Save yourself £100 on the leccy bill. Unplug some stuff.

Jonny69 · 14-05-2007, 15:21

Suffering the trolls and haters on the other forum I thought I'd let you guys know about this. I did a little calculation while working out how much my router was costing me to leave on all day while I was at work and I happened to break it down into how much 1W of power adds to my bill each year. I'll skip the calculation but with current electricity prices something that is drawing 1W 24 hours a day will add about £1 to your electricity bill each year.

Not much you think. Look around you what's plugged in. Every little item that has a transformer to run (mobile phone charger, digibox, etc) draws about 5W when just plugged in not doing anything. Every item you have that has a little light that doesn't go out unless you unplug it is the same.

From where I sit in the living room there are 12 items plugged in which need transformers to run, so that's 60W minimum with everything switched off. In the kitchen the fridge and freezer you can't do much about but the boiler is draining off a little with the timer and blue light, then the microwave with it's LED display, the oven has a little clock that ticks over, dishwasher with its little red flashing light. In the bedroom the TV stays on standby so the timer wakes us up, switch it off and the settings get lost, there are 2 phones in the flat, toothbrush charger, alarm clock, girlfriend's phone charger that she doesn't unplug.

So I make that about 20 items around the flat that I can't actually switch off without unplugging them. Most only drain 5W a piece but allegedly the computer draws about 25W when shut down and the TFT nearly as much.

So if you were to go round and switch off some of that stuff at the socket it would put £100 in your pocket by next year. Not bad eh?

Anyway, I've got a power meter in the post so I can give you some real figures and see what's real and what's b.s.

Daz · 14-05-2007, 15:24

Quote:

Originally Posted by Jonny69

Anyway, I've got a power meter in the post so I can give you some real figures and see what's real and what's b.s.

You may earn my first BD thread subscription

The TV unit which houses my cable modem, router, PS2, Wii, 360, cable box, TV an speakers are something I always try and remember to switch off at the end of the night. I'd love to know how much - collectively - running all that kit on standby costs a month/year.

Will · 14-05-2007, 15:31

I have to say Jonny I seriously doubt that without a load a charger is actually drawing 5W. Most power supplies these days are switch mode, ok I admit the transformer based ones will have some heat dissipation and therefore wasted energy, but switch mode will hardly draw anything let alone anything without a load. Even tvs, I've worked out that they only draw a few Watts on standby, a lot of my equipment actually goes almost onto a "hard" standby, drawing a massive 0.5W. My computer doesnt' stay on all day actually it's only on when i need it, so a few hours in the evening.

The biggest thing you can do to help are energy saving bulbs, and turning things off once you're done, i.e. not leaving the radio on, tv on, lights on etc... Leaving things plugged in i.e. charger INTO a device then yes there will be more of a load, but just leaving the charger unloaded will seldom be worth worrying about. Saying that I do turn off my TFT screen after I've used it. In the evening there's hardly anything on in the house. It's all about cutting back on the things that NEED to be on, to the things that can be on only when you need it.

Grandad · 14-05-2007, 15:38

thats a good idea

I think most of the folks over there were just having a bit of fun

Feek · 14-05-2007, 15:42

My old HP laserjet 4000 only draws 17 watts on standby, funnily enough it draws 17 watts whether it's dropped into it's official 'standby' or not! It obviously uses a lot more when it's running but that's a different matter.

I borrowed a meter from work when I was on holiday and did some checks here. My TFTs do a clean standby when there is no input signal, no measurable power is drawn and the PC which runs 24/7 along with the wireless in here suck about 170 watts with the screen off.

Phone chargers use a practically unmeasurable amount, whether they're charging or not. The telly is the worst, but providing it's switched off from the physical power switch on the front, there's no current flowing. Left on 'standby' it's horrendous (can't remember the exact figure).

My watch winder also draws an unmeasurable amount as well, again just a single power pack.

I've also made sure that the kids turn their PC off now rather than just switch the monitor off.

I decided a few months ago that my electricity bill was far too high so am hoping that these changes will make a big difference.

