Pinnacle class lights and electricity

[Moriah]

I have only sailed on a Pinnacle class ship once - last year on Rotterdam - and on that one I was "off the grid" in that I did not bring my laptop or anything that needed charging on a regular basis... I must have charged my phone but I don't remember it being a problem.. However next week I'm going on a "working" cruise, and will need to purchase wifi and bring some devices that will need charging, obviously.  So my question is, since on Pinnacle Class ships you have to leave a card in the slot at the entrance to your cabin in order to keep the electricity on, does this mean that if you have things plugged in to charge they will NOT charge when you are outside the cabin?  I assume that overnight you can leave your card in the slot but still turn the lights off, meaning the electricity is still working to charge things? Is this a correct assumption?  And again, what about if you leave something charging in the room while you are not there? I know there is the hack of putting some kind of card other than your room key into the slot to keep the electricity on all the time.  I really don't want to waste the Rotterdam's electric power, but I do want to make sure I can charge my laptop, phone, or iPad during the day when I'm not in the room.

[VeggieHead]

Don't forget that you can use any old card in the slot - doesn't have to be your room card.  Nice usage for an old library card or some such.

[Moriah]

9 minutes ago, VeggieHead said:

Don't forget that you can use any old card in the slot - doesn't have to be your room card.  Nice usage for an old library card or some such.

Yes, I mentioned that, but my question is, would I have to do that when I leave the room to make sure something plugged in will keep charging?

[kazu]

6 minutes ago, Moriah said:

Yes, I mentioned that, but my question is, would I have to do that when I leave the room to make sure something plugged in will keep charging?

 

I don’t believe so.  I often had an Ipad charging in my room and did remove my hotel card from the slot and the Ipad was charged when I returned to my room.

 

I’m not a techie by any means so wait for someone who is more astute for their answer but it sure seemed to be charging just fine to me.

[kirkc]

The card is for lights…not sockets.

[rafinmd]

I am currently on the Rotterdam (in a basic verandah room).  I just did a test and MOST of the 120v and all I could see of the USB outlets stay on all the time.  I forgot my 220V adapter but I suspect they are likely to turn off when the slot is unused.  I have 2 laptops at the desk; one stays powered all the time and the other has never had a seriously low battery.

 

By the way I use an ID card in the slot but still take it out when I leave the room.  I still either take it out of the slot or at least leave it sitting high enough to allow the power to turn off.  I did that after just once forgetting to take the card out of the slot when I went for breakfast.

 

By the way. most of the lights will go off but the lights next to the bed stay on.

 

I'll suggest that when you get to your cabin you do a little test to see which of your outlets stay on when the slot is empty.

 

Roy

[rafinmd]

Just for the heck of on lighting I emptied the slot with all the lights on.  All went out (even the bathroom) except for the lights at the head of the bed.

 

 

Roy

[CruiserBruce]

It seems to me it wouldn't matter. If you bring the extra, old card, just leave it in, and no doubt your devices will charge.

 

Yes, at night, with a card in the slot, everything remains hot.

[57redbird]

Our room stewards gave us their card on the 1st day --- that's what we put in the slot.

[CHOPPERTESTER]

Isn't the card needed to keep the AC going and the lights. I would assume the AC is the power drain that they want to control. LED lights do not use much power.

[ShipsAreTheBest]

25 minutes ago, CHOPPERTESTER said:

Isn't the card needed to keep the AC going and the lights. I would assume the AC is the power drain that they want to control. LED lights do not use much power.

HVAC is not powered in individual rooms like on land.  The thermostat controls a damper that allows cooler or warmer air into the room.  The chiller (and the heat source) is a central system.  I’m probably overly simplistic in my explanation, but trying to make the point that, as far as HVAC goes, the big electric consumers are not controlled locally by the passengers.

[iflyrc5]

3 hours ago, Moriah said:

Yes, I mentioned that, but my question is, would I have to do that when I leave the room to make sure something plugged in will keep charging?

Some of the plugs stay live and some don't when the card is pulled out of the slot.  If I remember correctly there were 2 on the desk and one stayed live and the other did not

[Moriah]

7 hours ago, iflyrc5 said:

Some of the plugs stay live and some don't when the card is pulled out of the slot.  If I remember correctly there were 2 on the desk and one stayed live and the other did not

 

Thanks everyone, and it looks like I will just do some tests on the first day and see what's what.  Interesting that they do that with no information on what is happening. It would frustrate me if I accidentally plugged my devices into a "dead" outlet and expected them to charge.  Knowing it's complicated, I'll figure it out Friday and try to come back to this thread to update in case anyone is interested.

