Ask Focus on Energy

Watt meters help you measure the amount of electricity being used.

"Standby power” or “phantom load" is the energy that appliances and electronics use even when turned off – to power features such as clock displays, remote controls and indicator lights. In the average home, more than 50 percent of the electricity used to power electronics is consumed while the devices are turned off. In Wisconsin homes, this wasted energy accounts for four cents to seven cents of every dollar you spend on electricity and takes a hefty toll on the environment.

Using a watt meter is a fun way to find out how much electricity your home appliances and electronics consume. (A watt meter is an electronic instrument that measures the power (watts) used by devices. When you plug the meter into the appliance, you can measure how much electricity your appliances/electronics are using and what they are costing you.) Plug the watt meter into an outlet, and then plug a device into the watt meter. Try it with the device on, then turn it off to see the difference—and to catch a glimpse of "standby power” at work! Visit your local library to see if they have a watt meter you can borrow.

If you are a business and operate multiple computers everyday, the “phantom load” can be a substantial cost. For a business customer, the average electric rate is about $.08, so if you leave one computer on all day for the whole year, it is costing you about $105 just for that one computer. Now, in a best case scenario, if you turn off that computer after an eight hour shift each day and on the weekends, you reduce your electricity use by 1,002 kWh or by approximately $25 per year. This might not seem that substantial until you multiply that by the number of computers that you run at your business. For example, if you operate 20 computers, this equals a yearly savings of $500! That is extra money to put towards your bottom line and it doesn’t cost you a penny. However savings would be reduced when computers are left on during the week for regular maintenance.

To help manage runaway energy consumption, Focus offers a variety of financial incentives for IT and data centers. Our PC Network Energy Management software is a great way to manage “phantom load” by allowing a PC network administrator to remotely set the power management features and turn off computers and monitors when they are not needed.

And remember that ENERGY STAR® qualified appliances and electronics use up to 60 percent less energy than standard models. So when you’re looking to buy new devices, look for the ENERGY STAR!

Published Friday, June 19, 2009