The Camping Forum

[nutgone]

Cables may not feel hot, but they are usually always warm. I've seen them left out in the snow on building sites, with minimal loading, but still the snow won't settle on them, or within a centimetre or so.

But yes, a coiled cable not only produces more heat because it has nowhere to dissipate it, but the tight coils of the cable do indeed produce a resistance. AFAIK there aren't any magnetic forces at work, as long as the neutral conductor is in there as well.

It's another one of those things I thought everybody knew about (like BBQs giving off carbon monoxide), I honestly thought everyone was aware that a coiled cable has much less capacity than one laid out properly. It's written on extension reels for god's sake. It's the kind of thing which was passed onto me whilst I was at school, by enthusiastic science teachers. Maybe teachers aren't so enthusiastic these days.