Plug wiring?

helpimcrap · 7 Sep 2025 at 16:01

I can wire a plug - brown = live, blue = neutral, black or yellow/green= earth.

Just got a singer sewing machine, no idea of age but it looks old.

Plug has 2 wires as not got a plug on - red and yellow wires. Assuming red is live, but is yellow neutral or earth?

BUDFORCE · 7 Sep 2025 at 16:04

helpimcrap said:
I can wire a plug - brown = live, blue = neutral, black or yellow/green= earth.

Just got a singer sewing machine, no idea of age but it looks old.

Plug has 2 wires as not got a plug on - red and yellow wires. Assuming red is live, but is yellow neutral or earth?

If it's just two wires it won't be earthed, so one will be live one neutral.

Your assumption should be correct.

If you wired it to live and earth it'll probably trip the circuit breaker on your consumer unit, or it should do anyway.

helpimcrap · 7 Sep 2025 at 16:09

Cheers, I was assuming it would be neutral but couldn't find an actual confirmation anywhere except AI which isn't always trustworthy.

Zefan · 7 Sep 2025 at 23:18

Gotta remember the earth isn't part of the circuit, it's just a safety mechanism. Without the other two, your device is open circuit and therefore current won't flow.

b0rn2sk8 · 7 Sep 2025 at 23:39

…and as it’s AC, it doesn’t actually matter which way round they go*

*the live should be fused either way, I just meant from a fundamental standpoint.

helpimcrap · Thursday at 22:18

It'll fit right in with our 100yr old electric switches and rubber sleeved cables which an electrician said quote "I don't often see rubber coated cables but I don't often see 100yr old switches either."

ALD · Friday at 12:30

b0rn2sk8 said:
…and as it’s AC, it doesn’t actually matter which way round they go*

*the live should be fused either way, I just meant from a fundamental standpoint.

Not entirely true as some old equipment like radios have the chassis directly connected to the neutral.

b0rn2sk8 · Friday at 12:34

ALD said:
Not entirely true as some old equipment like radios have the chassis directly connected to the neutral.

They shouldn’t because that is a recipe to get an electric shock and wouldn’t ever have been compliant.

If it’s connected to the neutral and you provided another path to Earth, you’d get an electric shock.