Unplug or Pay Up
Fact
Tons of electronics in your house use phantom power, meaning they take up energy even if they aren’t in use. A perfect example is your cell phone charger, which should be unplugged when not in use.
To give you a clearer picture, take the average electrical draw of common household plug-ins. A constant 67-watt draw, running 24 hours a day, consumes 1.608 kWh per day. Multiply that by 365, and it comes out to a whopping 587 kWh per year. That’s like paying for an extra month’s worth of electricity for devices that are not in use.
Get Started
- Purchase devices like the Kill-a-Watt to find out how much power your appliances draw when not turned on but still plugged in
- Use power strips that can be turned off when you’re on vacation or gone for the day
- Unplug any electronics with quick load-up times and no clocks (this includes blenders, toasters and coffee grinders)
Become a Pro
- Encourage your coworkers to turn off their power strips when they leave for the weekend or day
- Buy power strips in bulk and share with a friend
- Electricity usage monitors, such as the Kill-a-Watt, make great housewarming gifts
As of June 17th 2011 we have upgraded our comment system to use Facebook comments.
The below comments are closed and are listed for historical purposes.
Melvino Guarin
posted on May 13th, 2009 at 5:10 pm
Does a kill-a-watt meter really function as it intended to be? I mean is there such a proof that these kill-a-watt meters can detect the consumption of an appliance that draws energy when not turned on, but still plugged in?
Valerie Rasp
posted on May 21st, 2009 at 11:28 am
I don’t think the meter knows either way if something is plugged in or not. One way to see if the phantom power is accurate would be do perform a controlled experiment, seeing the difference between a meter with devices plugged in vs. not plugged, and turned off vs. turned on while plugged in. How you set that up, I have no idea. But that’s my speculation.
Judy Rachel
posted on May 27th, 2009 at 5:35 pm
Yes, the kill-a-watt does detect energy usage on a device that is plugged in but not turned on. I have measured a number of items with my kill-a-watt. So far I have never found any energy usage for a cell phone charger plugged into the wall but not plugged into a phone. In fact I just plugged my charger into my KAW. It measured 00. Now I’ve plugged it into my phone and I am getting a watt draw of 02-03. I don’t understand why the above article states that you should unplug things like blenders, toasters and coffee grinders. I have measured all of these devices including my mini convection oven. None of them draw while not turned on. I am a huge proponent of all this stuff but myth and bad information turns people off to fact and good information. Personally many of the readings from my KAW have puzzled me. I was doing an energy audit on a customers home. We were plugging everything we could find into it. We plugged a wine refrigerator in while it was not cycled on and I got 00 on my meter. We waited a few minutes and got nothing. Anyone out there know more about electrical usage and these KAWs than me? I’d love to hear from you.
Raquel Fagan
posted on May 27th, 2009 at 6:58 pm
Hey Judy,
Interesting results. We had a writer do some of the same test as you did about a year ago. His results, found in this story, are much different. I wounder what the difference is between the two experiments?
Audrey Rydzewski
posted on May 28th, 2009 at 5:03 am
If going away from home for 6 weeks, is it advisable or recommended to unplug refrigerator/freezer? Is it a real cost saver? Will the caskets dry out. It is a new (1 year old unit) Please advise.
Thank you.
Also shutting off the water supply to the home while away for 6 weeks. What is your take on this?
Ben - HVAC/R Guy
posted on June 3rd, 2009 at 6:01 am
Audrey,
There is no damage that can occur to your refrigerator or freezer by turning them off or unplugging them for any length of time. Just be sure to take all of the food out before you do so. You probably won’t save a great deal, especially with a new energy star model, but if you are going to be away, why pay to run an appliance that you won’t be using.
Shuttting off the water won’t save you anything unless you have automatic lawn sprinklers or something that will come on while you are gone. It may not be a bad idea to turn off the water anyway, though. Nothing ruins a homecoming more than finding a leak upon your return.
You will realize the biggest savings by changing your thermostat setting for your heat or AC and turning down your water heater. If you will be leaving during the warmer months, turn your thermostat all the way up, or off if you have the option, so that your AC will not run during your absence. If you are leaving during the cooler months of the year, turn your thermostat down to about 45. I would not recommend setting it any lower. If you have a gas water heater, turn the knob on the gas valve to “pilot” to keep it from maintaining the water temperature while you are away. If you have an electric or oil-fired water heater, you will want to turn it off in the electric panel before you leave.
Good luck!
Larry
posted on August 26th, 2009 at 11:35 am
The KAW meter I purchased works well. However, frequently all that is needed to detect ‘phantom’ power is your hand: if the device in question is off but warm, electricity is at work.
Dan
posted on March 17th, 2010 at 11:42 am
Some comments about what has been written: Yes, the Kill-A-Watt does “detect” phantom-drawn power usage. Unfortunately, it does not have (what we call in science) a good limit of detection. What that means is that, even if you are using a small amount of electrical energy, the unit may not be able to detect it above the normal electrical “noise”. Now, that doesn’t mean that these units are not drawing power while plugged in. For example, a cellular telephone charger DOES use energy when plugged in but not actively charging. If you want evidence yourself, plug in 5 or 6 of them into a power strip and test that. Either way, it has been shown already to be true. For the Kill-A-Watt, it can more easily detect systems which have a higher level of phantom usage, such as television/reciever setups, etc.
However, a general rule is that, if you have something plugged in, it WILL cost money to be plugged in, even if it is not actively being used. If you want to be safe, simply unplug it. This will also help to protect your items in case of something such as a power surge.
Carol
posted on October 3rd, 2010 at 11:10 am
Re power strip for computer + peripherals: I have been routinely been switching mine off before I go to bed each night, but my anti-virus scans are scheduled for the middle of the night. So when I do switch it back on the next day, the backed-up scans slow everything down. Any solutions?
Bonnie
posted on April 27th, 2011 at 6:54 pm
Re: power strip. Are you talking about pwoer strips or surge protectors? Keep in mind, if the surge protector is not on, it will not protect. Also keep in mind, there seems to be a lot of controversy about how well surge protectors protect.
Re; turning water off if away from home. I trun water off at the meter even if I am gone for the weekend. Ever hear of anyone whose pipes have burst or leaked, and coming home to a flooded or water damaged home? Why risk it when a simple turn can limit the damage. Unless you have a leak however, there is no energyl or ecological savings.