Slaying the Energy Vampires in your home!
It's Halloween 2014. Want to hear a scary story? It's that time of year again when troublesome and invisible things are going on all around you.And, in this case what you can't see, CAN hurt you - especially in the pocket book.
Day, and night, there are vampires in your home sucking power from outlets and costing you more money. Silent and relentless they siphon energy around the clock, even when idle.
Standby power is the energy used by some appliances and electronics when they are turned off, but still plugged into an outlet. The devices that cause this type of waste are called Energy Vampires.
How to slay those Energy Vampires lurking in your house.
A good first step is a $30 surge protector/power strip. Plug your TV into Conserve Smart AV’s green master outlet, and when the set is turned off, the device cuts power to the other devices ( such as DVD players, game consoles, receivers, speakers) plugged into the strip’s outlets.
Belkin, who makes the Conserve Smart AV, estimates that it can save you up to $76 per year in energy costs, assuming your entertainment system includes a DVD player, VCR, game console, sub-woofer and amplifier.
You don’t have to spend a dime to slay some vampires. Simply unplugging a cell phone or MP3 player once they are charged, is a great cost-cutting suggestion from the Environmental Protection Agency.
If you use a desktop computer with a separate monitor, configure it to shut down when not it use. The EPA says that alone can save you up to $85 a year. By the way, laptops power down automatically, but desktops - especially the older ones - may not.
Standby Power Data Center - Which Vampires are sucking the most energy?
The Web site, Standby Power Data Center will help you determine how much energy a device uses when it’s idle. Just enter a product type, model number, or company or brand name. The database takes that information and lets you know which products best match standards for standby-power requirements.
In a typical home, stand-by power adds about $200 a to your annual bill. Don’t let those energy sucking devices cost you money. A few simple steps will help you slay the Energy Vampires in your home.
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