Future of the House

[AnOminous]

It was probably a grounded three prong cord because I believe the Keurig uses a grounded plug, and Chris wouldn't bother (or know how) to use an adapter.

Nah he'd just shove it into the two prong extension cord, forcing it and bending the third prong if he had to. Because he is a retard.

 

[Tennis-Ball-Tony]

I still don't know why they ran the cord over the door instead of through the gap under it. I mean you still shouldn't do that, but it's better than running the cord between the door and the jamb where it's guaranteed to be chewed up. Also running the cord over the door seems like more work. Maybe the floor under the door was blocked by barbage he couldn't be bothered to move?

Given the state of the current Branchland post fire, it was probably because there was shit all over the floor, and Chris probably didn't want another tripping hazard.

 

[A-№1]

Nah he'd just shove it into the two prong extension cord, forcing it and bending the third prong if he had to. Because he is a retard.

That seems like more elbow greased strength than he'd be capable of putting out. Also I don't think the Keurig's electronics work without a ground. Also also it's actually harder, and more expensive, to find a two prong cord these days than a grounded cord. I only see them around Christmas time with the tree lights¹.

As amusing as it it to imagine Chris going to extra effort and expense to fuck up, extra effort isn't really his cup of tea overpriced, single serving coffee.

it was probably because there was shit all over the floor,

This seems the most probable reason. Actually, it's the only thing that makes sense.

and Chris probably didn't want another tripping hazard.

I can't see Chris having that much forethought. It seems more likely he was too lazy to move the barbage on the floor. Barb also might have refused to let him touch her precious hoard even to move it out of a doorway.

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¹ Maybe they're more common in bumfuck Virginia where redneck shacks are still powered by knob and tube bailing wire.

 

[AnOminous]

Also also it's actually harder, and more expensive, to find a two prong cord these days than a grounded cord.

You're implying they'd go out and buy new actually useful stuff instead of Barbage and Legos. If they had a 20+ year old ancient extension cord lying around from the decades they spent in that shithole, they'd use that.

 

[Ophelia]

You're implying they'd go out and buy new actually useful stuff instead of Barbage and Legos. If they had a 20+ year old ancient extension cord lying around from the decades they spent in that shithole, they'd use that.

If they could find it.

 

[A-№1]

You're implying they'd go out and buy new actually useful stuff instead of Barbage and Legos.

IIRC Chris specifically mentioned buying a "heavy duty " extension cord. I think that's where he learned the phrase "heavy duty".

If they had a 20+ year old ancient extension cord lying around from the decades they spent in that shithole, they'd use that.

It would be long buried under barbage and probably already in use powering something else¹. I doubt Chris would bother to dig it out when he could waddle to the nearest home depot and spend $3.95 of your tax money on a new cord. I mean we're talking about someone who complained about the effort needed to lay down fresh newspaper on top of the dog shit on the carpet. Let that thought sink in² for a moment. He is that lazy.

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¹ The Keurig was not the first appliance they were powering by extension cord. That house had to have been a mess of buried extension cords at the end.
² Like dog crap sinking into shag pile.

 

[Hogar Grupal]

That house had to have been a mess of buried extension cords at the end.

Even after the fire and restructuring, 14 BLC was hoarded back into it's original state; even Chris can't find a game controller due to his own hoard, and the motherfucker couldn't be bothered to organize. The thought never occurred to Chris and Barb "Hmm, if we hoard again, will there be another fire?"

 

[Ophelia]

They even acted like belligerent slobs in the rental property.

 

[Jon Osterman]

You're implying they'd go out and buy new actually useful stuff instead of Barbage and Legos. If they had a 20+ year old ancient extension cord lying around from the decades they spent in that shithole, they'd use that.

I never recall Chris or Barb being that thrifty, in fact they are very wasteful IIRC. I think it was in one of his post fire tours that he showed that he used his old phone simply as an alarm clock, so neither he nor Barb are concerned about using things efficiently. If it saves them time to just buy a new cord, they'll buy a new cord without considering alternatives.

 

[AnOminous]

I think it was in one of his post fire tours that he showed that he used his old phone simply as an alarm clock, so neither he nor Barb are concerned about using things efficiently.

That actually is in keeping with my view that given the choice between spending some money on something sensible or using something stupid that they already have, they'll choose the latter.

 

[Jon Osterman]

That actually is in keeping with my view that given the choice between spending some money on something sensible or using something stupid that they already have, they'll choose the latter.

That is a good point that they'll just lazily use what they have on hand. The main question then is how accessible would a 20 year old, barely functional extension cord be in the hoard. That determines if it would be easier for Chris to get a new one or use the old one, and Chris will almost certainly go for the easier option

 

[AnOminous]

That is a good point that they'll just lazily use what they have on hand. The main question then is how accessible would a 20 year old, barely functional extension cord be in the hoard. That determines if it would be easier for Chris to get a new one or use the old one, and Chris will almost certainly go for the easier option

I wish we knew more about the physical layout of this because I can't see a "heavy duty" extension cord fraying that easily. The only frayed extension cords I've ever seen (and gotten rid of) were ancient and skinny. To get thin enough to heat up to firestarting temperatures in a couple minutes of a Keurig cycle has to be seriously frayed to the point the cord is barely holding together.

 

[Jon Osterman]

I wish we knew more about the physical layout of this because I can't see a "heavy duty" extension cord fraying that easily. The only frayed extension cords I've ever seen (and gotten rid of) were ancient and skinny. To get thin enough to heat up to firestarting temperatures in a couple minutes of a Keurig cycle has to be seriously frayed to the point the cord is barely holding together.

