Understanding How To Prolong The Lifespan Of Electric Cables
These days we see that there are varieties of electronic devices in our homes, which means we would have an assortment of electrical cables ranging from charger cables for our phones, TV and decoder cables, rechargeable lamp cables, Laptop cables, and more.
And we must have observed at some point that these cables are rather delicate and susceptible to breaking, mostly where the wires meet the plug and device connectors.
Having to replace these cables regularly can be rather frustrating. There are ways we can preserve our cables and make them last longer. They are;
- Use cables with care
Avoid forcefully pulling the cable by grabbing somewhere in the middle, instead grab the plastic at either end, such as the USB connector that plugs into the charger block, and gently pull the cable out. This applies to any kind of cable including chargers for our phones, laptop chargers, headphone chargers, and any other electric cable.
2. Avoid Bending the cables when they are plugged in;
Giving your cables space when they are plugged in is important in preserving them. Don’t put any object on them as applying pressure makes cables break easily.
For example, if you are charging your phone behind your sofa in the living room or any other piece of furniture, do not push it up against the charger. Leave some space.
If you’re using your phone when it’s plugged in, do not position it in a way that will twist or bend the charger.
3. Use the cable to form a loop around itself about 3-4 times for safe transport;
Don’t just squeeze the cables or fold them tightly and put them inside your bag, this puts a lot of pressure on the wires. Instead, coil the cable around itself 3-4 times so that it’s about ¼ of its original size. This way you can easily put it in your pocket or bag and transport it safely.
5. Store cables in a protective case when not in use;
You can buy a general cable organizing case to keep cables when you are not using them as it prevents accidents like rolling over the cables with a chair, Bending and putting pressure on them. You can purchase these protective cases at local electronic stores.
6. Use a pen spring to wrap the end of a cable wire to prevent fraying;
Pen springs are in the ink tubes of our retractable pens, you can use them to wrap the sensitive endpoint of the cable where the wire meets the connector.
This will make it flexible and also prevent fraying at its delicate points. Use two pen springs to reinforce both sensitive ends.
Put one where the wire is attached to the charger connection and one where it meets joins the device connector side. Make use of non-functional retractable pens.
7. Reinforce cables with commercial cable protectors.
Buy rubber or any other cable protectors made with flexible material. Wrap the protectors around the ends of the wire where it is joined with the connectors to prevent the wire from breaking due to tension and bending. , use two protectors per cable for full protection.
8. Use electric tape to tape up fraying cables;
This serves as a quick fix to prevent further damage to cables. Wrap the electrical tape 2-3 times around the frayed areas.
Conclusion
The above eight 8 steps will surely ensure a longer lifespan for your cable because they stand as the major ways showing us how to prolong the lifespan of electric Cables which can easily be adopted by anyone irrespective of technical knowledge level.
References: WikiHow
