Introduction: Charger Box
I made my own charging center for all my electronic gadgets (phone, iPod, PDA, etc) it's a box from IKEA with a power strip inside and an illuminated switch from an old drip coffeemaker.
Step 1: Do It!
The IKEA box is perfect because it's made of plastic and it has a hole in the top. I used a power strip that I had got at home and an illuminated switch from a scratch drip coffeemaker. I soldered all the connections and I isolate the connections with heat-shrink tubing.
Step 2: Working!
Working! Charging my phone, my iPod and my Palm.
32 Comments
16 years ago on Introduction
A small modification would be good: for each of the chargers to have it's own on/off switch.
Reply 15 years ago on Introduction
I like that idea. Recently discovered that a plugged-in charger is still pulling a (small) current from the socket, regardless of whether its charging a given device or not. Considering most chargers are kept plugged..well, it all adds up
Reply 13 years ago on Introduction
untrue, dude. imagine the outlet with nothing plugged into it. no connections are being made, so no power goes through it. same with the phone charger. when a phone is plugged into it, it makes a closed circuit. power goes through, back to the outlet making the charger use electricity. with no phone, there is no closed circuit. no electricity back to the outlet, making no electricity wasted.
if it used power, with no phone, it would blow a house fuse. sorry to burst your bubble.
-toogers
Reply 13 years ago on Introduction
Untrue on your untrue. There are still control circuts (pulse chargers) or loss of energy on the transformer (older chargers).
So when in doubt - unplug.
16 years ago on Introduction
It looks very nice, but I think you need to detail this instructable a bit more. All you said is that it charges your stuff and involves a power strip. Let's see some schematics or something.
Reply 16 years ago on Introduction
Seriously, if you need a schematic, you should't even be allowed to have a mains outlet in your house! OMFG
Reply 13 years ago on Introduction
my response:
Reply 13 years ago on Introduction
sorry, i had to.
Reply 13 years ago on Introduction
ignore title and annotations.
Reply 15 years ago on Introduction
Come on Silas, This forum is for people to HELP each other, if you want to show your superiority there are plenty of other forums. your comment was certainly condescending. What is great about a schematic is it can help to clarify a question about a design which may arise from the lack of clarity in the written description (most of us are not technical writers) or a lack of clarity in the photographs ( most of us are not photographers) Since when is more information a bad thing?
Reply 15 years ago on Introduction
isobot, this isn't a forum. although I agree silas is a dolt, the need for a schematic in this particular case, points toward someone who shouldn't be fiddling with this in the first place. and NO ONE should be building electrical thingies from instructables on the web unless they know what they are doing.. so while Silas wasn't playing nice.. he was certainly right.
Reply 15 years ago on Introduction
This is not a forum? Sorry, O.k. it is the comments section of an website that promotes exchanges of ideas. you got me there! Let's see, people post questions, answers and make comments on the projects and related tangents in this comments section. The comment section is not just for "good job! bad job! comments, it is for the exchange of ideas, which makes it operate like a forum but pardon me for referring to it as one. I have written this reply quickly on a very poor keyboard so if there are any other errors please chalk them up to my lack of editorial review. Sorry for being so snide but to call me on that, when it has nothing to do with the validity of the comments just seems a bit passive aggressive. As for Silas's comment, He was wrong, period. I wanted to see a schematic too because I could not figure out what was going on in the poorly written description ( non-english speaker I believe). Like I said before additional information can not hurt. If I had ask for one so I could understand what was going on and got that reply then Silas would be proved the fool. If a person can read a schematic, and I am talking about a real circuit diagram with the proper symbols, then he is qualified to plug his project into an outlet as they must have the basic understanding of electricity and an idea of what the 110v (here in the U.S.) can do. Even knowing what a schematic is shows that Ryanpotter can handle plugging something he made into a wall.
Reply 15 years ago on Introduction
Don't be a doody-head Silas
Reply 16 years ago on Introduction
:O its just like under my computer table > in a box :O
Reply 16 years ago on Introduction
Dude, first of all, I though he hardwired it all together. I didn't realize that he just plugged them into a power strip and threw it in a box. There's no need to freak out and use idiotic sounding acronyms.
Reply 16 years ago on Introduction
I draw this schematic. I think it could help you.
Reply 15 years ago on Introduction
Did I mention its pretty? It IS quite eye-pleasing. Mine'd probly look like a toaster/spider mutant
16 years ago on Introduction
My biggest concern would be the build up of heat inside the enclosure due to the waste heat from the "wall wart" transformers. I would be concerned about shortening the life of the transformers.
Reply 13 years ago on Introduction
maybe an a/c computer fan in the box, too?
Reply 15 years ago on Introduction
Yea. The radiant heat is my concern too when I look at it. Perhaps the hole is large enough for ventilating the container tho