Fabled Diagnostic Step One
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My wife said "The kettle's not working!" – She's been claiming that it's getting old for a while. It's a "cordless" electric kettle, which can be lifted off an always-plugged-in base. Usually the on/off switch dies or the base connector wears out. The first thing I did was to rotate it on its base. She said "I tried that" Then I pushed the plug all the way back into the wall and it came to life.
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My wife said "The kettle's not working!" – She's been claiming that it's getting old for a while. It's a "cordless" electric kettle, which can be lifted off an always-plugged-in base. Usually the on/off switch dies or the base connector wears out. The first thing I did was to rotate it on its base. She said "I tried that" Then I pushed the plug all the way back into the wall and it came to life.
Reminds me of my first site visit on my first job. I was asked to look at a computer that wouldn't turn on. I'm sure you can guess the resolution! :-D
"These people looked deep within my soul and assigned me a number based on the order in which I joined." - Homer
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Reminds me of my first site visit on my first job. I was asked to look at a computer that wouldn't turn on. I'm sure you can guess the resolution! :-D
"These people looked deep within my soul and assigned me a number based on the order in which I joined." - Homer
Richard Deeming wrote:
computer that wouldn't turn on
Reminds me of something heard eons ago: Switch on your head. Then switch on your computer.
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My wife said "The kettle's not working!" – She's been claiming that it's getting old for a while. It's a "cordless" electric kettle, which can be lifted off an always-plugged-in base. Usually the on/off switch dies or the base connector wears out. The first thing I did was to rotate it on its base. She said "I tried that" Then I pushed the plug all the way back into the wall and it came to life.
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Sometimes just pushing the plug in doesn't work. I've taken to unplugging and then plugging back in to overcome this issue.
To be honest, I did that next to see if I needed to replace the outlet that it was plugged into. "Just how loose is this?" I should also check the outlet's temperature after the kettle boils.
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My wife said "The kettle's not working!" – She's been claiming that it's getting old for a while. It's a "cordless" electric kettle, which can be lifted off an always-plugged-in base. Usually the on/off switch dies or the base connector wears out. The first thing I did was to rotate it on its base. She said "I tried that" Then I pushed the plug all the way back into the wall and it came to life.
I was at a friend's house and he was saying that the TV was not working. Since I have a BSEE, could I take a look at it?
- I tried to turn it on. No response.
- I followed the power cord to an extension cord.
- I followed the extension cord around the perimeter of the room until I found the plug.
- Yep! You guessed it. It was unplugged. His daughter, doing her homework at a small table, had unplugged that extension cord to plug in either a laptop charger or a cell phone charger.
I highly recommend replacing some of your duplex outlets with ones that include USB power ports. The are readily available at your local hardware store, Lowes Home Improvement Centers, Home Depot, and your local Tractor Supply Company store.
Note to builders: One duplex outlet per wall is no longer sufficient!
__________________ Lord, grant me the serenity to accept that there are some things I just can’t keep up with, the determination to keep up with the things I must keep up with, and the wisdom to find a good RSS feed from someone who keeps up with what I’d like to, but just don’t have the damn bandwidth to handle right now. © 2009, Rex Hammock
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I was at a friend's house and he was saying that the TV was not working. Since I have a BSEE, could I take a look at it?
- I tried to turn it on. No response.
- I followed the power cord to an extension cord.
- I followed the extension cord around the perimeter of the room until I found the plug.
- Yep! You guessed it. It was unplugged. His daughter, doing her homework at a small table, had unplugged that extension cord to plug in either a laptop charger or a cell phone charger.
I highly recommend replacing some of your duplex outlets with ones that include USB power ports. The are readily available at your local hardware store, Lowes Home Improvement Centers, Home Depot, and your local Tractor Supply Company store.
Note to builders: One duplex outlet per wall is no longer sufficient!
__________________ Lord, grant me the serenity to accept that there are some things I just can’t keep up with, the determination to keep up with the things I must keep up with, and the wisdom to find a good RSS feed from someone who keeps up with what I’d like to, but just don’t have the damn bandwidth to handle right now. © 2009, Rex Hammock
Local codes set a maximum distance between outlets on any given wall. I think maybe 6 or 10 feet. I'm not sure if there's a minimum distance, though. There would be a maximum number of outlets per breaker run, though. I have a couple of questions about USB power ports. Do they act like wall warts, continuously drawing power, even when not recharging/powering a USB device, or are they able to power off when no device is attached. Secondly, are they fast-charge or not? I'm guessing not, since I think maybe plugging in an old USB device to a fast-charge port is not wise.