Checking the Cwcki archives, it says the official reason for the fire was

it was caused by a spark from an extension cord run through the bathroom door, the plastic coating of which had worn away. Chris was using an extension cord in the bathroom to plug in a Keurig coffee maker located in the hallway. The cord was looped over the top of the door

This might be misinterpreting what you said, but it says that only the coating was damaged, not the wire itself.
Another thing to remember is that we don't necessarily know how long this cord was in this situation. At the minimum, sources seem to suggest since at least the second house tour (under a year), but it was almost certainly being used for a lot longer.

 

[AnOminous]

Checking the Cwcki archives, it says the official reason for the fire was

This might be misinterpreting what you said, but it says that only the coating was damaged, not the wire itself.
Another thing to remember is that we don't necessarily know how long this cord was in this situation. At the minimum, sources seem to suggest since at least the second house tour (under a year), but it was almost certainly being used for a lot longer.

That wouldn't start a fire, though.

 

[D is for Stupid]

That wouldn't start a fire, though.

Yes and no.

Bare wires don't catch on fire unless they are shorted out by another wire/object that allows electron to flow in a high amp draw that the cable can't support thus burning and melting. This is why over heard power lines are bare and don't catch on fire, they are the correct thickness/gauge and are not shorting to another path.

Extension cables are made with stranded copper wires. These strands are thin and can easily break.

What I think happened is that the plastic insulation was worn but also the copper wires were also frayed to the point that the copper wire was so thin that the current draw of the Keurig caused the wire to get hot and catch on fire burning the remaining insulation. Door jams for bathrooms are made of wood and add that's dusty as hell, you get a fire.

They were probably using a extension cord that people usually use for christmas lights, it's flat and could fit in a door jam. Add the fact that the only source of water has a fire above it and the kitchen sink is full shit, they probably used cardboard or a towel or blanket to put it out but ended up fanning the flames.

 

[A-№1]

The thought never occurred to Chris and Barb "Hmm, if we hoard again, will there be another fire?"

Of course there won't be another fire. The fire wasn't their fault; they did nothing wrong. It was all on the Keurig company's head for selling them a fire starting coffee maker. /sarcasm

Chris and Barb never, ever recognize (or admit) their own mistakes. This is one of the reasons why they never learn, but keep making the same mistakes.

They even acted like belligerent slobs in the rental property.

I believe it took more than a year to make that place rentable again once Chris and Barb left.

That actually is in keeping with my view that given the choice between spending some money on something sensible or using something stupid that they already have, they'll choose the latter.

They'll do whatever takes the least effort, and not care about the expense (it's not like they earned that money, after all). If it's easier to use an existing cord they'll use that, but if it's easier to buy a new cord than to find (or dig out) an existing cord, well they won't think twice about wasting the money.

Really, though, it doesn't matter what particular cord they used, because what they did with it would cause any cord to fail eventually.

I can't see a "heavy duty" extension cord fraying that easily.

I can. "Heavy duty"refers to the thickness of the conductors, not the strength of the insulation coating. The thicker the conductors, the thicker the cord, and the thicker the cord, the faster it would be wrecked by being crushed in a door jamb. This is a case where a thinner, lighter duty cord would actually have lasted longer before inevitably failing.

The only frayed extension cords I've ever seen (and gotten rid of) were ancient and skinny.

But were they repeatedly smashed between a door and the doorjamb?

To get thin enough to heat up to firestarting temperatures in a couple minutes of a Keurig cycle has to be seriously frayed to the point the cord is barely holding together.

That's not how the fire started. The Keurig was off when the fire began, and likely had nothing to do with it.

What happened is the repeated crushing of the cord in the doorjamb trashed the cord's insulation until it failed and allowed a short between the conductors. The resulting arc was more than hot enough to ignite the door and frame, and didn't need the Keurig to be in use, or even plugged in (though it was). If you keep crushing an extension cord it will eventually spark up even if nothing is plugged into it.

This is why most modern electrical codes require arc fault protection on circuits with outlets, but 14BLC was too old for those codes to apply.

tl;dr: The fire was started by an arc in the cord, not resistive heating under load. Keurig did nothing wrong.

 

[CFC-12]

Nah he'd just shove it into the two prong extension cord, forcing it and bending the third prong if he had to. Because he is a retard.

When I was a kid my dad would cut all the third prongs off the surge protectors so that he could plug them into those two prong extension cords that you use for Christmas lights and stuff. Maybe the Chandlers were performing a similar trick on their Keurig.

 

[Jon Osterman]

They were probably using a extension cord that people usually use for christmas lights, it's flat and could fit in a door jam. Add the fact that the only source of water has a fire above it and the kitchen sink is full shit, they probably used cardboard or a towel or blanket to put it out but ended up fanning the flames.

Holy shit I'm an idiot. They could have and probably did buy a dinky extension cord instead of springing for a heavy duty one. It didn't matter if they got it from the hoard or if they bought it, the cord would have been shitty and susceptible to breaking.

 

[A-№1]

They could have and probably did buy a dinky extension cord instead of springing for a heavy duty one.

They probably went with whatever cord was cheapest. They definitely went with whatever cord was easiest.

It didn't matter if they got it from the hoard or if they bought it, the cord would have been shitty and susceptible to breaking.

The cord itself is largely irrelevant. Even the Bestest. Cord. Ever. would have eventually failed after being repeatedly crushed in a doorjamb. What Chris did with the cord was the problem, not his cord selection. The fire was inevitable once Chris decided to start running extension cords, any extension cords, through doorways over the doors.

tl;dr: The problem was Chris, not the cord.

 

[Hogar Grupal]

Chris and Barb never, ever recognize (or admit) their own mistakes. This is one of the reasons why they never learn, but keep making the same mistakes.

A constant theme in the Chandler household.