Why you should never leave your phone plugged in when it’s not in use
In this tech-focused world, a plugged-in phone charger is common in homes, and people often leave them there even when they’re not charging a device.
This common practice makes me wonder about how much energy it uses, how safe it is, and how it affects my electricity bills.
If you don’t have your phone with you, leaving your charger plugged in is not as safe as it seems.
How Strong a Phone Charger Is
Chargers use power even when they’re not charging something. A test with a real Apple phone charger showed that it uses about 130W of power every month, which is 1.5KW of power every year.
This may not seem like a big deal at first, but when you think about how many chargers you have, it becomes a big deal.1
It’s important to think about how many chargers are being used and how much power each one uses. Larger chargers tend to use more power, and tests have shown that fake chargers may use up to 10 to 20 times as much. Also, the effect on the environment of millions of chargers that are always on should not be forgotten, as they add to the number of kilowatt hours used and the amount of carbon dioxide released into the air.
A real worry is the fire risk.
If you leave a phone charger plugged in, it could start a fire. Chargers that get too hot, especially if they are buried under things like books or clothes, can cause temperatures to rise and pose a fire risk. This risk is greater when using cheap chargers that aren’t branded and might not follow safety rules.2
An energy expert named Glenn LaMay says that leaving a phone charger plugged in all day won’t start a fire because all electrical items, including chargers, have to pass safety tests before they can be sold to customers.
Higher electricity bills if you leave the phone charger alone.
If you leave a phone charger plugged in, it can make your electricity bills go up. The charger keeps drawing power from the wall outlet even when it’s not charging a phone. When multiple chargers are constantly using power, the total effect adds up over time, causing electricity costs to rise for no reason.
The cost of one charger might not seem like much, but the cost of a dozen chargers a year can add up. As an example, leaving five chargers plugged in all the time costs about $0.37 per year, showing how this seemingly harmless habit can cost you money.
A Silent Contributor That Wastes Energy
Not only does leaving a phone charger plugged in cost money, it also wastes energy. Although it doesn’t seem like much, the power draw makes homes hotter and adds to pollution. With more and more focus on protecting the environment, using as little energy as possible becomes very important.
There isn’t much phantom load in chargers for smartphones and tablets, but older power tool chargers can use a lot of power. Finding chargers that aren’t working well and unplugging them is a useful way to cut down on energy waste.
There are risks when you leave your phone charger plugged in but no device plugged in. Besides the money issues, there are real worries about the waste of energy, the risk of fire, and the damage they do to the environment. To lower these risks, you should unplug chargers when not in use, buy smart outlets for remote control, and choose high-quality, brand-name products that put safety first. As we move into the digital age, making small changes to how we charge our devices can help make our homes safer and more environmentally friendly.
