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Thread: USB Powerpoints

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    Default USB Powerpoints

    Wondering about having one of these installed
    https://www.bunnings.com.au/deta-240...arger_p4331325

    Does the brains trust think that in something like this the USB ports would be always on and therefore the power supply always consuming a trickle? I've been sensitized to not leave power packs plugged in and turned on when not connected to a device on charge.
    Franklin

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    Quote Originally Posted by Fuzzie View Post
    Does the brains trust think that in something like this the USB ports would be always on and therefore the power supply always consuming a trickle?
    I can't see how because the circuit would not be completed until something was plugged into it - just the same as if the main switch is turned on with nothing plugged in.

    Certainly they are the GPO of the future (and will come down in price accordingly).
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    These are a bit more sensibly priced:
    https://www.auselectronicsdirect.com...SABEgK6bPD_BwE
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    Regards, FenceFurniture

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    I have one of THESE fitted in the kitchen. It pops into a standard Clipsal type opening in a wall plate, but costs around $70 on its own.

    The built-in ones previously linked wouldn't fit my requirements because I needed it in the middle of a vertical twin power point; but in any case I only ever buy Clipsal or HPM branded electrical equipment. AS2000 is in my view so utterly crap and easy to comply with that brand reputation is the only indication that the equipment won't release the magic smoke and probably take the house with it.

    As for power consumption; it is always drawing a little power. It's basically no different from a modern solid state DC power supply like a phone charger in that it's power consumption varies according to load; with nothing plugged in it'll only suck a few milliamps.
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    We had the electrician install one of these at our daughter to make a charging station about 8months ago and she says it's great...

    https://www.auselectronicsdirect.com...-usb-socket-ch

    From the same people Brett put up the link for!!

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    Quote Originally Posted by Fuzzie View Post
    Wondering about having one of these installed
    https://www.bunnings.com.au/deta-240...arger_p4331325

    Does the brains trust think that in something like this the USB ports would be always on and therefore the power supply always consuming a trickle? I've been sensitized to not leave power packs plugged in and turned on when not connected to a device on charge.
    Older type adapters could consume anywhere from a few Watts up to a few 10s of Watts which was a good reason to turn them off.

    If the mains power is left connected to the USB conversion circuitry (that will be inside the GPO0 and will almost certainly be the case) then it should consume about 0.1W (0.4mA) of power when not in use, at 25c kW/hr that's about 1.7c/month. The power consumed when on standby is from the tiny amount heating of the small transformer used in the adapter.

    The EU has mandated that all lower powered mains adapters must meet a 0.075W maximum.

    A modern USB adapter is a technological marvel. Here's a link to a guy who has reverse engineered an Apple iPhone adapter and shows just how sophisticated these devices are.
    Apple iPhone charger teardown: quality in a tiny expensive package
    Interestingly the iPhone adapter nibbles about 3 times more power when not in use than other adapters.

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    Quote Originally Posted by BobL View Post
    Older type adapters could consume anywhere from a few Watts up to a few 10s of Watts which was a good reason to turn them off.

    ... should consume about 0.1W (0.4mA) of power when not in use, at 25c kW/hr that's about 1.7c/month...
    Did you mean 0.4A? That is about 0.1W 0.4mA would be about 0.1 mW

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    Quote Originally Posted by Yanis View Post
    Did you mean 0.4A? That is about 0.1W 0.4mA would be about 0.1 mW
    P = V * A, so A = P/V.

    A = 0.1/240 = 0.000416666 amps, which is 0.4 mA, as previously described.
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    I have seen these installed in several new domestic builds. The medical centre where I work has many of these retro fitted. My manager has at least one in his office for mobile phone. Other places that use them are medication rooms for temprature sensors in drug fridges.

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    Quote Originally Posted by Fuzzie View Post
    Wondering about having one of these installed
    https://www.bunnings.com.au/deta-240...arger_p4331325

    Does the brains trust think that in something like this the USB ports would be always on and therefore the power supply always consuming a trickle? I've been sensitized to not leave power packs plugged in and turned on when not connected to a device on charge.
    We had a couple of these fitted in a recent kitchen upgrade ,we only use the USB charging ports #1 when we're at home & #2 during the daylight hrs .
    A lot of devices use USB as a charging facility these days,we still take a 3 pin USB adapter with us on our numerous adventures away from home.
    As we also have solar rooftop cells I'm not too worried about the trickle loss.
    There is always the option of the 3 pin USB charger if you're concerned about the trickle feed.
    Johnno

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    I use many USB adapters in my projects and given the number that have died (even supposedly quality ones) this suggests to me that they are too sensitive for me to consider using them as long term devices to be hardwired into GPOs that you might expect to last for at least 20 years. At least if the adapter died you don't have to change the entire (expensive) GPO.

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    Quote Originally Posted by FenceFurniture View Post
    P = V * A, so A = P/V.

    A = 0.1/240 = 0.000416666 amps, which is 0.4 mA, as previously described.
    Of course it is. Sorry - I was on 5V not 240

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    Quote Originally Posted by BobL View Post
    I use many USB adapters in my projects and given the number that have died (even supposedly quality ones) this suggests to me that they are too sensitive for me to consider using them as long term devices to be hardwired into GPOs that you might expect to last for at least 20 years. At least if the adapter died you don't have to change the entire (expensive) GPO.
    Agree. So many USB chargers are rubbish of the first order. Having said that there are a couple of quality units which should last a lot longer due to the fact that they have been engineered properly. It is not hard to produce a USB adapter that will last, it is just that most have been engineered to a price rather than to work.

    The difficulty is finding a quality unit.

    If Australia had the same laws as most other countries then you could just pop it out and replace it if it failed but Australians are held to ransom by the electrical trades and instead of getting a unit from Bunnings and popping it in we have to pay an electrician $150 to replace it for us.

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    One problem with multiple USB outlets on a single GPO is sometimes they only have one low powered USB circuit driving all of the outlets.
    The outlets should be rated at least at 1A (preferably 1.5A) per USB outlet.
    Some of them are 1A for all the outlets provided.
    If adapters do not state the currents available then I would steer clear of them.

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