13A Sockets with built in USB points

[ARWadsworth]

I am (or rather a customer is) after something like this

with a double socket.

Or a stand alone hard wired USB mains powered USB point will do.

Suggestions welcome if you have used one.

[Bernard Peek]

Your customer could fit two of the Maplin sockets or a generic triple socket with a USB supply plugged in. I've seen USB power sockets in a standard 13A plug.

[dennis]

Don't fit one, you cant turn them off so they waste power all the time.

De-rate the cable depending on how well the socket and back box is insulated and how much power the PSU uses both when idle and in use. They do provide the technical data required to check this?

[John Williamson]

I'll agree don't fit a combined socket, but only because when the USB power supply fails, it means you need to take the 13A socket out, with all the faffing about rewiring. Add an extra 13A socket, and plug one of these in:-

for the power used, the absolute maximum a compliant USB socket can put out is 5W, and assuming a reasonably efficient SMPS in the box, that will generate under 10 watts of heat, possibly much less.

[brass monkey]

I understand that they only switch on when a USB plug is inserted.

[Tim Watts]

They say that when the USB shutter is closed the USB is off.

You don't usually bother with derating for a couple of inches of varied conditions as the cable is sufficiently conductive thermally to cope with this.

It's a great idea - but I would recon on the 13A socket standard (and a typical fitting) outlasting the USB standard by at least a factor of two.

[Gazz]

that is true, there's loads of forums full of people claiming the usb psu will cost you anything from 5p to 10 quid a year to run as it's on all the time, some bitching over whether it's a switched mode psu or a transformer based psu, and how if it's transformer based how much heat it'll be producing behind the socket, they then go on to claim that as it's most likely a switcher psu, it'll still get hot, as your laptops smpsu does.... all mine do but only when providing around 4 amps at 19 volts, not 2.5 watts at max power output that the usb socket does (it's rated at 600Ma), and all my smpsu's are stone cold when not connected to the laptops but still plugged in to the mains.

then when someone pointed out that the psu is only on when the shutter is raised, so they started claiming the switch in the shutter will likely fail, and you'll only realize it when you get your next power bill and notice the increase!!!

So what, it's 4 quid for one of them, people spend more on cat 5/6 sockets, and they will likely be obsolete in a few years time too as something better comes along and they cant handle the multi gig speeds we use for data coms then.

[Andy Dingley]

Some of my workshop wall-warts now live in the bottom of my tool cupboard. This both keeps the sawdust off them and their waste heat also stops condensation in the winter. I used to have a small resistor in there as a heating element, but now the wall-warts do it for me.

[Gazz]

now that is a damn good idea, be easy enough to have the chargers on one of those clip on side shelves sold for the roll about tool boxes, or fix the ones that can to the side walls, a multiway extension lead in the bottom drawer, connected to a kettle socket in the back of the box, and the plug on a length of flex with a chain attatched, so it gets pulled out without harming the flex when you move the box and forget about the power point,

prolly some laws saying you shouldent do this of course, as your turning a metal tool box into a powered item, but i'd obviousely earth the metal of the box when the kettle socket is fitted,

[dennis]

I put my networked hard drives and mail server in there to keep it warm and out of the main building.

[therustyone]

not sure this is a good idea as their transformer's power factor is not high. If the supply co. charges for volt amps rather than true power a reactive load is wasting amps for less heat !

rusty

[Tabby]

domestic customers pay for w, not for va

NT