Managing Phantom Loads

Many televisions and other entertainment equipment, along with office equipment and any device that plugs into a wall, continue to use power even when turned off.

Using today's average electricity rates, every 1 watt of "phantom load" (1 watt being consumed 24/7) uses about 10 kWh per year and costs $1 annually.

So, a television or computer monitor using 10 watts when off would consume about 100 kWh per year, costing $10. Now if you'll multiply that by the number of televisions and computer monitors in your home, you'll start to see how this usage adds up.

So how do you prevent this? There are several options:

The equipment can be plugged into power strips that can easily be switched off when equipment is not being used. Cost of quality power strips ranges from $10-$20, best of all it's DIY.

Certain outlets can be controlled with wall switches for easy switching between on and off. A drawback of this option is accidentally turning off equipment in use.

A specialized system can be installed to provide radio frequency control of selected features, as is possible with several of the products we offer. www.thebluemontgroup.com

When purchasing new electronic equipment, consider both the standby and operating power consumption. With televisions LCD models are usually more efficient than CRT (standard picture tube televisions), and plasma models are usually less efficient than CRTs.

Digital recording devices (DVRs and TiVo), tend to draw significant power (25 to 35 watts) even when not recording, and they are almost always left on 24/7 so they're ready for scheduled recordings. Internet connection equipment like cable modems and wireless routers use large amounts of electricity, often surpassing even televisions. Plug these devices into power strips so you can switch them off at night or when no one is home.

Note that with voice over Internet protocol (VoIP) telephone systems like cable companies offer, cable modems cannot be turned off without losing phone service.

References:

http://www.homeenergy.org/archive/hem.dis.anl.gov/eehem/96/960715.html