While vampires may be a staple costume this Halloween season, Prince George Electric Cooperatives wants to help you ensure that “energy vampires” don’t show up in your home to suck the savings out of your budget.
Most homeowners are unaware of the fact that when you leave some devices and appliances plugged in when not in use, they continue to use a small amount of electricity. This electric “phantom load,” sometimes referred to as an “energy vampire,” is the power consumed by electronic appliances and devices in your home when they are either in standby mode or turned off, but still plugged in and consuming electricity.
The electricity used by these phantom energy loads is reflected in your monthly energy bill. Your Cooperative offers the following tips for minimizing the impacts of “energy vampires” at your home or business:
Unplug Appliances, Electronics, and Devices Not in Use – One of the most common culprits of vampire electricity is the cell phone charger. Today’s typical household may have more than one phone charger plugged in, which means wasted electricity is still flowing through the plugged-in charger, even if it isn’t connected to your phone. Be sure to unplug the charger from the outlet once the phone has been fully charged.
Plug into Power Strips - Since most households use multiple phantom appliances, unplugging every device during your daily routine doesn’t seem sensible. However, a simple solution can help cut back on electricity waste: using power strips. Rather than manually unplugging each device, you can press one button to cut off power to a bank of appliances.
Use Energy Star Certified Appliances – There are certain appliances in your home that will be left on for long periods of time. While you may not want to rush out and purchase all new appliances, shop smart when the time comes to replace an outdated refrigerator or dryer. Energy Star labels identify products that meet electric efficiency qualifications set by the EPA. These products are more efficient than their counterparts.
Sign up for SmartHub Energy Usage Alerts – Download the SmartHub app (GooglePlay or iOS) and set energy thresholds to notify you when you use more than a certain amount of energy in a day. This is a powerful solution to help you take control of your energy usage before you receive an unexpectedly high bill.
Unlike Halloween, energy vampires don’t come around just once a year; they’re constantly creeping in and around your home. Adopting some of those simple energy-saving solutions can help you better manage your usage, and electricity costs all year long.
For more energy savings tips, visit pgec.coop.