The Truth About Vampire Loads

Hey Reuben, I have wondered about battery chargers, now I know. Another item to consider is the satelite receiver and I have three. Those things are constantly downloading info. but you really can't cut power to them or they have to reboot.

Have a great day

Your findings are consistent with my own tests----it can be a real pain going around unplugging all of these things.  One would think that some of these things would be "required" to go into some kind of sleep mode after a set amount of time:)

Hi Rueben.  This is the first time I have heard the term "Vampire Load" thanks for the info.

I hear this issue referred to as "trickle currents".   In addition to the cost of the electric power, some of the items you listed are fire hazards.  Several laptop computers, ipods, and cell phone batteries have made the list of fire hazards when left unattended.   I believe all the manufacturers have issued recalls and fixes for the problems, yet I would guess there are still many problem products still in use today.

Your list is very good, there are several other products that also consume trickle current, Televisions, cable boxes, coffee makers, and most every device with a clock inside.  

For all my electronic equipment; computer, printer, scanner, television, etc, I use a surge protection power strip.  I switch off the power strip when this equipment is not in use.

I also use power strips for other appliances but they are not the surge protection type.  I also switch these off before leaving the house.

Great info.

Jim

I too had never heard the term Vampire loads. Thanks for the info. Great post

Reuben - I didn't believe in Vampires until I read this!  Great work.  It's all about actually checking for yourself to see the truth and not believing everything you hear.

I use electricity under the theory that if it's on, it's using electricity. However, in today's world, "on" needs to be defined. My toaster is always "on" because the little red light tells me it's on. My clock radio is always "on" because it tells me the time, and when I push the radio button, it immediately turns the radio on.

It's probably all relative, but I suspect that if one has a computer, television, printer, fax machine, etc., in every room of their 15,000-SF house, and all those rooms are in constant use by a family of ten that even then is continuing to overpopulate the world, they might -- just might -- notice a difference in their electrical bill if they unplugged some things. Of course, if they can afford a 15,000-SF house and a family of 10, they probably aren't worried about something as silly as the electricity bill and helping to save the environment -- LOL.

Good stuff my man. I blogged about this the other day. I didn't believe it when my grandmother brought it to my attention. Did some research of my own and low and behold those appliances suck that electricity all night 

The toaster and the phone charger by themselves may take almost negligible charge, but it is when added all together that it actually can really start to add up. Also, different models and makes of appliances or chargers can suck up electricity at different rates and unless you are going to go around and test each individual appliance, it's going to be hard to tell which ones are wasting. Get some power bars to plug everything into and switch them off when not in use. This will save you having to unplug each individual appliance or charger.