I would like to bring to your attention a health hazard posed by the childproof plug. This is a childcare product, but the hazard is to the parents!
The small piece of plastic is intended to prevent children from inserting things into electrical outlets on the wall. I had no problem inserting a plug into an outlet, but when I tried to take the plug out of the outlet, one of the 2 plastic fingers broke off and stayed in the outlet. It was extremely difficult to remove the small broken-off piece of plastic because it was so tightly placed in a narrow space. I used a pair of pliers, a screwdriver, even a fire to heat up the screwdriver in order to melt the broken-off piece of plastic in situ. It took me about 1 hour to finally take this broken-off piece out of the outlet! As for my qualifications, other than being a parent of 3 small children, I have a B.Sc. in Electrical Engineering and an M.Eng. in Engineering Physics. Luckily, I remembered to turn off the electricity at the switchboard during this ordeal, but the hazard includes an electrical shock and a fire.
I have 2 kinds of plugs. One is made of clear plastic and marked "Gerber", while the other is beige in colour and marked only "Made in Hong Kong". The one that broke is the "Gerber" one. I believe that the particular plastic material used in the "Gerber" product is too rigid and brittle to withstand the stress of being pushed and pulled repeatedly. The plastic material used in the "Made in Hong Kong" product seems to be elastic enough to bend freely.
I contacted Consumers and Corporate Affairs Canada, which used to produce a brochure called "Is your child SAFE?" and a series of information bulletins such as "Crib and Cradle Safety". The department was absorbed by Industry Canada, but I was told that the branch regulating childcare safety was transferred to Health Canada, which informed me that safety concerning household products is handled by Canadian Safety Association, which informed me that all they can do is to send it back to the manufacturer because such safety products are not required by law.
Please feel free to publicise this health hazard in any way you see fit.
