When the Charger is Not Charging, Will It Consume Power When Plugged into the Socket?

Mobile phones need to be charged almost every day, and some people keep the charger plugged in to save trouble.

The charger of a mobile phone can actually be understood as a small transformer, which converts ordinary household AC power into DC power suitable for mobile phones and outputs it to charge the mobile phone.

Will leaving the charger consume power?

First of all, it is certain that when the charger is not charging, it will still consume power when it is plugged into the socket.

From a physical perspective, the charger has a voltage transformation function, using a transformer to convert high voltage into low voltage, and then transmits it to electrical appliances. The voltage transformation principle of the charger is magnetic field induction, and there are two parallel coils inside.

One of the coils is connected to the power supply and generates a magnetic field when current passes through it, which then generates DC currents of different voltages.

Therefore, as long as the charger is not unplugged, a coil will be working all the time, consuming power.

Generally speaking, a charger that is not unplugged from the socket and not connected to an electrical appliance is in the "no-load" state. Since there is still current flowing through the charger when it is no-load, the charger will consume power.



Calculated based on the no-load power of the charger being 0.05w, that is, it only consumes one kilowatt hour of electricity after working for 20,000 hours in the no-load state.

If you only see yourself as a charger, you will definitely be insignificant. If 100 million chargers work without load for 24 hours a day, 12,000 kWh of electricity will be consumed every day. This number is quite astonishing. Saving energy is everyone’s unshirkable responsibility.

Leaving the charger unplugged is not only a waste of power, but also a hidden danger.

If the charger is left unplugged for a long time, the charger will age and generate heat, and the insulation layer of the coil will melt, which may cause a short circuit, leading to fire, explosion, accidental electric shock and other accidents.

The dangers of leaving the charger unplugged for a long time

1. Shorten charger life

If the mobile phone charger is always plugged into the socket, the internal chip of the charger will be in working condition for a long time, which will naturally reduce the service life of the charger.

2. Bring potential dangers

Inferior chargers use poor workmanship and materials. When powered on for a long time, its internal components will age faster than the original ones, and the electrolytic capacitor may explode. If there are flammable objects near the charger, it may cause a fire.

In short, even if it is not to save electricity bills, but for your own safety, it is recommended that everyone develop a good habit and unplug the mobile phone charger when not in use!