Phantom Loads, What Are They?

After upgrading your light bulbs, start looking at the energy consumed by your appliances, TVs, computers, microwaves when you are not using them.

Anything you have plugged into the wall and are not using is draining energy and costing you money

That means all of your appliances, computers, printers, cell phones, hair dryers, TVs use energy, and cost you money even when they are turned off. Computer printers and entertainment systems are some of the biggest energy wasters. Anything with a digital display, remote control or an AC adapter drains power.

It has been estimated that the average home has about 40 such appliances and electronics that leak energy when not is use. This accounts for 75% of the electricity used by home electronics which is about 85 of the total electricity being used by your home. That might not sound like a lot but it is enough to power your home for a month!

A recent study by scientists at the University of California, Berkeley, and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory shows that the average California home pays between $50 -$70 every year to power electronics that are not being used. Eliminating this standby or “leaking” electricity could save homeowners between 6 – 26% on their average monthly electicity bill.

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Phantom Energy

75% of the power used to run home electronics is used when they are TURNED OFF. Amazing!

Become an energy manager and turn off or unplug all electronics, cell phone chargers and such while they are not in use.

When you are ready to replace your current electronics with energy efficient equipment, look for Energy Star Power Managed equipment, (it is no more expensive than standard electronics), and you can easily save $100 a year on your bill. That is found money! By using an Energy Saving Smart Strip with Auto Switching Technology you can turn off many electronics with just one switch.

http://www.amazon.com/Smart-Strip-Autoswitching-Technology-LCG5/dp/B000L9635G/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1203884636&sr=1-2

The refrigerator not only uses the most energy in the home, it is also on 24/7, so when the time comes to upgrade, buy an energy efficient one.

With Energy Star Appliances You Can Save:

Item                                                    Cost                 Savings/YearCentral Air Conditioning                   $2500             $95Low-Flow Showerheads (2)              $63                  $63Washing Machine                             $1100              $58Refrigerator                                       $1000              $43CFL Bulbs                                           $323                $32Dishwasher                                        $500               $10TOTAL                                                                    =$301SOURCE: ACEEE

• Unplug appliances, cell phone chargers etc when you are not using them
• Using circuit breakers, which can either be automatic (timed) or have swithces
• Or buy an energy-saving power strip designed to not use energy when power is turned off (around $30).
• Combine several electronics on one circuit breaker with multiple sockets – an easy solution for your home entertainment products.
• Set your computer into sleep mode after 15 minutes of inactivity and turn it off when you are done.

 More information on standby power use can be found at:

http://eetd.lbl.gov/leaking/

With a little awareness and effort, you save money and help the environment J

Lighting Options, LEDs…

Fortunately, we now have options to the CFL bulbs now coming out on the market.  Manufacturers are beginning to make more and more efficient incandescent light bulbs.  G.E. is developing for 2010 a high-efficiency incandescent that will radiate more that 2 times the light of current incandescent bulbs.  The Brookfield Floor Lamp has a 26 Watt bulb that lasts 10,000 hours and puts our 150 watts of light for $130.

There are energy saving halogen lamps and new energy saving LED solutions that are coming out and offer wider range of alternatives to the old incandescent lamps, improved energy savings and choices in lighting.The LEDs work with chips made of non-materials and last for about 50,000 hours, compared with 1,000 hours for an incandescent and 6,000 for a compact fluorescent. A tiny LED has as much light as an incandescent light bulb and is very energy efficient.The LED lights should be easily available in a few years after the manufacturing costs have been lowered and the quality of the white light of the LED improved. Right now there is a fantastic lamp available called the Aeonic LED Lamp, good for using on a desk or as a bedside lamp. A regular light bulb would cost you about 0.45 a week to power a 60 watt bulb for 12 hours a day, the Aeonic Lamp will cost you only 0.03. Other tips:

• Keep your light bulbs clean – 10% or more of your light can be dimmed by dust
• Use task lighting, instead of lighting the entire room, use light only where you need it.
• Use a photocell or motion sensor outdoors so they only turn on at night or when someone is there.  Combining photocell and motion sensor will increase your energy savings even more.

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Here is a calculator that shows you how much you would save and how much CO2 would not be produced if you switched a certain number of light bulbs. For example: by switching 3 light bulbs, you would reduce the CO2 output by 984 KG and your energy bill your be reduced by $393.00Go here for a great resource for a wide range of light bulbs  (CLF, LED and more) at good prices.Here’s to a more energy efficient but light-filled 2008!