In this post: Create a charging station to organize and charge your electronics with this simple DIY! Also shows how to turn a standard outlet into a 4-port USB outlet!
Over the weekend I snuck in an easy DIY project that’s been on my to-do list for weeks – creating a family charging station to organize all of our family’s electronics (iPad, iPhones, iPods – the works!). And already it’s been a game-changer at our house!
One of our house rules with the kids is that all electronic devices must be downstairs when they go to bed. But somehow we always seem to be misplacing the cords and adapters and end up having to hunt around the house every night to find them. Problem no more! I created a simple family charging station where the cords now stay 24/7 and our electronics will have a home for overnight charging. If you peek behind the charging station, you’ll see my favorite part of the project – an outlet that we converted to a 4-port USB charger (post includes affiliate links – see my full disclosure statement {here}):
You can now say bye-bye to those ugly chargers!
My husband and I rarely mess with anything electrical but this project was as easy as it comes. We used {this 4-port USB charger}. The faceplate is not included so add that to your shopping list if your existing outlet has a different sized one.
For installation, we followed the instructions included with the USB outlet. First we turned off the power to the outlet at the circuit breaker and tested it to be certain that the power was off. We then removed the faceplate from the old outlet, pulled the outlet out of the box, and removed the wires from it. The USB charger comes with three colored wires connected to it – we connected these wires to the same colored wires coming out of outlet box, twisting the strands tightly together. We then screwed on the plastic connectors, secured them with electrical tape, and mounted the USB charger device in the wall box. Done in under five minutes!
A few things about the installation:
1.The Leviton USB charger is fairly deep and fits into standard electrical wall boxes but some older boxes may be too shallow to accommodate it. Make sure your wall box measures at least 3″ x 2″ x 2.5”
2. I am NOT an electrician – our install was very simple but your wiring may be different. Read the instructions included with the USB charger and consult an electrician if you are not sure about any part of them.
Creating the actual charging station was just as easy – I started with an inexpensive open wood organizer / letter sorter that I scored at HomeGoods. Most HomeGoods stores carry loads of these in different sizes and finishes. I wanted one where I could fit four iPhones/iPods across the front row and an iPad in the middle. (Update: If you don’t have a HomeGoods near you, one reader used Target’s Threshold Desktop Storage Unit and said it worked great for this!)
Once I got it home, I figured out where I wanted the holes for my cords, which would be coming up from the bottom. I drilled small pilot holes first to make sure they were in the right place and then drilled bigger holes that would fit the smallest sized end of each charger cord. My charging station is right in front of my USB outlet so I use {these well-priced 1 foot cords} – they also sell them in longer lengths which you would need if your charging station isn’t super close to your USB outlet.
Then I added circular pads to the bottom – they create just enough space for the cords for go underneath the charging station and plug in at the outlet charger behind it.
And I typed up a little “Recharge” label to add to the front:
We bought a few extra cords so the ones that are in the charging station STAY in the charging station full time! No more searching for cords. No more excuses for the girls to not have their devices charging downstairs where they belong.
So glad to have one of our little daily dilemmas solved! It really is the simplest of DIYs but if you don’t have the time or interest in doing your own DIY project, here are some great ready-made options for you:
Thanks for stopping by!
This is awesome! Thank you!
Thanks so much!
Thank you for showing me it’s alsome
I love this, and that adapter/plug will change our lives. I probably won’t do this unit we move, but this is brilliant!
This is a brilliant idea! Have not seen the USB wall outlet charger…so cool.
This is such a clever and attractive idea! I am posting this on my facebook page!!
I had no idea! You are always filled with great ideas, my friend – LOVE this!!
What an awesome idea! I am so sick of having all these cords all over the place AND my boys are always losing their ipods somewhere! Having a central location will solve all those problems!
-Shelley
That looks so great, Kris!! I have to get one of those USB outlets for my kitchen. I made a charging station out of a wine box and like the look of it (all the cords hidden inside) but this is even better. Looks so nice and tidy and is so functional.
Perfect! If I ever need more, I’ll make sure to keep this in mind. I have mine inside the drawers so everything is pretty hidden and organized too!
Love it! We have an adapter that plugs into our original outlet, but would love to replace it with one of these so it is flush against the wall. WIll have to look for one!
