5 Ways To Preserve Anker Power Banks

Anker’s portable chargers, like other electronics, need care to stay usable long-term. It’s easy enough to remember a case or screen protector for your phone, but that power bank you usually leave tossed in your bag needs attention too. After all, its lifespan depends on how you use and store it.

That charger you bought for a trip and then left in a drawer might spend months there before you need it again and when an outlet is out of reach, you want it to be in good condition. But leaving an electronic device unused for a long time can also take a toll, since it still needs care during that stretch, especially when it comes to the battery.

Thankfully, you can look after your Anker power bank without turning it into a chore that takes ages and needs constant repeating. Choosing a safe place to store it and checking on it from time to time are good places to start. For that reason, we gathered some ways to preserve your charger and help it last as long as possible.

If your Anker will sit unused for a while, check its charge to see how much is left. Leaving the power bank at 100% might seem like a good idea, so it’s ready for whatever comes your way, but the recommendations for long-term storage are different. Anker itself suggests leaving it at approximately 60% of its total charge if you plan to keep the battery unused.

This advice applies to storing any electronic device with a battery. Spending too much time fully charged can contribute to capacity loss, while leaving the battery empty for too long increases the risk of deep discharge. It’s something users need to keep in mind if they won’t be using their batteries for an extended period.

If your model doesn’t show a percentage onscreen, keeping track of the power bank’s current battery level can be harder. That’s why it’s worth checking the manual for instructions on reading the indicator lights and leaving the charge somewhere around 60%.

Heat buildup can be one of the most damaging things for a battery. Even if it seems harmless, leaving the battery plugged in for a long time or charging it on a bed deserves more attention, especially if there’s no room for heat to dissipate.

Anker recommends using its power banks in cool environments, and keeping the device out of direct sunlight. That goes for storing them too, so don’t leave your charger baking in a parked car.

When charging, choose a firm, uncovered surface without cushions or blankets over the device, since high temperatures can speed up battery wear and make your power bank charge more slowly. That’s because protection mechanisms may reduce charging speeds to control how hot the components get. Keep an eye on these little details, since a safe spot near a window in the morning might be a different story by the afternoon.

Your power bank can come along to most places you go, especially the beach, the gym, or on longer trips, but be careful not to leave it near wet towels. One of Anker’s recommendations is to store its chargers in dry, ventilated places, away from moisture. If everything’s going into your backpack, it’s worth setting aside a separate spot just for the charger.

It’s also important to take a look at the connections. Lint and dust can build up there, interfering with contact between the port and cable. Just as with cleaning a PC’s USB ports, you need to be gentle when cleaning these connections. Don’t go scraping the contacts with metal objects or trying to fix everything by putting cleaning products into the ports.

For the exterior, Anker recommends a soft, dry cloth, while keeping the ports clean and dry too. If liquid gets inside the device, stop using it and contact the manufacturer’s support team. Even if it seems to work, plugging in the cable just to test and confirm if things are okay can turn a small accident into a bigger headache.

Even when you aren’t using them, electronics tend to lose battery charge little by little, and the same goes for power banks. That’s why it’s a good idea to set a reminder on your phone to check on yours every three months, which is the interval Anker recommends.

During that check, see how much charge remains and recharge it as needed to get back to around 60% if you’re going to store it again. There’s no need to top it off to 100% just to check off the reminder.

This habit helps keep the battery from reaching a state of deep discharge while you’ve all but forgotten about it. In that state, it can even suffer permanent damage and stop holding a charge, preventing your Anker power bank from working normally after so much time in storage. But you don’t need to worry about this constantly, since it only happens if the battery stays empty for months.

You also need to look after the physical condition of your power bank. Although most problems come from how you store it during long periods without use, it’s worth paying attention to it during everyday activities too. Anker recommends avoiding drops, impacts, and crushing, while keeping the device away from keys or other metal objects that could cause short circuits.

When using your charger, be aware of where you leave it, as dangling it from its cable or over the edge of a table increases the chances of it falling, as you never know when someone may grab or accidentally bump into the device.

If that happens, check your power bank for warning signs that it’s no longer safe to use. The same goes for packing it in a suitcase, since if closing the zipper means sitting on the suitcase, you’ll want to make sure the charger isn’t squeezed between objects that could make it unsafe to use.