Wall warts seem to be taking over the world...

[rbel]

...or at least the area around my desk.

Having bought a new desk I decided to sort out the mare's nest of cables that had accumulated behind the old one over the years. I was amazed to find that I had 8 wall warts just for this relatively small area. This does not include the 7 chargers used elsewhere in the building for mobiles etc.

I really wanted to rationalise the various extension strips I have under the desk and arrange to put the sockets somewhere more accessible. The only options I can think of at the moment are either two 6 gang switched extension leads fastened to one end of the desk or four MK 3 gang switched socket outlets recessed into the end panel of the desk. At least these would cover current needs and allow for a couple of spare outlets.

[Bert Coules]

What on earth is a wall wart?

[Huge]

I have 12-way Olsen strips screwed to the back of the (3) desks and 2

20-way ones screwed to the shelving unit that acts as a server rack in my study, for a grand total of 76 sockets. They aren't all in use. :o)

Keep an eye on eBay, they come up regularly, although the only one on there at present is this one;

Olsen also have sales at regular intervals.

[Adrian]

I wouldn't be the least bit surprised.

[Nightjar]

I would be surprised if you were unusual in that. I can't get through the tangle of wires to count them, but I know I have 2 x 6 way and 1 x 4 way socket strips in use and the computers and monitors only take one of those sockets, to feed the UPS.

IME, no matter how many sockets you have, you will always need more.

Colin Bignell

[Brian Gaff]

Horrible things for many reasons. The big heavy ones keep falling out the socket and the cheaper switch mode ones fail and also create rfi in huge amounts, so no radios will work anywhere near the place. Brian

[alan]

Just watch for the spacing of the sockets on the cheaper extensions. Many wall warts are wider/longer than a standard plug. Two large wall warts may not fit in adjacent sockets. Extensions that have 2x2 sockets in a square format can result in one or more of the sockets being unusable when there are wall warts plugged in.

[Dave Liquorice]

Not many are wider these day with the demise of the iron transformer.

Longer can be a problem, quite a few have the outlet wire coming from the end adjacent to the earth pin not from the L & N pin end like a normal flex. On an extension block with back to back sockets the strain reliefs and wires can stop you using opposite sockets. WTF they don't stagger the sockets...

The cable closet will have a 100+ W 12 V power supply installed and individually fused(*) feeds for each bit of kit, most of which lives off 12 V. I'll use a DC/DC convertor if something wants 5 V.

(*)Automotive fuses in a little fuse carrier not in line glass jobbies.

[rbel]

Thanks for the suggestion.

The Olson stuff is good quality and their site was the first place I checked but unfortunately the 'square' range do not come with individual switches per socket and the switched 6 gang strips are a bit too wide for the location I have in mind.

[rbel]

I have encountered that frustrating problem before. I have now checked an MK 3 gang socket against all my current wall warts and the socket spacing is OK for any combination.

[jgh]

I'm sure BS1363 requires the flex to exit on the opposite side to the earth pin. Bang goes your house insurance.

JGH

[Dave Plowman (News)]

And a good old fashioned transformer type produced such a big external magnetic field it near wiped out my LP pickup output.

[Mike Tomlinson]

En el artículo , Bert Coules escribió:

Yes.

[Mike Tomlinson]

En el artículo , Huge escribió:

Top quality stuff, I buy nothing else for the server racks at work. Not cheap, but you get what you pay for. The sequenced start ones are brilliant.

[Graham.]

I don't think they come under the remit of BS1363, for one thing, where's the fuse? You hope the thing has appropriate protection but how can you tell what's inside a sealed one without an x-ray machine?

[Graham.]

I have a theory about that. I think the Chinese have the idea that our

13A socket is normally mounted earth pin downwards.

If you are unconvinced, look at the label orientation on these warts.

[Bill Wright]

So sockets are the same as beers?

Bill

[Andy Burns]

These don't and claim compliance (indeed I think changes were made to the standard to allow them to be compliant) I'm inclided to believe them.

[dennis]

I| have a usb charger with a pull out earth pin like that. Works fine but does look a little vulnerable to being broken.

[Huge]

Naah. I have enough.