Wryel · 14-05-2007, 15:52

I've got electricity on a key so I can see how much a day with everything on standby costs, might be interesting to see.

Going back to the lightbulbs thing, does anyone have any stats on the initial draw when you switch them on? I was under the impression its quite high, so turning them off every time you leave the roon might not be wise. Not sure if this is the same for energy saving bulbs.

Mark · 14-05-2007, 16:06

It's certainly worth unplugging phone chargers and other adapter-based things when you're not using them.

My biggest draw by far is the PC farm I have running 24/7. That lot draws about 1kW total. One day I might quit this Folding@home malarky and my eletricity bill will thank me. I've just had a big jump in my bills so that may well trigger the turning off of one PC to compensate. Mind you, it's not all wasted as I've hardly had the heating on at all this year.

Will · 14-05-2007, 16:18

No it's a complete myth, there is no spike when you switch them on intially. They don't draw much. They're fluorescent lights for a start - they just take a while to get to brightness, and need less power for the equivalent amount of lumens.

Mark · 14-05-2007, 16:21

I'm not sure if that was true for very old flourescent tubes (the ones that might flash a few times when you turned them on). I certainly agree it isn't true for energy savers though.

Jonny69 · 14-05-2007, 16:24

Quote:

Originally Posted by Le Hoff

I have to say Jonny I seriously doubt that without a load a charger is actually drawing 5W. Most power supplies these days are switch mode, ok I admit the transformer based ones will have some heat dissipation and therefore wasted energy, but switch mode will hardly draw anything let alone anything without a load. Even tvs, I've worked out that they only draw a few Watts on standby, a lot of my equipment actually goes almost onto a "hard" standby, drawing a massive 0.5W. My computer doesnt' stay on all day actually it's only on when i need it, so a few hours in the evening.

The biggest thing you can do to help are energy saving bulbs, and turning things off once you're done, i.e. not leaving the radio on, tv on, lights on etc... Leaving things plugged in i.e. charger INTO a device then yes there will be more of a load, but just leaving the charger unloaded will seldom be worth worrying about. Saying that I do turn off my TFT screen after I've used it. In the evening there's hardly anything on in the house. It's all about cutting back on the things that NEED to be on, to the things that can be on only when you need it.

This is the exact reason I'm getting a meter myself. I want to find out for real rather than believing someone else's stats. I think what buggers things up is you learn one thing as truth and then you get conflicting information from other sources, then your mind goes into doubt.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Grandad

thats a good idea

I think most of the folks over there were just having a bit of fun

Kiss my yellow butt

/Homer

14-05-2007, 15:21	#1
Jonny69 Noob Join Date: Oct 2006 Location: Socialist Republik of Kent Posts: 5,032	Save yourself £100 on the leccy bill. Unplug some stuff. Suffering the trolls and haters on the other forum I thought I'd let you guys know about this. I did a little calculation while working out how much my router was costing me to leave on all day while I was at work and I happened to break it down into how much 1W of power adds to my bill each year. I'll skip the calculation but with current electricity prices something that is drawing 1W 24 hours a day will add about £1 to your electricity bill each year. Not much you think. Look around you what's plugged in. Every little item that has a transformer to run (mobile phone charger, digibox, etc) draws about 5W when just plugged in not doing anything. Every item you have that has a little light that doesn't go out unless you unplug it is the same. From where I sit in the living room there are 12 items plugged in which need transformers to run, so that's 60W minimum with everything switched off. In the kitchen the fridge and freezer you can't do much about but the boiler is draining off a little with the timer and blue light, then the microwave with it's LED display, the oven has a little clock that ticks over, dishwasher with its little red flashing light. In the bedroom the TV stays on standby so the timer wakes us up, switch it off and the settings get lost, there are 2 phones in the flat, toothbrush charger, alarm clock, girlfriend's phone charger that she doesn't unplug. So I make that about 20 items around the flat that I can't actually switch off without unplugging them. Most only drain 5W a piece but allegedly the computer draws about 25W when shut down and the TFT nearly as much. So if you were to go round and switch off some of that stuff at the socket it would put £100 in your pocket by next year. Not bad eh? Anyway, I've got a power meter in the post so I can give you some real figures and see what's real and what's b.s. __________________

