Did you know that appliances and electronic devices in your home can drain energy even when they’re not in use? If they are plugged into an outlet, chances are you are wasting money and energy when these devices are supposedly off. For example, a cordless drill charger can drain about 5 watts even when it’s not recharging the tool. Such “vampire” power drain has been increasing in the past decade, thanks to the sophisticated electrical gadgets we now own. They include:
- Rechargeable items like cell phone adapters, called “wall warts” by some critics, which constantly supply a charge even if nothing is plugged into them;
- Computers and printers which have standby functions so they are ready at a moment’s notice;
- TV and cable boxes that are never really off – they have power running to the sensor that receives the remote control signal to turn it on, and they also have an “instant on” feature to eliminate the few minutes of warm-up time we used to have to endure;
- Your TiVo which never turns off because it’s always ready to tape a show; and
- Coffee makers, refrigerators, that have display screens or clocks that are always on.
In fact, if you walk around your home in the middle of the night without any lights on, you can see a myriad of green and red solid and blinking lights that will light your way. Our house has so many, it looks like Christmas year-round.
A certain amount of standby power is unavoidable. There are some devices that are impractical to turn off, especially major appliances. So what can you do to minimize vampire power drain? Here are some tips and tricks:
- If practical, unplug your devices when not in use. Sounds simple, doesn’t it? Are you ever going to use that ancient VHS or VCR player again? Even more helpful, plug several devices into a surge protector or power strip and flip its button to Off when not in use.
- When you go to buy new electronics or appliances, buy Energy Star They take standby power into account and use less power when in the Off mode.
- There are several new products that can help cut vampire power. AT&T has a Zero Charger that automatically stops charging once the cell phone is removed from the Smart Strip has a Power Strip for your appliances that have kill switches designed to block electricity flow. Belkin offers a smart power strip that works with multiple entertainment system components. It automatically shuts everything down when the main component is turned off.
- Install a whole house wireless energy control system that lets you shut off power to various devices automatically if not in use.
These suggestions may not stem the flood of vampire power in electrical grids, but it’s a start. If enough people become aware of the problem and take action to prevent it, we could save a huge amount of power in the long run.
