The catchy name is vampire energy and it refers to the power consumed by electronics while they are still turned off. Most people don’t even realize that electronic devices such as game consuls, printers, and cordless phones are using up energy even while no one is using them. The energy waste is due primarily to the process of transforming sources from AC to DC (that black box attached to the cord that heats up) and more advanced electronics like TV, game console, and computers which are essentially telling themselves “Stay Off, Stay Off, Stay Off….” as long as they are still plugged into the grid. It is estimated that 4% of all the power consumed in the United States is the result of Vampire Energy. That may not sound like a staggering figure, but 4% is equivalent to 100 million tons of oil a year and 1% of the energy used in the entire world…and the electronics are all turned off.
The image above appeared in a 2008 edition of Good Magazine and presents some simple stats on the costs of vampire energy. Obviously, once you add up the costs of all the individual appliances, we are talking about a significant amount of financial and energy costs per household. The solutions are simple. If you have things plugged into a power-strip, turn off or unplug the power-strip to save energy. For appliances you only use once in a while, unplug then after use. It may feel a little inconvenient to always remember, but you will save energy and that means saving money on your bill. For those people wanting to go all out, install switches next to light switches that turn on and off all the outlets in a room. That way, when you leave the room all you have to done in flip a switch and know that everything is completely off.
