Hot Battery Charger

[paulbrow]

Just purchased my first Nikon camera - a D80. When charging the battery for the first time I noticed the charger plug and wall socket got really warm. I have a lot of different equipment with chargers and none get warm like this. Can anyone with a D80 share their experience with their charger? I want to replace it if this is not the norm. Thanks.

[Frog]

Mine gets a little warm but not more than anything else that charges.
You may have a bum one and you probably would want to get it checked out.

[SmartWombat]

If the wall socket gets really warm, maybe you have a faulty socket ?
But different people will call different temperatures warm or hot.
Measure it with a thermometer.

My video charger has a 70 deg C thermal fuse in it.
I know because it blew in hot weather.
So some chargers are deliberately designed to run hot, or warm if you're thick skinned.

[another view]

Not sure on an N80, but the chargers I have for the Coolpix as well as my AA rechargeables get only slightly warm. They're slightly warmer than room temperature, but hardly noticeable. You're not using an extension cord by chance, are you? Had to ask, but I don't think one of these chargers would draw enough current for this to matter.

Lots of D80 shooters here - you should get a few "real" answers.

[freygr]

Replace the AC receptacle. Receptacles should never get hot under the load a D80 charger draws. Heat from the receptacle is making the cord hot and is a fire hazard.

[mikeh]

that is a ac fault not the charger
if charger is faulty it will be hot and not the wall socket

[paulbrow]

Thank you for your comments and suggestions. I use the same wall socket for my various battery chargers and the Nikon charger is the only one that gets noticeably warm. Next time I charge the Nikon, I will use a different socket on a different circuit and see what happens. Based on what all of you have said, if it continues it would seem to be a problem with the charger, not the socket. Thanks for your commets.

[freygr]

The Lithium Battery charges draw more current that other types of chargers. If the socket is getting hot with the charger and due to the voltage drop the charger is going to have to work harder to keep the correct current to the battery, so it will get warmer than normal. The bottom line is the socket must be replaced as it something that draws power like a vacuum cleaner or a heater you could have a fire due the heat that would be generated. This is a common problem and is cheap and easy to fix.