Well done, it looks really nice.
Thank you. Love love, Andrew. Bye.
Brilliant! I didn’t know that outlet existed. I’m adding this to my to-do list for sure!
Smart! I need one of those outlets too.
How do you plug the devices into the cords? Do you pull them up each time or did you secure them in some way so you drop the phone onto the charging cord? love the idea, we need one at work!
Initially I thought I might try to find a way to secure them but then I decided that I’d like to be able to easily remove the cord if I needed to so we just pull it up when we need it. All of the openings are shallow enough that it’s easy!
the best idea yet! I haven’t seen those USB outlets…so great. Wonderful DIY Kris! xo Nancy
Great idea. We have a charging area in our kitchen, but not as sophisticated as this one. Ours is a 2 devices only. Might have to do an upgrade to 4 🙂 For the back rows, I would throw some pens and a pad of paper for those times you want to be a traditionalist and put pen to paper vs. finger to device.
That’s a great idea for the back rows. I’m a big list maker and still prefer to do that with pen and paper rather than on my phone most of the time.
Absolutely LOVE!!! The cords all over the counter and the “oh, i forgot to bring my phone down b/c it was charging in my room earlier…you know, when i was doing my homework” drives me up the wall! I might be hunting for something at homegoods today! Thanks for the inspiration! 🙂
I almost picked up this exact little organizer at Homegoods this weekend. 😉 That looks amazing. Now you’re making me wish that I had. Maybe I’ll go back and copy this. Love how organized you are!
I almost picked up the same organizer at HomeGoods this weekend. This project makes me want to go out and grab it right now! I love how organized you are.
This is genius!! Love!
I wish I could find this online instead of at HomeGoods! I don’t want to take 4 kids on a trip there to “maybe” find what I’m looking for…but I LOVE this charging station! Any idea where I could get something similar without a trip to the store?
Hi Emily – I don’t know where you could buy a charging station like this pre-made but you can find organizers similar to the HomeGoods one I bought at places like Target and office supply stores – I’m sure there are some online options!
I have passed by those little organizers a hundred times and never thought to make a much needed charging station! So creative! Thanks for sharing!
So how do the cords look inside it? do they get bent from the device sitting on it? Does the cord hold out with it sitting like that?
Hi Jennifer, I just attach each device and then sit it down in the charging station so yes, it is resting on a portion of the cord. The cord is curved underneath it but I wouldn’t say it’s “bent” so I’m really not worried about the cords getting harmed. If it is something that worries you, it would be easy to lift up the charging station after all of the devices were plugged in and pull the cords taut from underneath so that the devices aren’t resting on top of them. Hope that helps!
I’m not sure how you have the cords in there, but it’s probably not healthy for the cords, even if they don’t look bent. That’s too much pressure on that area of the cord. The whole thing would be better if the phones/iPods laid on their sides, like the iPad.
Hi Sarah! We’ve been using the family charging station on a daily basis for almost a year now and I’m glad to report that we haven’t had any problems at all with wearing of the cords! If it’s something that concerns you, you could choose to lay the iPhones sideways, but you’d then only fit two in the front row instead of four.
Excited to see this; just about to have some shelving wired for charging and this is exactly what I needed (and didn’t know existed!).
I live 100 miles from HG. 🙁
Can I order online, u think?
You can try Target (either in store or online) – if you Google “desk organizers” a few come up that look like they would probably work for this!
U think HG still has these? I’ll get there if so. Lol
i think the slots at the back would be the perfect place for the headphones. I can never find mine when I want them. Just a suggestion if you haven’t filled it already
LOVE that idea!!
Now officially on top of my long house makeover list. But everything I want to do husband fights but since,we all have these smartphone, tablets , Ipad2s and laptops (not sure if i will make one or two for my daughters and husband’s stuff and more. Very electronic family so think he’ll love it and my kids do have their stuff upstairs but so far they are only alloted a small window of time and.are young so we moniter along with parental controls..So now I’ll need a few. No one kid has cell. They don’t have cell phone. they,are too young but when they,do they’ll have a location for charging. I am making a desk for daughter and may build right on top.
