19. Slay Energy Vampires

I will take one or more actions to slay energy vampires in my home and office (and save money).

Why is this important?

Energy vampires are real! Also known as idle load, energy vampires consume power when devices and appliances are plugged into outlets, even though the devices and appliances are in the off mode. This wastes energy and money and contributes to climate change.

Idle loads account for nearly $19 billion worth of electricity used across America per year. In California, energy vampires consume about 23% of an average household’s annual electricity use. Let’s reduce that!

TAKING ACTION!

There are many possible steps to help slay energy vampires:

• Do a quick inventory of your major energy vampires.  These six are among the worst offenders and can be reduced through simple, DIY changes.

  • Refrigerators/freezers in garages or basements (not kitchens)

  • TV & TV related boxes (Cable/DVR)

  • Gaming consoles

  • Computers

  • Computer peripherals (monitors, printers, external hard drives, speakers, etc)

  • Electronics (phone, tablet, etc.) power adapters and USB hubs

• Make some simple changes such as the following:

  • Unplug devices that you no longer use or use very rarely such as a TV or TV box in a guest bedroom or a second refrigerator/freezer in the garage that isn’t used very often (once you empty it of perishable items!).

  • Install basic on/off power switches or use a power strip that can be turned off with one switch. This is a good option for TVs, speaker bars and other TV accessories.

  • Install smart power switches: These power strips can remotely turn off all items associate with a TV (TV Box, sound system, & TV), a computer (monitors, speakers, printers & external hard drives) or a game console (monitors & controls)

Change computer power settings: Computers allow you to determine how long the monitor(s) and the computer stay active after you stop using it.  You can set the monitor(s) to turn off and the computer to go into the power saving “sleep” mode. Consider no more than 10 minutes for the monitors to turn off and no more than 20 minutes for the computer to go into sleep mode.

• Consider opting for a cloud-based DVR service. All of the TVs in your house can access this system and some households can get rid of 3 or 4 DVR boxes. DVR boxes are big energy vampires.

• Before you leave your house for extended periods of time such as a vacation it makes sense to unplug all of the electronic devices we have discussed unless you will be using any remotely while you are gone.

• Consider how you use the electronic items in your house and how well these suggested actions will work for you in your daily life. Some may hardly be noticeable but others may not be practical for your family. Still, everyone should be able to adopt at least a few of these strategies.

For a deeper dive, the California Energy Commission has issued a detailed report that highlights two excellent tools to help you reduce energy vampires. The first is the Dr. Power App, which is available on the web and on your smart phone with iOS or Android. This app allows an individual to inventory their home, identify every device plugged into an outlet and estimate the amount of electricity being drained by the energy vampires. You’ll be surprised how much energy is being consumed this way.

The second tool is the informational web portal, AskDrPower.com, which provides additional information on how to save energy, and allows you to pose questions to energy experts.

Additional motivation thoughts

It’s estimated that simply using smart power switches, including smart power strips and timers, could save Americans about $8 billion /year in electricity bills and prevent about 44-million metric tons of carbon dioxide from electricity generation. 

This Commitment is intended to provide fairly simple and inexpensive ways to cut wasteful energy usage. Prioritize purchasing more efficient appliances such as washers, dryers, hot water tanks, furnaces, air conditioners, TVs, stoves, dishwashers, refrigerators and freezers that are Energy Star-rated, as your existing appliances get replaced. These energy-efficient appliances may cost a little more initially, but will save you more money over their lifetime.