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  • How will it affect charger if it is left in power socket switched on after removing charged device?


    What will happen if the charger is connected to power source without any device? To know more, read the expert replies in Techulator.

    Most of the times, we just leave our charger plugged in the power socket with power switch still in on mode. We remove our devices like phones, tablets, laptops etc. after they are charged but do not remove the charger from the power socket. Are there any chances of our chargers becoming defective if we do not remove them from the power sockets with power switch on?
  • Answers

    4 Answers found.
  • Hi Sukhdev,
    There won't be any defect to your charger even if you let it ON. The reason is there is no load to the charger and it acts as an open circuit. You may have learnt that in an open circuit the current flow will be zero. So nothing to worry about it.

    I have read an article leaving your charger plugged on will have some electricity loss. This electricity loss will be in the form of sound or hysteresis loss. But the loss is very negligible.

  • Hi Sukhdev,
    I am completely disagree with the above said statements of Mobileboy, as that is not the exact case.
    Leaving your charger ON in power socket is not a good habit as it decreases the life of your charger. Sometimes your charger may overheat and the device may get destroyed. AS Some phone chargers do not stop drawing energy unless they are taken out of the socket. In fact, most are that way, though i am not an electrical engineer but still i read it somewhere.
    So to be in safe side, one must unplug the charger from socket or you can OFF the power socket button.
    With Best Regards:
    Mridul

  • I believe it wont harm to the plugged in charger even if you let the power switched ON.

    I am not sure about the amount of electricity loss. But the practice of keeping the charger plugged in with power on may turn a bit risky if you have small kids around. Many toddlers have the habit of putting things in mouth. The perfectly working charger device should not pass more than prescribed current. But if by accident, the charger device is carrying more than prescribed volume of current and if the kid chews the charger pin then kid may experience a mild electric shock.

    Overheating of the charger device is also a concern in such cases.

    Regards,
    Namita Terse

  • It will not affect the charger if it is left in power socket switched on after removing charged device, but it will waste some energy in the form of heat. How much quantity of energy is wasted as heat exactly depends on what is inside the charger.
    The simplest charger could be a transformer and a linear regulator. Generally in chargers, the transformer would step down the line voltage and the linear regulator will pump out a relatively low voltage to charge your device. In this process, the charger itself consumes some amount of energy in the form of heat. The transformer inside the charger steps down the voltage to 5 V or 9 V and dissipates the rest of the power as heat. As a result linear regulators can be fairly inefficient. A simple rule here would be that if the charger is warm to the touch with no phone/device attached, you're wasting energy. That wasted energy is due to the hysteresis and circulating currents and their magnitude of losses depends on the transformer core and the frequency. By which the transformer will heat up and it decreases its lifetime.


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