Phone charger need to unplug?

[thailiketoo]

When my phone is done charging it beeps and I unplug it from the battery charger.  The battery charger is warm.  After a few minutes the battery charger is cool when the phone is unplugged.  Is it necessary for me to unplug the charger also?  It is inconvenient for me to unplug the charger and it looks like it isn't drawing any power.  Is there any reason to unplug it if there is no phone attached? 

 

It is Nokia dumb phone, if that makes any difference. 

[Tao Diver]

Just how inconvenient can it be to pull the charger out of the socket for crying out loud  

 There have been many reports of late of chargers burning houses down. Why risk it ? 

[Pib]

Even it no device hooked to the charger but the charger left plugged in the charger will still probably use a small amount of power when plugged in, it could possibly fail/short-out while plugged in, a voltage surge/spike could damage it, if something or someone shorts out the connector leading to the device which is not plugged in some one could get shocked/maybe start a fire, etc. 

 

If the inconvenience you experience is due to wall socket location, then buy an extension cord/power strip...of course extensions/power strips come with their own set of risks.  

Edited August 13, 2014 by Pib

[thailiketoo]

Even it no device hooked to the charger but the charger left plugged in the charger will still probably use a small amount of power when plugged in, it could possibly fail/short-out while plugged in, a voltage surge/spike could damage it, if something or someone shorts out the connector leading to the device which is not plugged in some one could get shocked/maybe start a fire, etc. 

 

If the inconvenience you experience is due to wall socket location, then buy an extension cord/power strip...of course extensions/power strips come with their own set of risks.  

 

It is plugged into a UPS which is under my desk with the back facing the wall.  So I have to get on my hands and knees and crawl under the desk and feel in the back of the UPS and pull the charger out. 

 

Does the fact that it is plugged into a UPS make any difference?

[RichCor]

It is plugged into a UPS which is under my desk with the back facing the wall.  So I have to get on my hands and knees and crawl under the desk and feel in the back of the UPS and pull the charger out. 

 

 

 

Does the fact that it is plugged into a UPS make any difference?

 

 

 

A small amount of heat from a USB Charger is normal. If it's HOT then the device plugged into it may be drawing maximum current and it may be time to replace the USB Charger with a one rated at a higher output.  Small phones will require 0.5–0.8A while larger battery devices will require  0.9–1.5A or higher for Pad type devices. 

 

I'd suggest adding a Power Strip and get your USB electrical vampire up on a desk or onto a wall.  This makes it convenient to turn power to the USB Charger on/off, and lets you inspect the charger for signs of failure (overheating or melting).

[thailiketoo]

 

It is plugged into a UPS which is under my desk with the back facing the wall.  So I have to get on my hands and knees and crawl under the desk and feel in the back of the UPS and pull the charger out. 

 

 

 

Does the fact that it is plugged into a UPS make any difference?

 

 

 

A small amount of heat from a USB Charger is normal. If it's HOT then the device plugged into it may be drawing maximum current and it may be time to replace the USB Charger with a one rated at a higher output.  Small phones will require 0.5–0.8A while larger battery devices will require  0.9–1.5A or higher for Pad type devices. 

 

I'd suggest adding a Power Strip and get your USB electrical vampire up on a desk or onto a wall.  This makes it convenient to turn power to the USB Charger on/off, and lets you inspect the charger for signs of failure (overheating or melting).

 

No USB its a UPS and it's new.  The UPS is not hot phone charger is warm when charging the phone and cool when not charging.  I never turn the UPS off why would I? 

[RichCor]

Sorry, I used the term USB Charger when I should have used Nokia Phone Charger.  Almost all phone manufacturers have begun using the USB connector and USB power specifications on their equipment, except Nokia who still has a lot of older design devices in the distribution pipeline.

 

AC/DC adapters still consume power when not charging a device. While they are designed to be plugged in and left, they still have the potential to fail, as any electrical device does, and can become a hazard.  Plugging a short Power Strip with ON/OFF Switch into your UPS and then plugging the Nokia Phone Charger into that would give you the ability to kill it as needed without having to unplug it.  Or not. While I unplug many of the device chargers in my house there are always some that get left plugged in, cords dangling. The hot ones I always unplug.

[Crossy]

I just measured the consumption of my Samsung charger with nothing plugged into it, 0.4 Watts.

 

That will use one unit of electricity every 2,500 hours or 104 days, so it will cost about 14 Baht a year.

