Often desktop power supplies and under-desk power supplies can be linked together to make the most of the wall sockets available. We’ve outlined below a few things to consider before you buy power supplies and adapters for your workspace:
The number of wall sockets you have will limit the amount of electrical devices you can plug into it. In the UK the BS6396 electrical safety standard states that any electrical system being fed from one 13 Amp UK plug must not consist of more than:
Any piece of electrical equipment rated higher than 5 Amps should not be plugged into the power supplies installed at your desk. It should be directly connected to its own 13 Amp wall socket.
Below is an indication of the ratings for typical electrical devices. You can find out more about electrical device ratings using this handy guide and Which? have some helpful information on staying safe while working from home.
Suitable:
Laptop: <0.5 A
Mobile phone charger: <0.5 A
Computer monitor/screen: <0.5 A
Desktop computer: 1.3 A
Desk Lamp: <0.5 A
Printer: <0.5 A
Cordless landline telephone: <0.5 A
Wifi router: <0.5 A
Radio: <0.5 A
Proceed with caution!
Vacuum cleaner: 4-9 A
Not suitable:
4 slice toaster: 9 A
Hair dryer: 10 A
Fan heater: 13 A
Iron: 13 A
Kettle: 13 A
Microwave: 6.67 A
Portable air conditioner: Up to 9.3 A
Desktop
For devices that you need to charge regularly, desktop or in-desk power supplies are best, ensuring that the sockets are within easy reach. Our desktop power supplies come with USB-A and USB-C charging ports so you can easily charge devices like mobile phones and tablets without using up a 3 pin socket.
In-desk
The Metalicon Solo in-desk power supply comes with a 2.5 hardwired cable and is designed to fit into a standard 80mm cable port hole in the desktop. However, the collar surround can be removed for the module to fit into a 60mm hole if required, so it can be easily installed into soft seating for example.
Under-desk
Our under-desk power supplies offer 3 pin sockets and are ideal for electrical equipment that doesn’t need unplugging. This could be a desktop computer, screen or monitor, desk lamp, cordless landline phone or wireless speaker. Powerlink also offers a master switch so you can kill the power to all your equipment without the need to reach the wall socket.
Under-desk supplies are best used with cable trays for wire baskets or you can fix them to the underside of the desktop. Making use of cable management solutions like the Linx cable spine from Metalicon will keep all the power cables tidy and out of sight and save you wrapping them round your ankles!
Boost and Powerlink power supplies are designed to be connected together using 3 pole GST cables. For example, from one 13 A socket you could connect a 4 socket Powerlink under-desk supply and a 2 socket Boost desktop supply.
Boost desktop power supplies are available with 2 Cat6 data ports, enabling your laptop to use a wired network connection without having a long cable trailing to the data socket on the wall. These configurations work well for shared workspaces or hot desks where a wifi data connection may not be convenient.
If you’re still confused about purchasing power supplies for your desk or workspace, get in touch with our team. We’d be glad to help you.
