Two new Yellow Jacket metal power blocks came through our doors for review, and we liked the build quality of each right off the bat. The Yellow Jacket 2177N is a 4-outlet Metal power block that has a lighted switch, and the Yellow Jacket 5148 has 8-outlets and two USB ports with 2.4 A of power for your smart phone or tablet.
Now, power blocks aren’t exactly exciting, so this review won’t be long. These products are, however, incredibly useful on the job site. If you want to throw down a power block and connect four tools at once to a single power source, you want something that’s a little more durable than a power strip.
Yellow Jacket 4-outlet Metal Power Block Features
On the Yellow Jacket 4-outlet metal power block you’ll find a nice heavy-duty 4-foot 14/3 (grounded) cord. It’s obviously designed for short runs or for use in conjunction with a standard drop cord. If you’re tempted to balk at the 14/3 gauge, the truth is that a 4-foot run at that gauge can handle up to 20-amps without causing noticeable power loss. Just make sure the supplying cord is 12/3—like the Yellow Jacket extension cords we reviewed earlier. An integrated safety circuit breaker and lighted switch round out this product—there’s not much else to say about it, in fact.
Yellow Jacket 2177N 4-outlet Power Block Details
- Model: 2177N
- Heavy-duty steel housing power block
- 4-foot 14/3-AWG grounded cord
- Converts 1-outlet to 4-outlets for use in homes, workshops and offices
- Integrated safety circuit breaker, Industry approvals: UL / CUL Listed
- Mountable power block conveniently and safely add outlets anywhere you need them
Yellow Jacket 8-outlet USB Metal Power Block Features
We’d use the Yellow Jacket 8-outlet power block with USB as an in-house product rather than something we’d throw into the mud at a job site during framing. It is, however, a good fit for an office or the shop. Not to be confused with cheap alternatives, the Yellow Jacket 8-outlet power block has a steel housing and convenient handles that serve double duty as a nice cord wrap. And while we don’t view it as necessarily rugged, it does have a cover for the two USB ports—which are quite a bit more sensitive to water and dirt incursion than a power outlet. The twin USB ports will deliver up to 2.4 A to charge a tablet or mobile phone—and in record time.
Lastly, the Yellow Jacket 8-outlet power block gives you an integrated On/Off circuit breaker switch so you get some minimal overload protection with the ability to reset the system via the switch.
Yellow Jacket 8-outlet USB Power Block Details
- Model: 5148
- Heavy duty metal housing
- 8 outlets – 2 Adapter outlets
- 2 USB ports with 2.4Amp charging
- Built in 15a circuit breaker provides protection against electrical overload
- 6 foot 14/3 hi-visibility grounded Yellow power cord
Using the Yellow Jacket Metal Power Blocks
We used the Yellow Jacket metal power blocks to run power to several table saws that we were testing. While we only ran one saw at a time, having several plugged in at once was handy. It gave us the opportunity to go back and forth easily without having to wait to plug and unplug the saws. It’s also nice to be able to charge your smart phone on the fly while you’re working. Just be sure you’re not running a tile saw or something that would throw too much debris on your electronics!
These two new products will deliver more power from your extension cords, and the 6-foot cord on the 8-outlet model stands on its own fairly well. Pricing is between $17 and $25 defending upon the dealer and where you shop. For the build quality you should be able to view these Yellow Jacket metal power blocks as a good value.
