Medium power hand held items (hair dryer if not too powerful) or (eg) kitchen appliances (say - mixers, hand whisks, coffee machines) - use adapters if you wish but make sure they are regularly inspected for signs of overheating.

Higher power items - microwaves, kettles - really should have a French plug.

Semi-permanently wired high power appliances - dishwashers, washing machines, tumble dryers - on no account use adapters - if you have no choice then inspect the adapter before each use for any sign of overheating and only then as a stop-gap measure while you sort out a long term solution - and do not leave unattended while in use. The problem with this sort of item is that the plugs usually wind up out of sight and there is a temptation to “fit and forget” which would be a mistake, the adapters are usually only rated to 10A and a dish washer, washing machine or drier will easily exceed this (typically each would be on a dedicated circuit from the tableau).

As Stella says a UK multiblock with a French plug attached is a useful item.

It is also possible - if you really can’t abandon or adapt your high power equipment, to buy a BS1363-style prise which conforms to the Normes - see https://www.legrand.fr/pro/catalogue/38190-standard-britannique/prise-de-courant-2pt-13a-standard-britannique-mosaic-2-modules-blanc but you will need an electrician to install that unless you are very confident at DIY electrics.

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Are UK-style sockets likely to remain acceptable/legal after Brexit, though?

Indeed, But, only to be used as a very short-term last resort, for light-weight electrics. :upside_down_face::thinking: Always unplug overnight and when house is empty.

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I don’t see Brexit affecting this one way or the other.

except that importing 3rd country electrical products which may not meet European norms may be interdit and subject to import controls :grin:

I was thinking specifically of the issue of adapting BS1363 plugs to use in a French house - sorry, concentrated on too narrow a focus.

For commercial imports yes, definitely - for import of personal items if making a permanent move to France less so I would think. Do existing citizens of non-EU countries get told to leave their electricals at the border?

I think the Duane are not backwards in coming forwards…

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Thank you for all your comments.
As indicated this would just be for small electrical items (not washing machines etc).
So a few table lamps, hairdryer, hand held electric mixer, maybe kettle…
Which can all be unplugged on departure from the house.
A bit like you would when going on holiday.
Thanks again.

I was thinking that, at the moment, items are marked with the CE mark to show they are EU acceptable.
Once the UK has left the EU, UK-style sockets will no longer bear this mark and so will no longer be able to be imported for use.

I don’t think items would necessarily lose CE marking - especially where manufactured outside the UK (or indeed within it) for sale both within the UK and EU - we’d have to diverge to the point that it became impossible to manufacture an item which was in compliance with both sets of regulations and I suspect that won’t happen. However it is likely that two sets of compliance checks would be needed.

Also - personal items for temporary import are normally accepted and I don’t see that changing either.

Nobody is going to check although if your house burns down because of dodgy foreign plugs linked to good honest French wiring obv your insurance company may decline to cough up.

Which is fair enough if they are the cause - but the question is whether they would use their presence as an excuse to not cough up, even if the actual cause was unrelated.