Did you know you live with vampires? In fact, according to Cornell University there are 20 phantoms living in your home right now if you have a typical household. Before you stock up on the garlic, combatting these energy-sucking villains is as easy as pulling the plug. Going by a ton of different names: stand-by power, idle current, phantom energy, vampire draw and wall wart is the phenomenon of electricity leaking from your home grid you’re not consciously using or aware of. Electronic gadgets, appliances and gaming consoles are just a few vampires that suck your home’s electricity while they are turned off or in stand-by mode. The cost of this energy waste can add up even though it doesn’t seem like much would be saved. From a small blinking light, to a digital display and instantly turning on at the push of a button, your electronic gadgets are consuming energy constantly even when they are turned off. Your coffee maker, television, stereo system, phone charger, toaster oven, DVD player and computer monitors are just a handful of phantoms lurking in your home. Did you know 10% of your electricity bill comes from phantom energy? You approximately spend $200 more annually on your electric bill due to energy waste! While there are some appliances like your refrigerator that needs to be constantly plugged in, you can reduce your energy consumption by pulling the plug on devices that are not serving a purpose. Though, constantly unplugging your entertainment system in a jungle of cords does pose as an impractical inconvenience. To combat your energy-sucking phantoms:
- Unplug rarely used devices, AC adapters and phone chargers when not in use.
- Group and plug your devices into a power strip or surge protector. Then, when you’re finished using your gadgets, flip the power button off.
- Or you can look into purchasing a “smart” power strip to stop the idle current (it’ll roughly run you $30-$35). The smart strip is able to monitor your plugged in devices’ energy use. When it senses you are not using your gadgets, it will turn them off. There are certainly more options as you can plug in your computer into the smart strip master outlet and when you turn it off, the smart strip automatically turns off the other devices plugged in. It’s as simple as that!
- If you’re purchasing new appliances, look for the ENERGYSTAR® logo as these appliances reduce the phantom energy effect.
Photo Source: lopongoaca via Flickr