14-05-2007, 15:31	#3
Will BBx woz 'ere :P Join Date: Jan 1970 Posts: 2,147,487,208	I have to say Jonny I seriously doubt that without a load a charger is actually drawing 5W. Most power supplies these days are switch mode, ok I admit the transformer based ones will have some heat dissipation and therefore wasted energy, but switch mode will hardly draw anything let alone anything without a load. Even tvs, I've worked out that they only draw a few Watts on standby, a lot of my equipment actually goes almost onto a "hard" standby, drawing a massive 0.5W. My computer doesnt' stay on all day actually it's only on when i need it, so a few hours in the evening. The biggest thing you can do to help are energy saving bulbs, and turning things off once you're done, i.e. not leaving the radio on, tv on, lights on etc... Leaving things plugged in i.e. charger INTO a device then yes there will be more of a load, but just leaving the charger unloaded will seldom be worth worrying about. Saying that I do turn off my TFT screen after I've used it. In the evening there's hardly anything on in the house. It's all about cutting back on the things that NEED to be on, to the things that can be on only when you need it. __________________ *No No!*

14-05-2007, 15:42	#5
Feek ex SAS Join Date: Jun 2006 Location: JO01ou Posts: 10,062	My old HP laserjet 4000 only draws 17 watts on standby, funnily enough it draws 17 watts whether it's dropped into it's official 'standby' or not! It obviously uses a lot more when it's running but that's a different matter. I borrowed a meter from work when I was on holiday and did some checks here. My TFTs do a clean standby when there is no input signal, no measurable power is drawn and the PC which runs 24/7 along with the wireless in here suck about 170 watts with the screen off. Phone chargers use a practically unmeasurable amount, whether they're charging or not. The telly is the worst, but providing it's switched off from the physical power switch on the front, there's no current flowing. Left on 'standby' it's horrendous (can't remember the exact figure). My watch winder also draws an unmeasurable amount as well, again just a single power pack. I've also made sure that the kids turn their PC off now rather than just switch the monitor off. I decided a few months ago that my electricity bill was far too high so am hoping that these changes will make a big difference. __________________

14-05-2007, 16:18	#8
Will BBx woz 'ere :P Join Date: Jan 1970 Posts: 2,147,487,208	No it's a complete myth, there is no spike when you switch them on intially. They don't draw much. They're fluorescent lights for a start - they just take a while to get to brightness, and need less power for the equivalent amount of lumens. __________________ *No No!*

14-05-2007, 15:38	#4
Grandad Old Git Join Date: Nov 2006 Posts: 2,016	thats a good idea I think most of the folks over there were just having a bit of fun

14-05-2007, 15:52	#6
Wryel Absinthe Join Date: Dec 2006 Posts: 1,148	I've got electricity on a key so I can see how much a day with everything on standby costs, might be interesting to see. Going back to the lightbulbs thing, does anyone have any stats on the initial draw when you switch them on? I was under the impression its quite high, so turning them off every time you leave the roon might not be wise. Not sure if this is the same for energy saving bulbs.

14-05-2007, 16:06	#7
Mark Screaming Orgasm Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Newbury Posts: 15,194	It's certainly worth unplugging phone chargers and other adapter-based things when you're not using them. My biggest draw by far is the PC farm I have running 24/7. That lot draws about 1kW total. One day I might quit this Folding@home malarky and my eletricity bill will thank me. I've just had a big jump in my bills so that may well trigger the turning off of one PC to compensate. Mind you, it's not all wasted as I've hardly had the heating on at all this year.

14-05-2007, 16:21	#9
Mark Screaming Orgasm Join Date: Jul 2006 Location: Newbury Posts: 15,194	I'm not sure if that was true for very old flourescent tubes (the ones that might flash a few times when you turned them on). I certainly agree it isn't true for energy savers though.