[Moriah]

11 hours ago, rafinmd said:

 

 

most of the lights will go off but the lights next to the bed stay on.

 

I'll suggest that when you get to your cabin you do a little test to see which of your outlets stay on when the slot is empty.

 

Roy

 

Thank you Roy! Enjoy the rest of your cruise.  I'm going to do exactly what you suggest.

[rafinmd]

One more thing.  There are several USB ports.  If someone is using a newer device that uses a USB-C cable, a USB to USB-C adapter would be a good addition to the toolkit.

 

Roy

[Turandot1984]

Regarding your question about charging devices on Pinnacle Class ships, I believe leaving your card in the slot should keep the electricity on even when you're not in the cabin, allowing your devices to charge. As for conserving energy, it's great that you're mindful of that! If you need any more tips or advice on maximizing energy efficiency during your cruise, you might want to check out PSC Electrical—they might have some insights to help you out!     

Edited April 2 by Turandot1984

[Haljo1935]

3 hours ago, Turandot1984 said:

Regarding your question about charging devices on Pinnacle Class ships, I believe leaving your card in the slot should keep the electricity on even when you're not in the cabin, allowing your devices to charge. As for conserving energy, it's great that you're mindful of that! If you need any more tips or advice on maximizing energy efficiency during your cruise, you might want to check out PSC Electrical—they might have some insights to help you out!     

You may come back to your cabin to find the steward has pulled the card out ...

[chengkp75]

While there is a "central" HVAC system that is not controlled by the cabin thermostat,  the thermostat does control the cabin recirculation AC. The key slot controls a "set back" thermostat that raises the set temperature 5 or 10 degrees when there is no card in the slot.

 

The lights that stay powered with no card in the slot,  are the emergency lights in the cabin. 

Edited April 2 by chengkp75

[cbr663]

7 hours ago, Haljo1935 said:

You may come back to your cabin to find the steward has pulled the card out ...

 

Our cabin steward not only removed it from the slot, but also took it.  If they didn't want it there they should have simply laid it on the bed or the desk, not take it.  I wasn't impressed.

[VMax1700]

1 hour ago, cbr663 said:

 

Our cabin steward not only removed it from the slot, but also took it.  If they didn't want it there they should have simply laid it on the bed or the desk, not take it.  I wasn't impressed.

As an alternative to this, we have retutned to the room and found the steward's card in the slot. Difficult to accept, but they too are human.

[cruisin'mama]

I punch a hole in the card I take to use in the slot, tie a string/ribbon to it and attach a magnet to the other end. That way, when I leave the cabin and remove the card from the slot, the magnet keeps the card hanging right there ready to put back in when I return.

[Sea42]

Just now, cruisin'mama said:

I punch a hole in the card I take to use in the slot, tie a string/ribbon to it and attach a magnet to the other end. That way, when I leave the cabin and remove the card from the slot, the magnet keeps the card hanging right there ready to put back in when I return.

Why do you not use your cabin card? I use my key card to enter the cabin and put it right in the slot. When I leave I take it out of the slot and go. Don't see how it could be any easier.

[cruisin'mama]

15 minutes ago, Sea42 said:

Why do you not use your cabin card? I use my key card to enter the cabin and put it right in the slot. When I leave I take it out of the slot and go. Don't see how it could be any easier.

There are 3 of us traveling and I like to keep my key card with me. If one of the others were to be in the room already when I entered, then their key would have to be in the slot. This just makes it convenient for everyone.

[Moriah]

8 hours ago, Sea42 said:

Why do you not use your cabin card? I use my key card to enter the cabin and put it right in the slot. When I leave I take it out of the slot and go. Don't see how it could be any easier.

I wish I could be like you, but sadly, even though, as you say, it's "easy" to take it out of the slot and go... I would just .... go.  🙂  Meaning I'm out of there, the door is locked, and my card is still in the slot.   And I'm not going to blame my age because it was the same for me in my 20's and 30's. 🙂  So... I keep my room card on my lanyard, around my neck.  So far I have not forgotten to take my neck when I leave the cabin, so that works for me.

[Sea42]

2 hours ago, Moriah said:

I wish I could be like you, but sadly, even though, as you say, it's "easy" to take it out of the slot and go... I would just .... go.  🙂  Meaning I'm out of there, the door is locked, and my card is still in the slot.   And I'm not going to blame my age because it was the same for me in my 20's and 30's. 🙂  So... I keep my room card on my lanyard, around my neck.  So far I have not forgotten to take my neck when I leave the cabin, so that works for me.

Oh, I can relate to this! For me it's sunglasses😎