Question:
Hobby electronics projects-- fire safety?I'm a newbie to electronics, but I've come up with a project to cool a closed electronics cabinet. It uses an ac-dc 12V power (wall wart) adapter which would power a 500mA load. The adapter is rated for 800mA. Are there any safety problems with this? Fire hazards? What would happen if a short occurred? The adapter is UL listed, but I've been unable to see what criteria they use for power adapters. Does the UL mark imply any level of performance or safety?

Answer: -Plugpacks are usually protected with an integral thermal fuse. But good practice would be to add your own fuse to your application. You could use an line fuse holder that can be wired in series with your the plugpack lead.

-It's basically up to you to ensure a short doesn't happpen but in the event it did such adaptors typically are protected by an internal thermal fuse.