Electrical appliances in summer

The car is and remains the biggest heat trap. According to the ADAC, the temperature inside the car can quickly rise to 60 degrees Celsius in direct sunlight. If you leave your electrical devices in the car, you are taking a high risk, as the batteries, processors and displays of cell phones, tablets and suchlike are very sensitive to heat. But even on a sunny windowsill in the office, at a picnic in the countryside or on the beach, the rise in temperature in the sun should not be underestimated.

Batteries do not like temperature extremes – neither cold nor heat. If it is warm, the battery ages more quickly. Even at a temperature rise of ten degrees, the electrochemical processes inside the battery take place twice as fast as usual. The result: performance drops and the battery dies sooner.

It is therefore best to avoid direct sunlight and place your electrical appliances in the coolest possible places. If the sun cannot be avoided, the appliances should at least be covered. For example, leave your cell phone in your backpack when you go on a picnic or cover it with a bath towel or T-shirt at the outdoor pool.

There is no question that the room ambient temperature rises in summer – at least where no air conditioning is installed. In addition to the high outside temperatures and the sun, there is another factor that promotes this: electrical appliances emit additional heat into the room when they are running or in standby mode. Their total power consumption is ultimately converted into waste heat. You should therefore switch off your electrical appliances completely in summer or disconnect them from the power supply when they are not in use.

Pulling the plug not only avoids additional unnecessary waste heat in the house, it also saves costs. This is because the power supply units of lamps, televisions, movie and music players or cell phone charging plugs are permanently live when they are connected to the mains. Although modern electrical appliances make better use of energy, standby mode remains a not insignificant cost factor. The Federal Environment Agency also recommends completely disconnecting power guzzlers from the power supply. The unnecessary costs of standby power consumption throughout Germany are estimated at four billion euros a year. Find out here what you need to know about energy as a consumer.

Refrigerators and freezers have a particularly heavy workload in summer. They are one of the few electrical appliances that are in constant use. Especially when room ambient temperatures rise, it is important to ensure that they can dissipate their warm waste air sufficiently. Blocked ventilation slots can cause appliances to run hot. Even if it sounds tempting to cool down briefly by opening the fridge or freezer in summer temperatures, we advise against doing so. Frequent or permanent opening leads to heat loss, for which the appliance must compensate, thereby consuming more energy. This in turn radiates more heat into the room.

Paddling pools and pools in the garden provide refreshment on hot summer days. To enhance the summer feeling even more, many people don't want to do without suitable music on their smartphone and/or speakers. However, caution must be exercised here in particular. Equipment such as extension leads are prohibited in the pool (area 0) or within a radius of 2 m around the pool (area 1). In area 2 (1.5 m around area 1), these circuits must be protected by a residual current device (RCD) with a rated residual current of no more than 30 mA, or a residual current protective device, also known as a ground fault circuit interrupter (GFCI).

If you install a pool pump, we recommend that you place it outside areas 0, 1 and 2 and protect it with an RCD with a rated residual current of no more than 30 mA or a residual current protective device. Observe the manufacturer's instructions, e.g. for the installation of pool pumps or other pool equipment.

When selecting electrical equipment for the pool or adjacent areas, it is worth taking a look at the IP protection classes. They indicate which external influences the corresponding appliances can withstand and contain information about the ingress protection of foreign bodies and water.

Area 0: IPX8 (water pressure-tight)
Area 1: IPX4 (splash-proof) and IPX5 (jet water-proof)
Area 2: IPX4 (splash-proof) and IPX5 (jet water-proof)

Please also observe the manufacturer's instructions in the operating instructions.

Never leave your children unattended in the paddling pool or pool.

Thunder and lightning are as much a part of summer as ice cream and bathing. The average current of lightning is around 20,000 amperes and can cause considerable damage if it strikes a house. However, electricity can also spread through the ground and the wiring systems within it. This is even possible over a distance of several kilometers. If lightning strikes one of these systems, such as the water pipe or the telephone connection, the current of the lightning can be transmitted to distant households and cause overvoltage damage to electrical appliances.

It used to be said that it was better to unplug electrical appliances during thunderstorms to protect them from possible lightning strikes. Strictly speaking, this still applies, as not every house has surge protection that can prevent damage to electrical appliances when lightning strikes. However, since 2016, new buildings have been required to have such surge protection fully integrated. However, if in doubt, the plug should still be pulled out. For appliances that are also connected to the outside world with an Ethernet or antenna cable (e.g. computers and televisions), special care should be taken to ensure that all cables are "capped" – in other words, disconnect all cables from the appliance, not just the power cable!

VDE Verband der Elektrotechnik Elektronik Informationstechnik e.V. and its affiliated companies (hereinafter each “VDE”) provide non-binding information on consumer protection topics. These publications are intended solely to raise general awareness of consumer protection in relation to electrotechnical products and issues. They expressly do not constitute professional or technical advice. The information is provided the best of one's knowledge and belief without having evaluated the actual conditions at a specific location or of a specific product.

While VDE makes every reasonable effort to ensure that the information is correct and complete, it cannot assume liability nor any warranty (neither explicitly nor implicitly) for the correctness, completeness or topicality of the content of the information provided.

The information may only be applied with the understanding that VDE cannot be held liable for any direct or indirect damage or loss of any kind. The use of the information provided does not release the user from the responsibility for his/her own actions and is therefore at his/her own risk.

Product-/Model-specific manufacturer specifications must be observed.