Latetly the new trend seems to be to wrap or crochet over phone charger wires and rope lights(lighted rug). They do this to the phone charger cords for for various reasons, To make them pretty, easy to identify, lessen the tangle.
I know there are a lot of people who have actually done this. I hope you read this and rethink your cover.
Recently in a group I follow, this photo came across my newsfeed with the caption "for the love of god and family, please stop crocheting over power cords, this could have been much worse!!" -R.O
She later added:
"This cord belonged to my husband, kept in his car. For charging while driving. This am we were out, smelt burning plastic, and found this. Had I succumbed to the popular cord cover, the damages could have been worse than a destroyed cord and bad smell." -R.O
Now I'm sure your thinking, "How does me covering my wire cause a fire!?"
Crocheting over your wires doesn't cause a fire, but prohibits you from seeing any exposed wires or wear on the casing that could lead to bare wires. If a short is to happen, the yarn will act as an accelerant and make any possible fires spread quicker.
Have you ever felt the plug while your phone is charging? I have, and this is exactly why I no long charge my phone over night as well.
You should never cover anything with an electrical current going through it with anything other than a proper insulator.
Please don't take any chances by covering your cords. Check them often as with any other cords, and only charge when your awake and present (as I said before the plug can become hot)
Thank you to Reveneal O'Brian for sharing her story with us and allowing us all to be aware of how dangerous this can be.
Norma Jean writes in:
"Yes, it also goes for all chargers. I had an incident with iPad cord and there were no tears or visible breaks in the cord. I was up late working on some stuff and using my iPad at the same time while it was charging and left a bag of potato chips on top of the cord. About an hour or so later I was smelled something funny and couldn't figure out where it was but it smelled like something was burning. I went around my house trying to locate the smell, including going outside to check, but it was strongest near where I was at. Well I didn't notice but when I got up I just so happen to move the potato chip bag and when I looked over and there was a burnt hole in the bag. I was very fortunate to notice the smell when I did because I was about to go to bed and leave everything where it was. This freaked me out so bad I never leave anything plugged in to charge overnight anymore. Plus, I make sure the cords are clear of anything fabric or plastic now. " -N.J
Thank you Norma Jean for sharing your story.