Leaving chargers plugged in?

[millguy]

As the title says;
Do most people here leave them empty and plugged in? Or do you pull the plug when not in use?
I've always unplugged mine, but it is nice just to throw batteries in and go and not mess with the cords.

 

[HKJ]

As the title says;
Do most people here leave them empty and plugged in? Or do you pull the plug when not in use?
I've always unplugged mine, but it is nice just to throw batteries in and go and not mess with the cords.

When I used them, I usual had a Xtar VP1 and a MAHA C9000 plugged in permanently and the other chargers was only plugged in when I needed them.
Now with the two MC3000 I am using a power supply with a switch and usual turns them off when they are idle.

I do have a 5 port usb charger plugged in permanently.

 

[tops2]

I guess it depends on the charger and how much socket space it takes up. ;-)

I used to only plug in the charger when I use them. But with the Nitecore D4, I sometime leave it plugged in after I'm done. No real reason or pattern to when I leave it plugged in or not.

 

[Beamhead]

I set up a charging table with a large high quality power strip, I only turn on the strip and plug in the chargers when in use.

 

[ven]

Depends, chargers used for surplus cells(more than i can handle down stairs) then off when not in use(unplugged). Work charger is only on/plugged in when used, never idle (could be pinched!).

Down stairs charger near me is left on 24/7 unless i am away, i just pop the cells in/out whilst i am next to it, then at night leave idle and cell less! Been doing this "practice" for a good while now(too add i dont have display function illuminated all the time regardless of charging or not)

 

[kreisl]

 

[sidecross]

I now use a power strip like Beamhead with a main switch off and unplugged until needed, but even before that I did not keep any charger connected to power unless being used. I try to keep all my electrical A/C power to a minimum.

 

[radiohead71]

I generally try to unplug my chargers when they are not in use. In my camera cabinet where ive got my AA charger and my camera chargers i've got them all connected to an extensioncable with a mains switch so I can switch them all off when they are not in use.

Still, I've never had any issues with any of my chargers when plugged in.

 

[Kurt_Woloch]

I have now plugged in my Tronic charger, which I bought some years ago, permanently. I couldn't find a place where it gets warm when not in use, so I figured it can't use much power when idle, so it doesn't pay off unplugging it. I do unplug the 9V power supply I use to charge the D cells because that's a conventional transformer which does get warm when idle, so it will probably draw 1-2 watts (at least) without a load, and it pays off unplugging it. I also unplug all other chargers when not in use except for the laptop power supply at work which is on a switchable power strip which I switch off at the end of the day. By the way, I'm not afraid of letting my NiMh batteries charge while I'm away or asleep in another room, though I know people who seemingly are afraid of doing that and even have stopped using rechargeables altogether because of that (because it's too much of a hassle this way).

 

[1DaveN]

I try hard not to leave any small appliance-type devices plugged in when they're not in use. I have a friend who experienced a house fire when the auto shutoff coffee pot didn't shut off, and the firemen told him it's common for inexpensive devices to cause electrical fires due to cheap switches and other components. (Plastic devices melt more than burn - my friend had no fire damage, but the family lived in a hotel for 3 months while the insurance company dealt with the smoke damage).

I like sidecross' idea about a power strip too.

 

[millguy]

I try hard not to leave any small appliance-type devices plugged in when they're not in use. I have a friend who experienced a house fire when the auto shutoff coffee pot didn't shut off, and the firemen told him it's common for inexpensive devices to cause electrical fires due to cheap switches and other components. (Plastic devices melt more than burn - my friend had no fire damage, but the family lived in a hotel for 3 months while the insurance company dealt with the smoke damage).

I like sidecross' idea about a power strip too.

Thanks for all the replies.
I guess this is my biggest concern. I think I'll go with the crowd and leave them unplugged until needed.
I like that switch Kreisl!

 

[kreisl]

Hi millguy, as the comment section of the youtube video says, it can be had from DX or Banggood.
I ordered mine from Fasttech but they have not shipped it yet in weeks. Seems out of stock at Fasttech's yikes.
Some US electronics stores should have it too. Seems to be a popular item

 

[markr6]

I try hard not to leave any small appliance-type devices plugged in when they're not in use. I have a friend who experienced a house fire when the auto shutoff coffee pot didn't shut off, and the firemen told him it's common for inexpensive devices to cause electrical fires due to cheap switches and other components. (Plastic devices melt more than burn - my friend had no fire damage, but the family lived in a hotel for 3 months while the insurance company dealt with the smoke damage).

Exactly. I'm actually very surprised not to see everyone in this thread with the same thinking. I would be more afraid of a plugged in charger burning down my home opposed to the unprotected 18650s some people would have you think are ticking time bombs.

Coffee pots, irons, hair dryers, and anything that sucks some major juice are obvious ones to unplug. But I also watch the small ones too. So I unplug mine every time.

 

[Anders]

Thankyou kreisl.
An excellent item
http://www.aliexpress.com/item/Powe...lim-Video-Games-G-Switch-P4PM/1358759787.html

 

[fractal]

I try to unplug any appliance when not in use. Better safe than sorry.

As for battery chargers, I have a single 12V wall wart in the power strip that never gets unpluged. I plug it into the Nitecore i4 or the Maha c9000 depending on which is needed. I dug out a 120v power cord for the Nitecore the one and only time so far that I wanted to run both at the same time after an extended power outage from a big storm.