To ask for help charging a power bank? So confused.

[Cellardoor7]

Sorry this is such a boring AIBU.

Bought a power bank from Amazon the other day to charge my phone, and having problems charging the bank itself. The power bank I bought is pictured in the first photo.

To charge the power bank, I’ve plugged it into my phone charger plug using the cable that came with the bank (see second photo).

The bank doesn’t seem to be charging at all. There is nothing on the bank power display to say it’s charging.

Am I charging it the right way? Or should I charge it using my iPhone charger cable, or another way entirely?

They usually have different ports - one for input when charging the charger, the other for output when charging your phone from the charger. Have you got the cable plugged into the correct port?

As it says it is usb c input and output, have you tried plugging it in to a different port?

I have one that to charge it, I plug in usb c from a phone charger but to charge something from it, I plug in a usb to it and usb c to the thing I'm charging.

It’s usually the other way round, large USB into the charging point/plug and the mini usb into the power bank.

It’s in the wrong port I think. Try your iPhone charger if you have the new style one

I think you have it the wrong way round. To charge the power pack you should have the iPhone charger connector into the power pack and the charging end into the wall plug adapter. Apologies as I’m not sure of rhe correct names for each end of the charger cable.

I usually charge mine with my iPhone charger cable & plug, but it’s got a few different sized ports.
Have you got any other cables/chargers you can try it with?
It might be that it’s faulty

Firstly, that extension lead should be condemned to the bin!😖
Is that heat damage????

Does the USB adaptor work?
Are you using to correct lead (i.e. the one supplied)?
Have you tried another USB port?
Are there any buttons to press on the PB itself?
How long has it been plugged into a proven working USB port, sometimes they take a few minutes to register a charge?

Yeah I think you have the cable the wrong way around.
Big in the plug, small in the power bank.

You've got a big end and small end on the cable. Big end goes where the power is coming from (wall socket) small end to what's charging (power pack). Same as if you were charging your phone from the wall.

When you charge the phone from the power pack you put the cable the other way around.

As others have said, you need to charge it with a USB-C plugged into the power bank. You have the charging cable the wrong way round.

Thanks all! I’ve just tried charging it with an old laptop charger and it’s got a little charging symbol, so looks like that worked. And yes, I think it is heat damage on the extension lead 😳 I’m not sure what from though!

Glad someone else said that re the extension lead. That was my first thought as well. That is a huge liability to continue using that. If i saw that at work on my fire warden rounds I would remove it. That’s if maintenance hadn’t seen it first and removed it.

Jesus OP!! You are taking a very serious risk using that extension lead!! Unplug it immediately and bin it! 🤯🔥

Bin the extension lead now! It's a fire risk!

Sorry all - will do! I’ve ordered a new extension lead and will bin that one today. Do I need to take it to a electrics recycling place?

Ideally, yes. If it'll be a while before you can and someone in your house might be tempted to use it, suggest cutting off the plug (that's what the PAT testers do at work)

You also had the lead the wrong way around.

USB to C to charge, not C to USB.

You need to swap tve lead round to charge ... smallest end in battery.
BTW, I would recommend buying a battery bag for it, ive a friend whose just had a house fire due to charging a battery.

Thanks, all!

Another question from me - does anyone have any advice on the best charger to use for my power bank please?

I’ve been using my laptop charger to charge it - only whilst I’ve been in the same room, and I’ve been checking it regularly.

I have a feeling the laptop charger is too powerful for the power bank, as it’s making the power bank heat up slightly. That’s the only thing that’s worked so far to charge it though.

My phone charger - a standard iPhone charger, in one of my pics in my OP - isn’t working when I try to charge the power bank with it.

If I can, I’d prefer not to buy a new charger just for the power bank, but will do if there’s no alternative. I am a novice when it comes to tech, but very keen to avoid any safety risks (promise!!)

Send it back and buy one from a named brand like Anker which will come with instructions. Don't use your laptop charger!

Use the charger it came with? Reviews say it comes with one - probably a USB C charging cable.

The info on Amazon says exactly which type of charger you need - a USB type C one, 18W input. The pictures show which of the ports are output and which are input - you can only charge this type with a usbc as in the diagram.

And note you get different power usb c - laptop ones are 65w and the ones you need for phones / power banks like this are 18w.

Having said that, I do find power banks heat up sometimes. But don’t use your laptop charger.

As others have said, the power bank will have USB type A ports (the fatter ones) and USB C ports - the thinner, more rounded connections on it.

The C ports will be for charging the power bank, so that is why your laptop charger will work but plugging the type A connector into it as did in the photo will not work as the charger will not accept power that way. It will get warm to the touch when charging, that's just physics.

The type A port(s) will be for output, so if you take the cable in your photo and plug the end currently in the charger into your phone, the phone should charge, assuming the power bank has some charge in it.

So what you need is a USB plug with a type A port on it, which you can get from Argos/ Amazon/ Supermarkets etc for about a fiver.

Quote : " I have a feeling the laptop charger is too powerful for the power bank, as it’s making the power bank heat up slightly. That’s the only thing that’s worked so far to charge it though."

It works the other way. The charger can't be too powerful, because the charge current is pulled by the powerbank, not pushed by the charger. A little bit of warming of the bank is normal. The issue would be if the charger/ cable are not meaty enough, and the power bank tries to pull more power from the charger than it can provide. That's what causes things to melt.

When buying chargers and cables, always buy the ones marked for fast charge. They are rated for a higher current, and will charge all usb devices.

If you just google USB charging guide and you will find loads.

Do you have a plug adapter that has a normal larger rectangle USB 'hole' in it, like you'd get with a phone or anything else that's usb rechargeable? Not like the one in your picture which has a small hole like the charging port on your phone.

You can then plug the cable that came with the power bank into the adapter and the smaller end into the power bank.

Thanks everyone!

The phone I want to use the power pack for is an iPhone 11, so I wonder if that causes any tech compatibility issues?

I’ve taken some photos below of the ‘thin end’ of the cable that came with the power pack plugged into my phone. The ‘fat end’ of the cable is too big to fit into my iPhone charger port. Given this, I’m wondering about getting an adapter cable - as people here suggest. I wonder if the one in the photo below might do the job?

Sorry about all my questions - I feel quite stupid! I thought buying a power pack and getting it to work would be the easiest thing in the world 😂