Green Tip: Stop Phantom Power

Planet Green states that we lose 10% of our power to devices that we are not even using. I did a little more research and it turns out this accounts for an average of 40 products which suck up your energy.

Here is a list of such appliances and how much they use.

I didn’t believe it until I heard a whistle but a cell phone charger sucks electric even when its not charging so unplug it when you are done charging.

The power strip you hook devices into sucks power even though you aren’t watching the TV or using the other devices that are hooked into it. Computers, DVD players, cable boxes, and other devices also draw power. You can buy some power strips with remote controls so you don’t have to walk back and switch them off. Some have timers if you have Christmas tree lights or other things you don’t want on all the time.

My electric went down when I started unplugging the Wii. Video game consoles are huge energy hogs, even when they aren’t being used.

Another device that turns on against your will is a hot water heater. Buy a $20 jacket to insulate this appliance and it will more than pay off what you spent.

Google has jumped in with Google Power Meter which measures how much energy appliances hog to help you save money. I mention this because there are appliances that you turn on which are bigger menaces than phantom power such as old refrigerators (donated mine to poor family for smaller energy star model) and my beloved dryer which my eco-friendly mother refuses to use.