Leaving small devices on constantly.

Leaving small devices on constantly.

I have some wireless speakers which use a wireless transmitter that is plugged into the sound output of the computer.

I only actually listen to the wireless sound in other rooms 2 or 3 times a week for an hour or two**

I'm not concerned about the electricity being use, but about wearing out the transmitter (about 4x4x1 inch) because I've been leaving it on all the time.

If I remembered, it would be easy enough to turn it off because it's wall wart is plugged into "Master Power Plus" a flat box that sits under the monitor with 4 switches for whatever I plug into them (and a master switch). I use one for the transmitter, one for the local speakers, and I have used one for the monitor.

So, does leaving the xmitter on all the time, year after year, make it likely to wear out sooner than turning it on 2 or 3 tiems a week for an hour or two, or more each time since I'll probably go out after lunch and won't want to go upstairs to turn the xmitter off again?

P.S. I've been looking to buy another xmitter. I did buy another set of speakers but the ebay/CraigsList seller kept the xmitter back to test speakers as he got them. I have one spare that seemed to stop working years ago, but for some reason I wasn't convinced or I thought it was some perimeter problem I could fix.

Thanks for any help you can give.

**But it's very good to have because I can eat my dinner or take a bath or even work on the lawn mower outside etc. whenever I want without having to stay in the office near the computer to listen to a favorite program. RadioMaximus (free) has made it even easier to listen to a variety of webradio.
Reply to
Micky
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Most well made electronics actually benefit from being under power at all t imes. Exceptions would be surges, brown outs and lightening strikes. Three are always inrush surges, thermal issues and other faults relating to star t-up and shutdown that are not good.

I kept a Ramsey FM100B (1-watt version) when I worked overseas that now has been in operation 24/7 these last 11 years without a single glitch.

Peter Wieck Melrose Park, PA

Reply to
pfjw

Eventually I'll get all this conneced to a surge supressor, but in 33 years here, the numeric panel for the burglar alarm went up in smoke for some reason, but no other possible surge problems

Okay

Now that you mention it, I have two tv signal amplifiers that have been plugged in for 32 and 30 years, except during 3 power failures and ~30 momentary interruptions and they still work fine.

I'll leave it on. Thanks.

Reply to
Micky

Yup, things like that, don't worry about it. In fact some people leave thei r big power amps on all the time, and believe it or not they actually act a s surge protectors in a way. When a surge id only a few milliseconds those big 10,000 uF caps do not charge all that much and they flatten it.

I also never reboot my computers unless it is required for an anti-virus up date. I also do not allow anything but the AV to update, at all. I works no w so I do not want it fixed.

When you first turn equipment on, that surge current can be like 100 times normal draw. If a CRT TV with an automatic degausser it can be way higher t han that. In fact now some equipment has a surge limiting resistor that is shunted by a relay (for efficiency) after so long. Or there is Sony's plan using a zero crossing detector so the relay kicks in right when the AC is a t zero.

Little transmitters like that are not that critical. Turn off TV sets, clas s A amps and anything with tubes. Other than that leave it all on.

Reply to
jurb6006

No. Leaving it on will last longer than turning it on and off. Electronics does not like to be power cycled. Power electronics is worse because it doesn't like to be thermal cycled.

I had a good example of longevity. I had an SCO ODT 486DX2/66 server running in my office 24x7 for about 15 years. I did manage to destroy a few CPU and power supply fans (if it moves, it breaks), but most everything else just ran and ran. The ancient Conner Peripherals CP1060S 1GB drive just kept going. I was waiting for it to die so I had an excuse to replace it, but it just kept going. I finally scrapped it about 6 months ago for parts that I needed to fix an ancient Omniturn machining center controller. Meanwhile, other machines, there were turned on and off as needed, would blow something up after about 5-7 years.

The only exception I can think of are bulging electrolytic capacitors. They're killed by ripple current and over temperature, which is largely a function of operating time. So, if your xmitter is full of junk electrolytics, you might have more problems with continuous operation.

--
Jeff Liebermann     jeffl@cruzio.com 
150 Felker St #D    http://www.LearnByDestroying.com 
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Reply to
Jeff Liebermann

With the shitylytics of today I think you'll have that anyway. They go bad without even being used. The old ones could be reformed, but not the new ones. In fact sometimes they leak right into the parts drawer.

Reply to
jurb6006

Yes, I've noticed that. One time 40 years ago a neighbor asked me what kind of TV to buy, and I said, All I know is don't get mechanical tuning, get electronic. When I was over there next, it had a turret tuner**, but I kept my mouth shut. Why did they even ask me, I wondered.

**It was very easy to turn the knob, easier than any other that I've seen before or since. I think it was mechanical, unless there was for a while some sort of electronic channel selector that involved rotating a knob. ??

Thanks. And thanks, Jur.

Reply to
Micky

SCOOP

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Reply to
avagadro7

Dang. We have to sent everyone in Niger an electric coffee pot so they can use more electricity.

I shouldn't sound sarcastic. For years I would tell people that with the power used to light up empty public washrooms in the US, we could power the country of Chad**.

But that's not funny anymore because Chad changed its name to Brian.

**I don't know if that was/is true, but I wouldn't be surprised.
Reply to
Micky

"About a quarter of all residential energy consumption is used on devices in idle power mode ..." If you exclude air conditioners, clothes dryers, and electric stoves.

Reply to
Bob Engelhardt

YIKES!

I could put everything on a power-strip and shut everything down dead when not in actual use. BUT:

a) I would have to reprogram the presets on two tuners. b) I would have to reset/reprogram the plasma TV from "sales-all-bright" mode to normal operating mode with each turn-on. c) I would have to re-sync the multi-device remote - about a 10 minute ordeal. d) I would have to reprogram the DVR. e) Reset the clocks on the stove & microwave. f) Let the vintage AR electronics and Dynaco PAT-5 "warm up" for about 15 seconds before allowing any sound through.

And, here is the grand total of the savings:

a) Two tuners "off": 3 watts b) Plasma TV: 5 watts c) DVR: 15 watts d) Stove & Microwave: 5 watts e) AR amp & Receiver: 6 watts f) PAT-5: 2 watts

36 watts. x 24 x 365 = 315,360/1000 = 315 kw. x $0.14 = $44.16/12 = $3.68 per month.

Most well designed switching power-supplies draw very little current when not in use. Vanishingly little.

Nor can we send our surplus power to Chad, as it happens.

Keep in mind that when we use devices such as a laptop or other battery- based items, the net use is pretty much the same whether we allow the battery to discharge between uses or not.

Peter Wieck Melrose Park, PA

Reply to
pfjw

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