 

But yes, do unplug it when not in use, they don't often fail catastrophically, but yours could be one of the few.

[Pib]

 

Even it no device hooked to the charger but the charger left plugged in the charger will still probably use a small amount of power when plugged in, it could possibly fail/short-out while plugged in, a voltage surge/spike could damage it, if something or someone shorts out the connector leading to the device which is not plugged in some one could get shocked/maybe start a fire, etc. 

 

If the inconvenience you experience is due to wall socket location, then buy an extension cord/power strip...of course extensions/power strips come with their own set of risks.  

 

It is plugged into a UPS which is under my desk with the back facing the wall.  So I have to get on my hands and knees and crawl under the desk and feel in the back of the UPS and pull the charger out. 

 

Does the fact that it is plugged into a UPS make any difference?

 

Not really since the UPS is still providing 220V input to the charger.  But I expect the UPS has surge protection built-in also so I wouldn't worry about voltage spikes/surges hurting your charger.   As to overall risks a lot depends on the quality of the charger, the environment it lives in (i.e.., kids, animals, nearby burnable objects like curtains/carpet, etc.), how you control location whether the charger is maintained, etc.

 

Heck, we all leave our homes everyday with stuff plugged in everywhere and maybe an animal or two roaming around in the home....TVs, settop boxes, stereos, fans, kitchen appliances, etc., all of which have power supplies built-in that could smoke/short circuit themselves at anytime and possibly start a fire...how often has that happened to any of us...probably zero to very, very few times over our lifetime.  When we leave do we unplug all of this stuff to be totally safe....I don't think so.  Leaving your charger plugged in provides no more risk than leaving your other stuff plugged in...there is some risk there, but it's very, very low.

[RichCor]

I think it very interesting that the 'family' here will UNPLUG the Microwave Oven and Flat Screen TV, as well as other appliances that I would normally leave plugged in, ready to use.

 

Then I learned a valuable lesson about WHY after the Microwave Oven chose to exhibit a high-voltage light show. A small Jing-jok had climbed inside had run across some exposed terminals and, rather than acting as a short fuse, had become a live (or dead, as the case may be) conductor every time the Microwave was activated. Luckily it was easily accessed and the remains could be removed using long non-conductive plastic stick (I'm not quite as stupid as the Jink-jok). 

 

I doubt a Jink-jok will climb into a your phone charger...  but your other vented/air-cooled appliances are fair game.

[thailiketoo]

If I understand this my charger plugged in has about the same chance of exploding in fire as my refrigerator or any other appliance that I leave plugged in except that the refrigerator costs money to keep food cool and the charger when not charging will cost about one baht per month.  I leave my porch and outside lighting on at night I would think I run the same risk there.  If I understand this there is nothing special about a phone charger that makes it more dangerous than an electric clock.  There is also no off switch on my canon printer.  Only an on switch.  Is it made to be left on also?  

[RichCor]

Yes, all true.  The risk really depends on the design, especially resistance to prolonged temperature extremes, vibration, or exposure to the elements.

 

As for your Canon, many Printers and Computers don't actually turn off.

The device may power down some of the components but other low-power components stay live waiting for input.

While some devices have a dedicated 'sleep' mode, others don't say what they do when they're supposed to be 'off'.

[Pomthai]

I wish my biggest concern in life was do I or don't I unplug the phone charger.
Seriously, I think I'm living in a different dimension sometimes reading Thaivisa.

[ignis]

Never unplugged my charger in all the years I have had a mobile phone and loads of different makes.. going back to when they were large house brick type

 

Guess one would need 30 mins every night going around unplugging everything, and then try to remember the reason nothing works in the morning...  

 

Just counted 14 items plugged in 24/7 around my PC deck, + 6 items around TV area, and that is just in one room, have 7 rooms counting kitchen..  what about house phones ? have 4 plugged in 24/7 and there old, guess 17 or 18 years old.

 

My 1st mobile phone, for the younger folks, not very mobile back then.

 

[attachment=279041:mobile phone.JPG]

 

[sfokevin]

Just how inconvenient can it be to pull the charger out of the socket for crying out loud  
 There have been many reports of late of chargers burning houses down. Why risk it ? 

Please provide a link to the many reports you stated have occurred...

[Pomthai]

I've finally unplugged my charger. Problem now is, which shoe do I put on first? I'm not even sure if I should be wearing shoes since I'm not outside yet. But I am going outside. I think I am. Therefore I am. I think.
Maybe.