"A little song, a little dance, a little seltzer down your pants" Chuckles the clown
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I was at a friend's house and he was saying that the TV was not working. Since I have a BSEE, could I take a look at it?
- I tried to turn it on. No response.
- I followed the power cord to an extension cord.
- I followed the extension cord around the perimeter of the room until I found the plug.
- Yep! You guessed it. It was unplugged. His daughter, doing her homework at a small table, had unplugged that extension cord to plug in either a laptop charger or a cell phone charger.
I highly recommend replacing some of your duplex outlets with ones that include USB power ports. The are readily available at your local hardware store, Lowes Home Improvement Centers, Home Depot, and your local Tractor Supply Company store.
Note to builders: One duplex outlet per wall is no longer sufficient!
__________________ Lord, grant me the serenity to accept that there are some things I just can’t keep up with, the determination to keep up with the things I must keep up with, and the wisdom to find a good RSS feed from someone who keeps up with what I’d like to, but just don’t have the damn bandwidth to handle right now. © 2009, Rex Hammock
I am always dubious of Socket mounted USB's, If the USB Device is not 'proper' and has metal shell or metallic coating there can be the risk of it being earthed so if you suffer from earth leakage the thing can be live or act as path to earth. No metal plastic only also there tends not be a way to ensure it is correct without another piece of equipment. Use a proper plug to USB adaptor to be sure.
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Local codes set a maximum distance between outlets on any given wall. I think maybe 6 or 10 feet. I'm not sure if there's a minimum distance, though. There would be a maximum number of outlets per breaker run, though. I have a couple of questions about USB power ports. Do they act like wall warts, continuously drawing power, even when not recharging/powering a USB device, or are they able to power off when no device is attached. Secondly, are they fast-charge or not? I'm guessing not, since I think maybe plugging in an old USB device to a fast-charge port is not wise.
"A little song, a little dance, a little seltzer down your pants" Chuckles the clown
As you can tell from my bio, I live in a rural area. We don't have no stink'n building or zoning codes. One of my neighbors has a private cemetery on her property with one of her sons (a Vietnam vet), her husband, her parents, her grand parents, and some of her forbearers going back to the Civil War.
I know little about the duplex outlets with USB ports. I have seen them my local Lowes and have used them at motels when I am on the road. I would hope that they are designed to be smarter than "wall warts." It should not be difficult to have them turn on only when a USB-A or USB-C plug is physically present, with the metal shell of the plug pushing against a microswitch which turns on the 12v power.
__________________ Lord, grant me the serenity to accept that there are some things I just can’t keep up with, the determination to keep up with the things I must keep up with, and the wisdom to find a good RSS feed from someone who keeps up with what I’d like to, but just don’t have the damn bandwidth to handle right now. © 2009, Rex Hammock
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Local codes set a maximum distance between outlets on any given wall. I think maybe 6 or 10 feet. I'm not sure if there's a minimum distance, though. There would be a maximum number of outlets per breaker run, though. I have a couple of questions about USB power ports. Do they act like wall warts, continuously drawing power, even when not recharging/powering a USB device, or are they able to power off when no device is attached. Secondly, are they fast-charge or not? I'm guessing not, since I think maybe plugging in an old USB device to a fast-charge port is not wise.
"A little song, a little dance, a little seltzer down your pants" Chuckles the clown
k5054 wrote:
continuously drawing power, even when not recharging/powering a USB device
Probably. But not much. I suspect it would be difficult to have them 'turn off' based on the connector. It would require a mechanical switch in the connector (which would of course break over time.) Do USB Sockets Draw Power When They Are Not Being Used?[^]
k5054 wrote:
Secondly, are they fast-charge or not?
Depends on the socket. Just like with buying a charger. Certainly can be though. Search for USB-C The 4 Best Wall Outlets With USB Charging Ports of 2024 | Reviews by Wirecutter[^]