I love this project and would love to make one myself. Im wondering how this has held up for you and how well the USB outlet works for you? I’ve heard several times that the USB outlets just don’t work well, especially with apple products. Not sure if it’s because there’s not a strong enough power supply or what. Would love to get an update on yours!
Thanks so much 🙂
Becca
Hi Becca – everything has held up great! We haven’t had any problems at all with the USB outlet and we’re an all-Apple family, often leaving four things plugged in and charging at the one outlet overnight. I’ve loved having it and we have a no-taking-the-cords rule so the hunt for cords to charge our electronics doesn’t happen anymore. Good luck putting yours together!
This is absolutely awesome I will be doing this for sure!!!
Thanks Melanie. We have really loved having it and hope you will too!
I’m also wondering about how the devices sit on the cords inside the organizer. The iPods and such look all nice and level in the pictures, but do they sit that nicely when they are plugged up or are they crooked from the bump of the cord? I would love to see a picture of the inside of the charging station. 🙂
Hi Jennifer! To be honest, most of the time we just attach our electronics and go – not worrying about them looking level because they’re usually just there overnight. But every now and then I want them to all sit nice and neatly like you see in the pic – all I do is pull on the cords from the back to remove the slack. It takes less than 30 seconds to do and then all five of our charging electronics will sit perfectly level. I’ll try to add a pic of the inside of it at some point!
Thanks so much! I found a cute little ‘charging station’ last week that has been working great for us. We haven’t drilled holes in the bottom yet. We’ve just been plugging through the top. I am getting tired of having to pick the cords up out of the floor each day though, so maybe we will get those holes drilled this week. 😉
Thanks for this post, I am surprised I was not aware these outlets existed. As I was searching for USB hubs to solve a very similar problem my family has (kids take charger cords and forget them places or they get broken from abuse). Anyway, I ordered my outlet tonight and I’ll be putting it in this week.
Hopefully my kids follow the no-taking-cords rule. We had the same rule before with just having a charger stuck in an outlet (didn’t work). I think not having that charging base (little square USB port) will hinder them, no need for just a cord by itself… maybe, we shall see. Worst case I’m thinking of buying a Safety 1st protective cover, they aren’t pretty but it keeps their hands out of it.
Thanks again.
I hope you like your new outlet – it’s been awesome for us! We had a few issues with cord-takers at the beginning so we ended up buying a few extra and now they all stay put! I’s so nice not to have to hunt down cords all the time!
I love this idea!! I just completed my own – I used the Threshold Desk Organizer ($12.99 at Target). Instead of replacing my outlet with the USB hub (which I love, but couldn’t do since we have a GFCI outlet and I didn’t want to mess with it), I bought a 4 port USB ‘charge tower’ from Sharper Image (got it at TJMaxx for $20) and it just hides behind the charging station. So worth it to have all of the cords corralled in one place! And it looks nice too! Thanks so much for the idea!
Thanks so much for commenting Gretchen – I’ve had several people ask where they can get a similar organizer if they don’t have a HomeGoods and I had suggested trying that same organizer with the caveat that I hadn’t used it myself so I couldn’t be sure it would work. Thanks for letting me know it does! Love your solution for the charge tower too!
Glad it helps! Thanks again for the idea! 🙂
I bought a similar box at Goodwill a few years ago ( for only about $2.00!), now I know what to do with it!
What font did you use for “recharge”?
Thanks!
That’s a great deal Sharon! I checked my computer but I guess I didn’t save my file that I used to create the “recharge” label so I’m not sure about the font – sorry!
Kris,
I really love this idea and the look!. I have some grey barn wood that I think I’ll try my hand at making the holder. The only change I would make, would to put kerfs into the the bottom of the box that correspond to each cord, but still use the felt pads to prevent scratches. I have seen these type of organizers at TJMaxx, and could go buy one, but I enjoy wood working. I also love a challenge too. I love your Ideas and enjoy seeing and reading about the projects. Keep up the great work!!
~Dolly
A barnwood organizer that you create yourself will be fabulous!!!
What are the measurements of the box?
Thanks
Hi Chris,
My charging station box is about 12″ long, 6″ deep, and 6.5″ tall.
Does the circuit shut off power when unplugged. I know some chargers still draw power even when the charger is not connected to a phone etc.
