by Saving electricity at home can be a very useful tool to take care of personal finances when paying bills. And it is that waste can lead to unnecessarily increasing expenses.
Contrary to what some people think, there are household appliances that continue to consume energy even though they are turned off. This happens because they remain connected to a power source, even if they are not currently being used.
According to the International Energy Agency, electrical appliances turned off or in standby mode consume, in an average home, about 1.6 kilowatts per day. This expense represents between 5 and 10% of the total energy consumption in the home.
The energy consumption of an electrical appliance turned off or on stand by It is usually more noticeable at night, since that is when the object is not in use, although it is still connected. This effect is popularly known as ‘vampire current’.
According to a review by the Provincial Energy Regulatory Entity in Argentina, “to reduce the vampire current, one option is multiple outlets that can be turned off, and those that have presence sensors that disable unnecessary devices, obstructing the passage of energy”. Another more practical option is to simply unplug electrical appliances when they are not in use.
The three appliances that consume the most energy when turned off
The consulted source relates some electrical devices whose consumption of ‘vampire current’ is higher. These are fairly common household appliances, so it pays to adopt strategies that help reduce your energy use.
To arrive at this consolidation, the results of a study prepared by the Lawrence Berkely laboratory of the United States Department of Energy were taken into account, which evaluated the average consumption in Watts (w) of a variable number of devices and determined which ones are those that consume the most in their off, standby or stand by.
1. Decoders
These devices that are used in the satellite or cable television service imply different energy consumption. Some offer the possibility of recording programs and, according to the study, it is the function that demands the most energy.
2. Laptop
Despite being turned off, if connected to a power source, laptops can consume up to 8.9w/hour. In hibernation mode, this consumption can rise to 15.7w.
3. Desktop computer
If the computer reaches a certain idle time, it will automatically enter a hibernation period during which it can have a consumption of 21.1w. In that order of ideas, the fact that it is not being used will not mean that it stops consuming energy.
Now, in case the CPU is turned on, but the computer is not being worked on and the monitor is turned off, the power consumption can reach 73.9w.
Other devices that continue to consume energy despite being turned off are:
- Coffee maker: consumes just over 1w/hour when plugged in without use.
- Video game consoles: Being turned off and plugged in, it consumes about 1w.
- Microwave: its consumption is 3.08 w, although if the door is left open it increases to 25.79 w.
- Phone charger: Leaving your cell phone charging all night can be counterproductive. Once it reaches 100%, the device stops charging, although the charger continues to draw electricity.
By following some basic tips, people can save on electricity consumption. These are some recommendations cited by the Enelx portal:
- Turn off the lights when they are not needed.
- Make the most of the sunlight.
- Change traditional light bulbs to LED lights.
- Use electrical appliances correctly and verify the energy performance of each one.
- Do not charge mobile devices for longer than indicated.
- Unplug appliances that are not being used.
- Maintain the electrical infrastructure of the home in optimal conditions.
