Energy Advice

Welcome to our energy advice column. Here we summarize publicly available information on the many ways you can save money on your energy bills as well as general topics on renewable energy. We try to keep our advice short and to the point.

PHANTOM LOADS

Digital electronics are making our household devices ever more "intelligent.” No longer do we need to get up to turn the TV on or turn it off. Simply use the remote clicker. A bread machine is another example of an appliance that is always ready to go.

What we forget is that all of these devices, when we turn off the house lights at night, are still using energy. Do you see the clock on the oven in the dark? Notice that red light in front of the TV screen? These are just a few of the many electronic appliances that are never turned off when they are not in use. Their reliance on electricity, even when they are not working, gives them the name phantom loads.

Here's a brief list of these phantom loads:

Computers, copiers, fax machines, monitors, printers, scanners, microwave ovens, televisions, DVD players, cable boxes, VCR players...you get the idea.

According to the US Energy Department, 75 percent of the energy consumed by homeowners for these devices occurs when they are "off.” That's right. Seventy-five percent of the energy bill allocated for these devices is consumed when they are not being used. In case you want to know how this translates into dollars, assuming an average of $.12 per KWH, you're spending at least $50 a year for the convenience of having these devices always on standby. "It's not that much,” you say. True, but this is only the tip of the iceberg. Besides, when was the last time that you threw away fifty dollars simply because you didn't care?

One solution: use a power strip to connect devices that are close to one another (say in a home office or entertainment center). At night simply turn the power strip off. Once a year, with these savings, celebrate it with a good dinner, free of charge, knowing that you've earned it from having been more conscientious about how you consume energy. Don't forget, it's the sum of the parts that matters.