Can We Be Protected From Home Devices Such As Russound? - 0 views

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  #1 Roger Hood on 19 Feb 12

   

  Home fire safety is without a doubt a big deal. In the United States there is a good record of home fire safety and different governmental and private testing organizations make sure the products we own are safe. Many products are labeled with logo's and declarations of safety by testing agencies like Underwriters Laboratories and TUV Rheinland. When we encounter a product that is not safe, sometimes the results are devastating.
  
  Any time unsafe products are discovered we've the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission to report dangerous products to. The U.S. CPSC will investigate and initiate a recall if necessary. The consumer electronics industry did much to make sure that people are safe in their homes from fire caused by electronic equipment. The television industry made the decision that Television's in America would be safe by making sure no flammable components are exposed to electronic devices which could throw off a spark way back in the Nineteen seventies.
  
  Consumer electronics contain many parts that can throw off a spark including resistors, diodes, transistors and capacitors. Simple overloads or component malfunction could cause a condition creating tiny fires inside your TV or stereo. Voltage spikes brought on by lightning as well as electric company troubles are one of the primary causes of electronic component failure. A voltage spike can result in an instantaneous failure or a delayed (or latent) malfunction of those components.
  
  When an electronic part fails, it may merely stop conducting electricity or open the circuit it is in or it might short the circuit. Short circuits may cause excessive heating of the component in question or surrounding circuits. This over heating may cause a little fire inside your electronic device and is often seen outside the cabinet as a puff of smoke or foul odor coming from the piece of equipment.
  
  It is critically important that this small bit of fire can not be utilized to ignite any surrounding combustible material and create a more substantial and more dangerous fire. In American televisions, the plastic cabinets are produced from fire resistant material and although it is easy to burn a hole in the cabinet with a torch, the fire fades out when the torch is removed.
  
  There is a web site where a customer that had a ?whole house? audio unit catch fire within his home and he details his experience with the manufacturer, Russound and the testing organization TUV Rheinland. The Russound CAV caught fire in his home and burned outside the cabinet. He was able to put out the fire with a fire extinguisher, but if he was not home, his home and family could have been lost.
  
  Instead of admit there was clearly a problem with the product, a Russound executive threatened to sue the customer if he told anybody about the fire. There was a CPSC recall of the product, however the approved fix for the CAV audio unit left the flammable material exposed to all the parts that can burn up. Russound and TUV Rheinland instead made the decision to place a fuse in line with only one component that can discharge a spark.
  
  Neither Russound nor the testing agency, TUV Rheinland examined the Russound CAV6.6 device that caught fire before declaring the defect and prescribing a remedy. The question is: Would you sleep better with consumer electronics that cannot catch fire, or products like the ones built by Russound and tested by TUV Rheinland that probably won?t catch fire? You choose.
  
  
  TUV Rheinland, Russound, TUV Rheinland

   

  <div class="cArrow"> </div><div class="cContentInner">Home fire safety is without a doubt a big deal. In the United States there is a good record of home fire safety and different governmental and private testing organizations make sure the products we own are safe. Many products are labeled with logo's and declarations of safety by testing agencies like Underwriters Laboratories and TUV Rheinland. When we encounter a product that is not safe, sometimes the results are devastating. <br /><br />Any time unsafe products are discovered we've the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission to report dangerous products to. The U.S. CPSC will investigate and initiate a recall if necessary. The consumer electronics industry did much to make sure that people are safe in their homes from fire caused by electronic equipment. The television industry made the decision that Television's in America would be safe by making sure no flammable components are exposed to electronic devices which could throw off a spark way back in the Nineteen seventies.<br /><br />Consumer electronics contain many parts that can throw off a spark including resistors, diodes, transistors and capacitors. Simple overloads or component malfunction could cause a condition creating tiny fires inside your TV or stereo. Voltage spikes brought on by lightning as well as electric company troubles are one of the primary causes of electronic component failure. A voltage spike can result in an instantaneous failure or a delayed (or latent) malfunction of those components.<br /><br />When an electronic part fails, it may merely stop conducting electricity or open the circuit it is in or it might short the circuit. Short circuits may cause excessive heating of the component in question or surrounding circuits. This over heating may cause a little fire inside your electronic device and is often seen outside the cabinet as a puff of smoke or foul odor coming from the piece of equipment.<br /><br />It is critically important that this small bit of fire can not be utilized to ignite any surrounding combustible material and create a more substantial and more dangerous fire. In American televisions, the plastic cabinets are produced from fire resistant material and although it is easy to burn a hole in the cabinet with a torch, the fire fades out when the torch is removed.<br /><br />There is a web site where a customer that had a ?whole house? audio unit catch fire within his home and he details his experience with the manufacturer, Russound and the testing organization TUV Rheinland. The Russound CAV caught fire in his home and burned outside the cabinet. He was able to put out the fire with a fire extinguisher, but if he was not home, his home and family could have been lost.<br /><br />Instead of admit there was clearly a problem with the product, a Russound executive threatened to sue the customer if he told anybody about the fire. There was a CPSC recall of the product, however the approved fix for the CAV audio unit left the flammable material exposed to all the parts that can burn up. Russound and TUV Rheinland instead made the decision to place a fuse in line with only one component that can discharge a spark. <br /><br />Neither Russound nor the testing agency, TUV Rheinland examined the Russound CAV6.6 device that caught fire before declaring the defect and prescribing a remedy. The question is: Would you sleep better with consumer electronics that cannot catch fire, or products like the ones built by Russound and tested by TUV Rheinland that probably won?t catch fire? You choose. <br /><br /><br /><a rel="nofollow" href="http://youtu.be/izHY0VfQ7rE">TUV Rheinland</a>, <a rel="nofollow" href="http://www.itsonfire.org/tuvrheinland.html">Russound</a>, <a rel="nofollow" href="http://www.itsonfire.org">TUV Rheinland</a></div>

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