240 VOLT SOCKETS WITH TWIN USB PORTS

[Mtbcol]

Good evening all and "Happy New Year"!
I'm thinking about changing my twin 13amp socket front (fed from my pure sign wave inverter) to one with built in USB sockets. Before I do this, somewhere in the back of my mind I think I remember reading it was not a good idea? Anyone know if this is true.....or did I dream it?
Thanks
Colin

 

[wildebus]

Good evening all and "Happy New Year"!
I'm thinking about changing my twin 13amp socket front (fed from my pure sign wave inverter) to one with built in USB sockets. Before I do this, somewhere in the back of my mind I think I remember reading it was not a good idea? Anyone know if this is true.....or did I dream it?
Thanks
Colin

the USBs will only be active when the inverter is on of course, so the "not a good idea" might be based on the fact to get a USB output, you will be taking 12VDC, converting to 240AC, then converting to 5V DC , so a pretty inefficient way to get USB power compared to a plain USB socket.

PS. Not all 240V sockets with USB are made equal. There are some VERY poor examples out there, so if you do decide to get a socket with USB option, get a good one, not a cheap one! (I've bought one which I burnt my fingers on trying to remove the USB cable it was running so hot - and that was with nothing on the other end of the cable!)

 

[mistericeman]

There have been some issues with some of those types of sockets overheating from memory ...
And the fact that on most the USB bit stays live all the time so is a power draw .

 

[colinm]

the USBs will only be active when the inverter is on of course, so the "not a good idea" might be based on the fact to get a USB output, you will be taking 12VDC, converting to 240AC, then converting to 5V DC , so a pretty inefficient way to get USB power compared to a plain USB socket.

PS. Not all 240V sockets with USB are made equal. There are some VERY poor examples out there, so if you do decide to get a socket with USB option, get a good one, not a cheap one! (I've bought one which I burnt my fingers on trying to remove the USB cable it was running so hot - and that was with nothing on the other end of the cable!)

As this.
I've found that even a 'good' 240v usb charger will warm up a bit, whilst a good 12v usb charger shows little if any warmth.

 

[Mtbcol]

the USBs will only be active when the inverter is on of course, so the "not a good idea" might be based on the fact to get a USB output, you will be taking 12VDC, converting to 240AC, then converting to 5V DC , so a pretty inefficient way to get USB power compared to a plain USB socket.

PS. Not all 240V sockets with USB are made equal. There are some VERY poor examples out there, so if you do decide to get a socket with USB option, get a good one, not a cheap one! (I've bought one which I burnt my fingers on trying to remove the USB cable it was running so hot - and that was with nothing on the other end of the cable!)

Thanks everyone. The socket would be on anyway as it's for our 240v fridge so I guess it would be such an inefficient use to get the 5v? I'm only thinking of changing it as I've got one lying around, it's a "Masterplug" one I think they are reasonable? However, I wouldn't want to run the risk of anything getting hot enough to burn my fingers on in the van. Maybe I'll just leave it on the shelf, as I say was only going to change it as I had one gathering dust.

 

[wildebus]

FWIW, This is the first one I got (wanted the USB sockets by my chair so I could plug in phone to charge basically) - https://amzn.to/3GjF7tY
That one went back to Amazon pretty rapidly.

I did actually get a Socket (MK Brand) with a USB outlet for the motorhome, and interestingly specifically for the Fridge Outlet as well (my fridge is also 240V only). The socket is only powered for around 20 minutes every two hours and the plan was to power the MiFi Router which had its own internal battery so will work all time but recharge intermittantly (recommended not to have on charge 24/7). And the extra power the USB will use is within the noise level of the Fridge when running, so kind of free extra power

 

[Mtbcol]

FWIW, This is the first one I got (wanted the USB sockets by my chair so I could plug in phone to charge basically) - https://amzn.to/3GjF7tY
That one went back to Amazon pretty rapidly.

I did actually get a Socket (MK Brand) with a USB outlet for the motorhome, and interestingly specifically for the Fridge Outlet as well (my fridge is also 240V only). The socket is only powered for around 20 minutes every two hours and the plan was to power the MiFi Router which had its own internal battery so will work all time but recharge intermittantly (recommended not to have on charge 24/7). And the extra power the USB will use is within the noise level of the Fridge when running, so kind of free extra power

Thanks wildebus. I might have a look at, MK I know they are usually the preferred choice of electricians. Yes, I think we have the same fridge as you. It, and the setup was kindly recommended by you a while ago now and us still going strong

 

[wildebus]

I should say that the above was the plan, but never got round to fitting it, but only out of laziness

 

[trevskoda]

Just buy ones of ebay and wire in through a switch, some have them built in.

 

[Glandwr]

Look at the amps rating on the usb outputs. Then look at amp draw on the device's you wish to power/charge. Phones/tablets 15yrs ago drew much less than they do today.

A device trying to draw more than the usb socket can supply will at best take much longer to charge and at worst heat up and "blow" the socket. I would look for a minimum rating of 3amps on any new socket I would fit today. They have to have the amperage printed on then.

 

[Mtbcol]

Thanks all. I've got plenty of 12v USB sockets in the van, so I'm going to put the socket front indoors at some point. As I say I was only going to fit it in the van as I had it knocking about.