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How to fight the phantoms.
Did you know that a whopping 75% of the electricity used by your home electronics is consumed while they are turned off? This standby or "phantom" power accounts for up to 10% of your home's electricity use, so it makes sense to stop the leaks.
If a device uses a remote control or has an LED display, digital screen or a battery charger, there is a good chance that it is draining energy. We will show you the top places to fight the phantoms at home.
Explore the house, room by room, to find culprits of phantom power and tips you can implement to save electricity.
When buying smaller appliances, think about whether you really need a digital display or clock features that just drain power.
Coffee makers with glass pots draw as much as 1,000W just to keep your coffee warm. Switch to an insulated carafe. And, once you're finished your brew, unplug it.
Worried about cord clutter? Hide a power bar under your cabinets – with one flick of switch, all your appliances will be ready to use.
Chargers continually draw power, even if your cell phone or tablet isn't connected. Create a "charging station" with all chargers plugged into one power bar, so it's easy to shut off power to all automatically.
Unplug and store away styling gadgets after use to save energy and prevent safety hazards.
Don't leave electric toothbrushes or shavers plugged in. Most need only an hour or so to charge batteries completely.
Unplug that old second fridge when you're not using it to save up to $125 a year in energy costs.
Power tools are power hungry! Unplug them as soon as they're fully charged to save electricity between uses.
Put outdoor lights on timers or add motion sensors to enhance home security and save energy.
Buy ENERGY STAR ® certified cordless phones – they use 50% less energy and "smart" chargers that shut down completely when the battery is finished charging.
Sound systems are among the biggest energy culprits – plug in to power bars with auto-shutoff. They detect when the device is off and shut off power automatically.
Plug groups of electronics into one power bar with auto-shutoff. It senses when one device is turned off and cuts off power to the other devices. Then, when one is turned back on, power is restored to all.
The voice command feature in new consoles means they consume more energy in standby mode than when in use. Plug consoles into power bars with auto-shutoff to save energy.
Your PVR has to stay on to record programs. Look for an advanced power bar that has at least one "hot" or "always-on" outlet. It will cut off electricity to your other devices, while still flowing to your PVR.
Plug lights and other electronic holiday decorations into power bars with timers to have them automatically turn on and shut off.
Choose ENERGY STAR ® certified computers – they use up to 60% less energy standard models. Set your desktop computer to "hibernate" mode. It's more time-efficient than shutting down your computer and can reduce your monitor's energy consumption by two-thirds.
Printers and scanner sit idle waiting for you to press start – plug them into a power bar with auto-shutoff to save (and keep your office equipment lasting longer!)
Plug your router and/or modems into power bars with timers to shut them off automatically during the hours you're at work or asleep.
Motion sensors shut lights off automatically if you doze off. Some models are manually turned on, so tossing and turning won't trigger them to come on.
You need an alarm clock every morning, but if you keep one in a spare bedroom, leave it unplugged until your guests are in town.
Not using it? Unplug it! Although laptops are 90% more efficient than desktop computers, their chargers draw power when plugged in.
Did you know that streaming media through a TV is far more energy-intensive than through a laptop?
Motion sensors shut lights off automatically if you doze off. Some models are manually turned on, so tossing and turning will not trigger them to come on.
Choose ENERGY STAR certified computers – they use 60% less energy standard models. Set your desktop computer to “hibernate” mode. It is more time efficient than shutting down your computer and can reduce your monitor’s energy consumption by two-thirds.
Printers and scanners sit idle waiting for you to press start – plug them into a power bar with auto shut off to save (and keep your office equipment lasting longer!)
Plug your router and/or modems into power bars with timers to shut them off automatically during the hours when you are at work or asleep.
Buy ENERGY STAR certified cordless phones – they use 50% less energy and “smart” chargers that shut down completely when not charging.
Sound systems are among the biggest energy culprits – plug them into power bars with auto-shutoff. They detect when the device is off and shut off power automatically.
Plug groups of electronics into one power bar with auto-shutoff. It senses when one device is off and cuts off power to the other devices. Then, when one is turned back on, power is restored to all.
Your PVR has to stay on to record programs. Look for an advanced power bar that has at least one “hot” or “always-on” outlet. It will cut off electricity to your other devices while still flowing to your PVR.
Unplug and store away styling gadgets after to use to save energy and prevent safety hazards.
Coffee makers with glass pots draw as much at 1,000W just to keep your coffee warm. Switch to an insulated carafe. And, once you are finished your brew, unplug it.
When buying smaller appliances, think about whether you really need digital display or clock features that just drain power.
Worried about cord clutter? Hide a power bar under your cabinets – with one flick of s switch, all your appliances will be read to use.
Chargers continually draw power, even if your phone or tablet is not connected. Create a “charging station” will all devices plugged into one power bar so it is easy to shut off power to all automatically.
Unplug that old second fridge when you are not using it to save up to $125 a year in energy costs.
Power tools are power hungry! Unplug them as soon as they are charged to save electricity between uses.
Allows you to shut off the power bar with a remote control switch.
Useful for: Crowded, hard to reach areas (home office, entertainment systems).
Automatically turns power bars on and off at set times.
Useful for: Charging stations, or floor lamps (particularly when away).
Detects when one “main” device is not in use, then shuts off power to the other devices plugged into the power bar.
Useful for: Entertainment systems, home offices, game consoles.
Many power bars include one or two “always on” outlets for any device you need to leave on.
Useful for: PVRs, Internet routers.
This power bar detects movement to switch off automatically when you leave the room – and switch on when you arrive.
Useful for: Lights, home offices.
Automatically cuts power to the device if the remote has not been active for a certain period of time.
Useful for: Game consoles.
