Potential safety hazard? The shoe dryer "makes fire"?

Do you know what a shoe dryer is?

Shoe dryer, also known as shoe dryer, usually works by blowing air into the shoes. Air currents dry shoes faster. Air can be heated to speed up drying, these are the most common types. There are also electric heating elements and radiating fins to heat the inside of the shoes, so that the heat added, the escaping heat and the heat absorbed by the shoes are in thermal equilibrium at about 55 degrees. This novel small household appliance claims that it has the functions of drying, sterilization, deodorization, etc., which can solve some people's foot related problems and troubles, such as cold feet, beriberi, chilblain, etc. At the same time, with its novel, small and fresh appearance, it has attracted many consumers to buy. Some sensitive household appliances enterprises such as Gree also took the opportunity to launch their own shoe dryer products.

However, is this new "Internet celebrity home appliance" really reliable?

15 products and 9 products do not conform to the requirements, and there are potential electrical safety hazards

On December 26, the Guangxi Consumer Protection Commission (hereinafter referred to as the Guangxi Consumer Council) released the comparative test report of shoe dryer products. The results showed that among the 15 shoes dryer samples, 9 samples did not meet the national standards, and there were potential electrical safety hazards. The dehumidification performance of many samples was average.

According to the report, the samples of this comparative test were randomly purchased from e-commerce platforms by Guangxi Consumer Council, including 15 shoe dryers from brands such as Foot companion Smart, Delma, GREE Gree, Younuo Smart, SUNFOOT, NK and Changhong, with unit prices ranging from 79 yuan to 399 yuan. In this comparative test, the laboratory tests the electrical safety indicators and performance indicators to comprehensively test and evaluate the samples. First, according to GB4706.1-2005 Safety of Household and Similar Electrical Appliances - Part 1: General Requirements, the marks and descriptions of samples were tested for 10 electrical safety index items, including protection against touching live parts, input power and current, moisture resistance, electrical clearance, creepage distance, solid insulation, heat resistance and flame resistance; The second is to test the dehumidification performance of the sample, using a user-defined method to test the drying dehumidification effect of the sample.

The test results showed that 9 of the 15 shoe dryer samples did not meet the requirements of the national standard. Among them, in the test of heat and flame resistance test items, six samples including SUNFOOT SF-100B, AILING LF-UVS, Qiaoqiao Senwei 6629B, NK HB-HXQ-01 * and Panchao Electric SW-Z1 did not meet the standard requirements. This indicator is mainly used to assess the performance of insulating materials. Failure to meet the standard may cause overheating of products, which may lead to material deformation or fire, and there are potential safety hazards.

In addition, the tests on electrical clearance, creepage distance and solid insulation items found that three samples, NK (Hongbin Electric) HB-HXQ-01 *, NK (Xinjia) HB-HXQ-01 * and Panchao Electric SW-Z1, did not meet the standard requirements. This indicator is mainly used to assess the effect of insulation protection. If the distance between live parts and easily accessible surfaces is not enough to meet the standard requirements, electric shock and other risks will be caused.

Quality control has become an "enduring" problem in the small household appliance industry

Fire and electric shock are all fatal accidents. According to the data released by the Fire Rescue Bureau of the Ministry of Emergency Management of China, 703000 fires were reported nationwide from January to October 2022, with 1557 deaths; According to the National Bureau of Statistics, the number of deaths caused by electric shock in China each year exceeds 8000. I wonder if consumers are willing to pay for these "net red" shoe dryers with their lives?

It is worth mentioning that the uneven quality of small household appliances is a hidden problem in the industry. According to the analysis of complaints received by the National Consumer Association in 2021 released by the China Consumer Association, various small household appliances have been welcomed by consumers in recent years, but there are obvious weaknesses in product quality and aspects.

Li Tao, chief editor of Home Appliance Network, believes that for small household appliances such as shoe dryers, the relatively low price is due to the relatively simple production and technical threshold, and the lack of restrictions and specifications of relevant standards, which makes the quality problem of these "online celebrity" small household appliances more serious, and the "FMCG" attribute of small household appliances more obvious. In the long run, this is not a benign development trend. If the small household appliance industry wants to achieve long-term and healthy development, ensuring product quality is still the key.

How to purchase shoe dryer correctly

For some consumers, the stink of shoes and chilblain on their feet really need shoe dryers to alleviate, so these consumers need to learn how to buy shoe dryers with guaranteed quality.

The Guangxi Consumer Council issued a consumption reminder to suggest consumers to purchase through formal channels. Such as shopping malls, supermarkets, professional stores or formal online platforms, as well as online stores officially authorized by the brand. When purchasing, pay attention to checking and understanding the "CCC" quality certification, inspection certificate, product packaging logo and instructions of the products, and select products with high brand awareness and good reputation, and reject "three no" products.

In addition, the shoe dryer belongs to the small heating household appliances, and its safety is particularly important. When purchasing, check and understand the materials and wiring of the product, as well as the distance between the live parts and the shell opening. If the wire material of the product is rough, the layout is not neat, or even the fingers can touch the internal wire insulation of the appliance, the product may have the risk of electric shock, and you should avoid purchasing such products.

At the same time, when using the shoe dryer, check the drying duration, use frequency and precautions of the shoe dryer. Avoid degumming of shoes and aging of leather due to excessive use time and frequency. When using, check whether the voltage of the power supply is consistent with the rated voltage of the dryer, and do not use it near flammable and explosive objects or in a windproof space. When it is used again after being unused for a long time, pay attention to whether the plug and interface of the shoe dryer are aging to avoid potential safety hazards.

The Guangxi Consumer Council also called on relevant departments and industry organizations to introduce relevant standards for shoe dryers as soon as possible, and strengthen the quality and safety supervision and random inspection of shoe dryers sold online; For small household appliances that do not meet the testing standards for electrical safety items, the producers and sellers should be urged to take measures such as stopping sales and returning goods according to the requirements of consumers in accordance with laws and regulations to protect the legitimate rights and interests of consumers.