energy wise ■
BY JOHN DRAKE COOPERATIVE ENERGY ADVISOR
M
ost homes these days never quite shut down for the night. All the lamps may be
off, but those dark rooms are typically spotted with tiny red and green lights of appliances and the glow of digital clocks.
All of those little lights, clocks, and seemingly “sleeping” appliances, are using more electricity than most of us would think.
Appropriately called “vampire electronics,” the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) tells us these devices suck up five percent of all energy used in the U.S. and cost consumers more than $3 billion every year.
For the average homeowner, vampire electronics can add 10 percent or more to monthly electric bills, says the DOE.
To trim this excess energy use, you need to know where these vampires reside and keep them in check.
Take a closer look at appliances around your home. Those that use remote controls such as TVs, DVD players, ceiling fans, and stereos are suspect. Any digital displays, such as microwave and coffee machine clocks, are working against your electric bill.
And all those chargers around the house–the ones that keep your
inside•your•co-op | 13 VAMPIRES
Stop energy bloodsuckers before they add dollars to your electric bill
Please, don’t feed the
cell phone, power tools, and iPod at the ready–constantly draw power when you leave them plugged in.
Unplugging these vampires effectively drives a stake into their energy-consuming hearts. Power strips provide another way to beat them. Simply plug appliances into a power strip, and switch it off when those appliances aren’t being used.
You should also unplug any battery operated electronic device once charged. After all, you wouldn’t walk away from a flowing water hose, and you certainly don’t want to keep feeding those vampires. ■
John Drake is Choctaw Electric’s energy use specialist. For questions about your home’s energy usage, or to schedule a free home energy audit, please contact John Drake or Mark Zachry at 800-780-6486, ext. 233.
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