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Rating:(3 votes)(0 votes)November 3, 2009 | 3:36 AM

Eco-Tuesday: Vampire Power

With a title like vampire power you would think that I'm stuck in the Halloween spirit. But that's really not the case as really vampire power has nothing to do with Halloween! Rather it has to do with learning how to save energy and money in your home by cutting down on what is called Vampire Power.

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Vampire Power (also called standby power or phantom load) is the electricity appliances and more waste just by being plugged in (even if they're switched off). Have you ever noticed how warm your answering machine or cell phone charger is after they have been plugged in all day? Well this is due to the fact that simply by being plugged in they are using electricity and wasting your money and energy. Unplugging unused appliances is one of the most basic ways to conserve electrical energy in your home, but many of us don't realize this and only associate energy use when an appliance or gadget are "on" and being used. So on this Eco-Tuesday here at Networx.com I am here to tell you that this notion is false and to start unplugging your appliances, gadgets or whatever when they are not in use!

I found these stats at howstuffowrks.com and it made me realize just how much truly gets wasted from vampire power, "Individually, your rechargeable electric toothbrush may not put that much strain on the local power plant, but the big picture is far more troubling. In the United States alone, vampire power costs consumers more than $3 billion a year (source: Energy Information Administration). Over time, many microwaves and televisions actually consume more electricity during the hours they're not in use than the times you're actually using them to heat up dinner and watch your favorite show."

Ways to help reduce your vampire power:

  • Unplug power adapters or battery chargers when equipment is fully charged or disconnected from the charger.
  • Use a power strip that can be switched off when electronics and appliances are not in use. Consider purchasing a Smart Strip Power Strip or the Power-Saving Essential SurgeArrest. The smart strip lets you designate one device as the "master" and several secondary devices as "slaves". If the master device is off or drawing only standby power, then the slave outlets don't get any power either. This works well for computers sharing a surge strip with a printer, speaker, phone, etc.
  • Look for the Energy Star label when purchasing products.



Posted by Marcy Tate

Photo Credit: getwithgreen.com

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  • November 3, 2009 | 4:14 AMPosted by ChayaG *Expert Gold*

    Nice blog post, Marcy. When I was living on an off-the-grid prpoerty, we unplugged everything when not in use. I think the only electrical gadgets that were constantly drawing power from the solar panels were the refrigerator and the well pump. We even unplugged lights. You really learn about Vampire Power when you are living off-the-grid.

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    • November 3, 2009 | 4:22 AMPosted by MarcyTate *Expert Gold*

      That sounds like such an amazing experience. What other things did you do to save electrical energy?

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  • November 3, 2009 | 4:31 AMPosted by ChayaG *Expert Gold*

    We only used electricty if we absolutely needed it. The property owner had a very small, super-energy efficient refrigerator. We didn't use things like hair dryers. We line dried our laundry. I used to do my laundry in a laundromat in town and then bring my wet laundry back to the farm to dry. We had on-demand hot water.

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  • November 3, 2009 | 5:07 AMPosted by stw321 *Active Member*

    I've heard that energy star appliances are better in general, but does energy star compliance also make manufacturers reduce the standby power?

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    • November 4, 2009 | 12:23 AMPosted by MarcyTate *Expert Gold*

      stw321, The energy star website has really great and very detailed info. which I am sure can lead you to this answer. I am going to look into it as well, let me know if you find out. EnergyStar.gov

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  • November 3, 2009 | 5:28 AMPosted by sol123 *New Member*

    Marcy, some people say that you use more power to start your computer than to run it for a whole day. Therefore, they say you should not turn the computer off when it is in use. Is that a myth?

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