Phantom Loads and Your Electric Bill
When you receive your electric bill each month you may ask yourself why it's so high.
First you need to determine if it's normal compared to your historical electric use or comparable to other homes like yours, this information may be provided by your electric distribution company.
If it's always been too high you may ask yourself if anything can be done to lower your kWh consumption.
A substantial percentage of monthly kWh use on your utility bill can be traced back to phantom loads.
Phantom loads refer to the electric power consumed by devices and appliances while they are not being used.
Power is consumed by standby circuitry that minimizes wait time when the device is turned on or through manufacturer provided conveniences such as clocks.
Over the years we have grown accustomed to the immediate response and convenience provided by these devices and appliances.
With some effort you can reduce the impact of phantom loads and if the temptation for convenience resisted, eliminate them.
To determine what each device or appliance is consuming you need to perform an energy audit using a Kill-A-Watt EZ.
Compile a list that compares how much power they consume to how often they're actually used during a 24 hour period.
This should provide some insight as to what devices are contributing to unnecessary power use.
The operational requirements of some devices makes frequent cold starting a nuisance.
Now that we know the power consumption and how the devices or appliances react after power-loss, we can determine how to control them to suit your life style and reduce monthly kWh usage.
Some devices and appliances can simply be turned off until needed, critical devices that cannot be turned off are: wired smoke detectors & carbon monoxide detectors, programmable thermostats, alarm systems & dehumidifiers.
Many devices are candidates for change, such as: satellite or cable boxes, DVD players, VCR's, TV's, stereos, computers, stove, microwave and battery chargers.
Some devices that might present a challenge; satellite and cable boxes need to download programming, stereos may need stations reprogrammed.
Cable converter boxes might need reactivated after extended power-loss.
Based on your daily schedule, devices can be placed on timers or motion detectors and multiple devices used together can be combined on a switched operated power strip.
Before placing multiple devices on a timer or motion detector, review the power consumption to verify that the controlling device uses less power than the load it's controlling.
Monitor the charging status of phones, cameras and other battery operated devices, unplug the charger when complete.
Turn monitors, computers and printers off instead of relying on sleep mode.
Microwave ovens and kitchen stoves set idle for 2/3 of a day, very expensive clocks.
A switched receptacle with pilot light can take care of the microwave.
Larger appliances can be turned off using the dedicated breaker at the ac load center.
While circuit breakers can be legitimately and safely used as switches, the frequency and duration of such use is very limited.
Circuit breakers designed to be routinely used as an on-off switch are marked SWD, for switch duty.
When buying new appliances, look for devices or appliances with the ENERGY STAR label.
Manufacturers continually improve their designs to increase efficiency and reduce standby power requirements.
According to the Department Of Energy the collective power consumed by vampire or phantom loads is significant and any steps taken to reduce or eliminate them is the most effective way to dramatically cut your electric bill.
First you need to determine if it's normal compared to your historical electric use or comparable to other homes like yours, this information may be provided by your electric distribution company.
If it's always been too high you may ask yourself if anything can be done to lower your kWh consumption.
A substantial percentage of monthly kWh use on your utility bill can be traced back to phantom loads.
Phantom loads refer to the electric power consumed by devices and appliances while they are not being used.
Power is consumed by standby circuitry that minimizes wait time when the device is turned on or through manufacturer provided conveniences such as clocks.
Over the years we have grown accustomed to the immediate response and convenience provided by these devices and appliances.
With some effort you can reduce the impact of phantom loads and if the temptation for convenience resisted, eliminate them.
To determine what each device or appliance is consuming you need to perform an energy audit using a Kill-A-Watt EZ.
Compile a list that compares how much power they consume to how often they're actually used during a 24 hour period.
This should provide some insight as to what devices are contributing to unnecessary power use.
The operational requirements of some devices makes frequent cold starting a nuisance.
Now that we know the power consumption and how the devices or appliances react after power-loss, we can determine how to control them to suit your life style and reduce monthly kWh usage.
Some devices and appliances can simply be turned off until needed, critical devices that cannot be turned off are: wired smoke detectors & carbon monoxide detectors, programmable thermostats, alarm systems & dehumidifiers.
Many devices are candidates for change, such as: satellite or cable boxes, DVD players, VCR's, TV's, stereos, computers, stove, microwave and battery chargers.
Some devices that might present a challenge; satellite and cable boxes need to download programming, stereos may need stations reprogrammed.
Cable converter boxes might need reactivated after extended power-loss.
Based on your daily schedule, devices can be placed on timers or motion detectors and multiple devices used together can be combined on a switched operated power strip.
Before placing multiple devices on a timer or motion detector, review the power consumption to verify that the controlling device uses less power than the load it's controlling.
Monitor the charging status of phones, cameras and other battery operated devices, unplug the charger when complete.
Turn monitors, computers and printers off instead of relying on sleep mode.
Microwave ovens and kitchen stoves set idle for 2/3 of a day, very expensive clocks.
A switched receptacle with pilot light can take care of the microwave.
Larger appliances can be turned off using the dedicated breaker at the ac load center.
While circuit breakers can be legitimately and safely used as switches, the frequency and duration of such use is very limited.
Circuit breakers designed to be routinely used as an on-off switch are marked SWD, for switch duty.
When buying new appliances, look for devices or appliances with the ENERGY STAR label.
Manufacturers continually improve their designs to increase efficiency and reduce standby power requirements.
According to the Department Of Energy the collective power consumed by vampire or phantom loads is significant and any steps taken to reduce or eliminate them is the most effective way to dramatically cut your electric bill.