Electrical appliances in everyday life

To operate household electrical appliances safely, you should check that the appliance is still in perfect condition before each use. If parts are loose or porous, the appliance should no longer be used. In this case, there are only two things you can do as a consumer: either have it repaired by a specialist or dispose of it. Please do not carry out any repairs yourself unless the safety instructions in the operating manual state otherwise. Under no circumstances should you continue to use an appliance with malfunctions or defective parts. Check your appliances regularly for damage such as chafed cables, loose contacts or broken housings.

When buying electrical products for your home, be it household, garden or entertainment appliances, you should always make sure that the quality and safety have been confirmed by a trustworthy institution. The VDE Institute tests and certifies a wide range of appliances for these properties. If an electrical appliance bears one of our VDE marks, you can be sure that you can use it without hesitation.

Short circuits, technical faults and electrical appliances that are not switched off in time are among the most common causes of fires in private households. Defective appliances or improper handling can set your home on fire in no time at all.

Most people describe the classic scenario of a short circuit with the phrase "The fuse has blown". On the surface this is true, but "the fuse blowing" is only the optimal result of a short circuit.

A short circuit occurs when electrical current has the ability to flow from one pole of the electrical source to the other without passing through an appliance. This can happen, for example, if insulation is defective or faulty or if water has penetrated the appliance. There is then almost no resistance to the electric current. This allows the current to flow unhindered from one pole to the other. The so-called short-circuit current has an enormously high amperage and can heat the conductors of electrical appliances to such an extent that a potential fire hazard arises or electrical appliances can break.

However, as every circuit within a building is usually protected by a so-called overcurrent protection device (fuse, automatic circuit breaker, miniature circuit breaker), the occurrence of a short circuit is an ideal case from the consumer's point of view. A proper electrical installation according to the usual rules of technology switches off the excessive current at this moment, sometimes in a fraction of a second, and protects you from the greatest dangers.

For consumers who want even more safety within their own four walls, the additional installation of a residual current device (RCD) is recommended. In contrast to fuses or circuit breakers, which only interrupt the circuit at higher currents in order to protect cables and wires from damage, residual current devices react to residual currents of no more than 30 mA.

In any case, the following applies: in the event of both a short circuit and tripping of the residual current circuit breaker, you should check your electrical products in the household and try to find the cause. Get help from qualified electricians if you are unsure!

VDE Verband der Elektrotechnik Elektronik Informationstechnik e.V. and its affiliated companies (hereinafter each “VDE”) provide non-binding information on consumer protection topics. These publications are intended solely to raise general awareness of consumer protection in relation to electrotechnical products and issues. They expressly do not constitute professional or technical advice. The information is provided the best of one's knowledge and belief without having evaluated the actual conditions at a specific location or of a specific product.

While VDE makes every reasonable effort to ensure that the information is correct and complete, it cannot assume liability nor any warranty (neither explicitly nor implicitly) for the correctness, completeness or topicality of the content of the information provided.

The information may only be applied with the understanding that VDE cannot be held liable for any direct or indirect damage or loss of any kind. The use of the information provided does not release the user from the responsibility for his/her own actions and is therefore at his/her own risk.

Product-/Model-specific manufacturer specifications must be observed.