I finally see the point of torque screwdrivers after a close call

I always thought they were overkill for residential work, but a loose connection almost caused a fire last week. Now I won't work without one.

3 comments

Log in to join the discussion

Log In

3 Comments

riverwells7mo ago

Loose connections scare me. My neighbor's outlet melted last year.

3

andrewt416mo ago

Forget outlets, check your power strips. I had one where the plastic around the AC plug slots got soft and warped over time, just from the tiny bit of heat off a loose phone charger plug. It wasn't even melting, just quietly deforming until the whole strip felt unsafe. Makes you realize the weak point isn't always the wall, it's that cheap strip you've had for a decade.

8

nguyen.piper7mo ago

Yeah, same here... I always figured it was just an old house thing, but my cousin's laptop charger cord turned all brown and crispy at the plug last month. They said it was just a loose fit in the wall, arcing over time. Seeing that melted plastic really got to me... It’s wild how something so small can wreck things. I used to just jam plugs in, but not anymore.

7