Sorry Mark, it’s a good question but I don’t know the answer to it.
I just made one of these a couple of months ago that looks exactly like this. Got my mail organizer at World Market. But I drilled in from the back with a long spade bit. LOVE your idea from the bottom with felt to raise it up to accommodate the cords. So much easier. And since we have a family of six, we needed a few more USB outlets. I just bought a 10-port family sized desktop charger. It plugs into a standard wall outlet. Haven’t had any problems charging any of our Apple or Samsung devices. And since we set ours on a bookshelf in the kitchen surrounded by cookbooks, the outlet, cords and USB charger all hidden from view. We love our charging station!
Super cute! Love it!
Thanks so much Emily! It’s one of my all-time favorite projects!
I have been looking for a solution for all those wires for ages. Bought my box at TJ Maxx yesterday, the pads from Michael’s and I’ve ordered the outlet from Amazon. My thing is the excess wire at the bottom of the tray and nearly all our devices charge from the bottom. But anything is better than putting those cables away 25 times per day!
Are you selling these on etsy??
No, actually I’m not! Thank you so much to alerting me to this link. They took my images, removed the watermark, and are claiming to sell this identical charging station. I have reported it to Etsy. Again, I appreciate you letting me know.
im glad I could help. People like that don’t deserve sales! Ugh!
Can you make me one? No clever people in my house!
You can do this! It’s so, so easy – if you can drill a hole, it’s a snap!
How did you go about charging the 5th device?
Hi Nick, we keep five cords threaded through the charging station and when we charge our fifth device (the iPad), we just unplug one of the other cords and plug this one in to the USB charger in the wall. Our iPad holds a charge for a long time so we only charge it once or twice a week and it’s during the day (unlike our other devices that charge at night) so it works well for us.
Thank you
I so need to make one of these. Such a great idea and makes it so organized too! Pinned for later.
I’m curious as to how well the outlet works? We got a different type of outlet but the USB part charges for crap. Don’t want to invest in something that doesn’t charge more than one thing at a time!
It seems to charge just fine – I haven’t noticed any difference in rate of charging between the USB outlet and a regular outlet plugged into the wall.
Thanks so much for posting. I love the idea and easy way you’ve explained it. I also love the rule of no electronics upstairs during the night. My girls may not love it but we will do it. Great for guests to use as well.
Love the idea. Another way you can do it without messing with anything electrical is to buy a 5 port USB charging station from Amazon or another online retailer. Most of them as well can smart regulate each device so no worries about over charging or under charging the device. I have ordered one of these in case anybody is interested in which one I purchased. Again great idea. Going to have to build one myself instead of having devices laying on top of a desk.
Thanks for the idea Aaron!
Thank you for the idea. The color of the box is exactly what I was looking for. Love DIY project ! I am buying a brand new home, and looking for way to have everything “super organized” No clutter…. I am already very organized… but never enough ….. So one more thing I want to tackle in the new house… Thank you !
Good luck knocking it out!!
BEAUTIFUL!!! I am ordering the USB Charger today, and my husband will install it as soon as it comes in. Thank you for this gorgeous idea.
This is great! How are the cords holding up long term? It looks like the charger leads would point upwards from below the box, and the phone’s weight would rest on the cord… 90* turn and all… Or does the thickness of the bottom of the box and the foot pads create enough clearance that the phone is actually resting on the box itself? I hate a frayed cord, lol!
Hi Rachel – you’re right that they do basically rest on the cord. You could eliminate that issue by raising the charging station up higher but then you see the cords underneath it (which I didn’t want). It’s been two years now though and none of the cords are frayed so that hasn’t been an issue for us!
That turned out perfectly! I have been wanting something like this that was still cute. Love the box.
So glad you like it Trish!! Hope you’ve enjoyed your weekend!
I live this & can’t wait to make one for our new home. Any suggestions for laptops? My husband has one for work & we both have a personal one.
I wish I had a great laptop solution but unfortunately I don’t – we leave ours out on our home office desk for charging.
Nice idea. I’m going to make a charging home too. Thanks.
Thank you so much for sharing this info! I had no idea. We’re in the process of building a new home – I’m going to have the electrician put one in my husbands home office. Thanks again.
So glad that you found it helpful Cheri!