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Nothing make a work bench more useful than a power bar – unless you are a true galoot (hand tool aficionado). Whether you bench is built into the wall or freestanding, like mine, having the ability to plug a number of power tools in at once, and so close to your work area, is a delight.
Most workshops don’t have enough outlets wired into them and finding a place to plug in that work light and your sander isn’t always easy. One of the ways woodworkers commonly work around this problem is to mount a power bar to the bench. But beware, it can be a hazard waiting to happen.
Recently I was working on a project and I needed power for a random orbit sander and a drill at the bench. The sander was already plugged in to the power bar mounted to one of the legs of my bench. I grabbed a 3/8 inch drill from one of my cabinets and tried to insert its plug into one of the sockets but it met with resistance and I had to search all over the power bar for another receptacle before I could use the tool.
One of the interesting things I noted was that the only outlet left that would accept the prongs to their full depth was on the bottom. This puzzled me so I got on my knees and inspected the power bar fully.
I hadn’t realized it before, but sawdust from sanding and routing finds its way into the receptacles of your power bar and can be a fire hazard. You also find that spider webs also get lodged in the outlets. This is a very dangerous condition and should be looked at from time to time.
You can see that my power bar is coated with dust on the outside and if I wanted to use the phone jack surge protection, I’d never get the plug in let alone get it to work.
I tried some compressed air and that seemed to work although I can’t be positive that I ever blew all the dust out of the bar. I can get tools plugged in to every outlet – though I’m not sure I want to now.
Power bars are inexpensive so I’m going out right now to purchase a new one – before I start my shop on fire. Please check yours. It’s important that you work safely for the benefit of your loved ones. I can’t imagine how I would feel if a reader’s shop was burned to the ground when it could have been prevented by throwing out a dust clogged power bar.
Work safe, have fun, and happy woodworking to you.
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