How many appliances can I plug into one power board?

Every power board has a maximum rating printed on it or its packaging, in amps, watts or both, and the wall power point it plugs into has a limit too. Extra sockets don't add capacity; they share it. Electronics like TVs, modems, lamps and phone chargers use very little, while anything that heats or has a big motor uses a lot.

Appliance labels show the wattage. Add up everything that runs at the same time and compare it with the board's rating. If it's close, it's too close.

Give these their own wall power point: portable heaters, kettles, toasters, air fryers, irons, hair dryers, microwaves, portable air conditioners, and fridges or freezers. Two of them running together on one board is the classic overload, and a heater on any kind of extension lead is a bad mix.

Plugging one power board into another, or a double adaptor into a board, puts everything onto a single wall point through extra connections that can each heat up. It also makes it easy to lose track of how much is running at once. Energy Safe Victoria advises avoiding piggybacked adaptors and using a power board with a built-in safety device instead.

Running out of power points is a sign the room needs more of them, not more boards. A double or USB power point where you actually plug things in is a straightforward job for an electrician, and a busy spot like a kitchen bench or home office may justify its own circuit. If a circuit already trips when the kettle and heater run together, more outlets won't fix it. A new circuit will.