[thailiketoo]

I've finally unplugged my charger. Problem now is, which shoe do I put on first? I'm not even sure if I should be wearing shoes since I'm not outside yet. But I am going outside. I think I am. Therefore I am. I think.
Maybe.

 

I never wear shoes in the house so not a problem.  Do you really wear shoes in the house? 
 

[harrry]

I just measured the consumption of my Samsung charger with nothing plugged into it, 0.4 Watts.

 

That will use one unit of electricity every 2,500 hours or 104 days, so it will cost about 14 Baht a year.

 

But yes, do unplug it when not in use, they don't often fail catastrophically, but yours could be one of the few.

Personally if the charger is original I generally do not worry and leave it plugged in.  If it is a replacement charger bought here I always remove it.

[Pib]

 

Just how inconvenient can it be to pull the charger out of the socket for crying out loud  
 There have been many reports of late of chargers burning houses down. Why risk it ? 

Please provide a link to the many reports you stated have occurred...

 

 

Oh my goodness, with google you can pull many reports/articles such as this Google Search Link.

 

Google allows anyone to argue for or against whatever they want to.   

[thailiketoo]

I imagine everyone has been waiting to know what I did.  Below is a photo of my charger on an extension plug that is easy for me to turn on and off and another photo of a Thai appliance that prevents it from exploding if I forget to turn it off.   The cat is battery powered.

Edited August 15, 2014 by thailiketoo

[ignis]

I imagine everyone has been waiting to know what I did.  Below is a photo of my charger on an extension plug that is easy for me to turn on and off and another photo of a Thai appliance that prevents it from exploding if I forget to turn it off.   The cat is battery powered.

 

the extension plug. now these are the things that do suddenly burst into flames, so would advise to unplug the extension when your not there/in uses...

 

1st hand have had at least 15 of them over the years burst into flames, last one was a 4 way heavy duty surge protector one @ 800 odd baht one right in front on my eyes [thankfully so cut the electric within seconds]

 

Have run new electric cable from fuse box to wall mounted socket where power is needed, much safer. the odd extension's I still have that work only use on odd things and then unplug these extensions when done.

 

Question,  what does Pussy do if the extension burst into flames ??  

Edited August 16, 2014 by ignis

[thailiketoo]

 

I imagine everyone has been waiting to know what I did.  Below is a photo of my charger on an extension plug that is easy for me to turn on and off and another photo of a Thai appliance that prevents it from exploding if I forget to turn it off.   The cat is battery powered.

 

the extension plug. now these are the things that do suddenly burst into flames, so would advise to unplug the extension when your not there/in uses...

 

1st hand have had at least 15 of them over the years burst into flames, last one was a 4 way heavy duty surge protector one @ 800 odd baht one right in front on my eyes [thankfully so cut the electric within seconds]

 

Have run new electric cable from fuse box to wall mounted socket where power is needed, much safer. the odd extension's I still have that work only use on odd things and then unplug these extensions when done.

 

Question,  what does Pussy do if the extension burst into flames ??  

 

 

I see your problem.  In 50 years I have never had one burst into flames.  It is plain as day.  You need some Pussy!
 

[ignis]

 

 

I imagine everyone has been waiting to know what I did.  Below is a photo of my charger on an extension plug that is easy for me to turn on and off and another photo of a Thai appliance that prevents it from exploding if I forget to turn it off.   The cat is battery powered.

 

the extension plug. now these are the things that do suddenly burst into flames, so would advise to unplug the extension when your not there/in uses...

 

1st hand have had at least 15 of them over the years burst into flames, last one was a 4 way heavy duty surge protector one @ 800 odd baht one right in front on my eyes [thankfully so cut the electric within seconds]

 

Have run new electric cable from fuse box to wall mounted socket where power is needed, much safer. the odd extension's I still have that work only use on odd things and then unplug these extensions when done.

 

Question,  what does Pussy do if the extension burst into flames ??  

 

 

I see your problem.  In 50 years I have never had one burst into flames.  It is plain as day.  You need some Pussy!
 

 

 Thanks, will ask at the 20 baht shop if they have Pussy

 

I do believe that it is more to do with the molded type plugs than the extensions themselves in a lot of cases.  

[Tywais]

Nearly all my appliances are on switched outlets.  My chargers and wifi power module are on a switched outlet connected to a UPS.  We had a power surge at our lab a few years ago and about a dozen DC wall adapters similar to what the chargers are were destroyed including some literally burned up.

 

[attachment=279428:Chargers.jpg]