Monday, November 18, 2013

Charger Dilemma while Traveling

Travel Tips:

The goal was to return home with all our chargers still in our possession. We have left various chargers at different locations in previous travels and we knew it would be an added hassle to replace them while on the road. My goal was to create a system that took care of the charger chaos but at the same time prevented us from leaving them behind.

Here is my solution and it worked beautifully.


Understand, we were traveling with 2 computers, 2 iPads, 2 iPhones and 2 Kindles and on the road for 2 months. I knew many motel and B&B rooms just wouldn't have enough outlets for us. We tend to leave chargers when one is plug into that outlet hidden behind the bed that you can't see.  We packed 2 surge suppressors and David plugged all his chargers into one, and all mine went into the other.  I used a velcro strap to keep the heavier chargers firmly attached. We left all chargers plugged in to the surge suppressors at all times, and at each new motel room, just took out the entire surge suppressor and plugged it in. I had and extra velcro strip for when we unplugged them. All the cords got wrapped and held to the surge suppressor with the extra velcro.  It minimized tangling. 

First thing we did when moving into a new room was plug in the surge suppressors and various electronics. Each morning, we would just unplug the surge suppressors and would know all chargers were there. We had a green bag just for the all the chargers and backup hard drives. 

Worked beautifully because many motel rooms only had the two available outlets for our 8 devices, and we didn't leave a charger behind!

Interested in our cross country journey?
Here are some additional posts about this adventure. More are yet to come.
©2013 Ashbee Design, Marji Roy

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8 comments:

  1. This is a GREAT idea - thanks for the tip !

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    1. We have started carrying a surge suppressor when we travel even to kids house due to lack of outlets. Attaching the chargers to it for long term travel just made sense. We now also pack an extension cord because I like my phone by the bed for the clock app.

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  2. Brilliant idea. I always worry about losing the chargers so I love this idea.

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    1. While it is easy to overlook a single charger in an outlet, it was impossible to miss this set-up. I have left too many chargers over the years not to recognize the problem.

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  3. Your organizational skills bring a smile to my face...your problem solving approach serves you well. My roots are in New England but after 3 different stints in the Midwest, I have come to appreciate the beauty of the prairie and wide open spaces. Love your pictures of your cross-country journey.

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    1. Thanks! We knew we would be impressed by the big sky. It was the beauty of the land that surprised us.

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  4. I'm going to try that the next time we spend a week a the time share -- it would be so much easier to remember!

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    1. We just did this for the Thanksgiving trip to our Daughter's house. I also added 2 extension cords because her outlets are poorly place and I like my electronics next to the bed. Worked like a charm. My husband thought it worked extremely well.

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