Vampire Power - Plug the Leak

    

     Vampire Power, synonymous with standby power, is the loss of energy that is caused by leaving appliances and other electrical products plugged in when not is use.  Effectively, these appliances and other power sources "suck" money from your wallet, and electricity from the power grid. Vampire power provides an example of inefficient energy usage in the home (or any location that has access to an outlet, for that matter).  

Although the data depicted in this figure is a bit dated (2005), it provides a good visual.

    It is reported that the typical American home has 40 products that are constantly drawing power and 10% of all electricity is wasted on Vampire Power. Vampire Power sucks away between 3 and 10 billion dollars annually in the U.S. alone.  In thinking of these figures on a national level (or globally, if you dare), one is able to realize that a vast amount of energy is being lost annually.  Pertaining to the monetary side of this issue, this website provides a running count of the amount of money that is being lost this year in the United States due to Vampire Power.  


This video (which is also featured on the above linked website) provides a good run down on Vampire Power and some intriguing facts:

What, then, can be done to plug the leak caused by Vampire Power?
Here is a list of tips provided by http://vampirepowersucks.com that you can take in home and in your dorm to reduce the energy lost by your electronic products:

• Unplug your devices when not in use. It's as simple as that. Pull TV/computer/stereo/etc power cords out of the outlet. If they're not in use or if they're totally unneccesary (are you really going to ever use that VCR player again?), unplug.
• Use the other off switch. Many devices also have an 'off' switch in the back. For example, most computers come with one 'soft' power switch on the front, which takes it from standby to on. Separately, there is usually a real 'on/off' switch located in the back on the power supply (near where the power cord goes in). Standby switches aren't really power switches, so the device still sucks power.
• Buy “smart” power strips or unplug chargers when not in use. Your cell phone charger, iPod charger, laptop charger, etc. keeps drawing electricity even if your phone, iPod, laptop, etc isn't charging.  If you are going to use regular power strips, make sure to unplug them, or pull out the charger.
• If you're in the market for new electronics, buy Energy Star qualified. Energy Star takes standby power into account and their qualified devices draw less than the average when in their "off" mode. Some of their best electronic items include cordless phones and audio equipment.
• To learn about the power consumption of your electronics, look into devices that measure your power usage. These devices will tell you about the efficiency of your electronics, whether turned on or "off." It can actually be kind of fun (and definitely enlightening) to see how much juice each piece of equipment takes, in both active and standby mode. You'll likely be surprised.
• If you're up for a whole house project, check out one of the many wireless home energy control systems that let you cut off power to your various electronics quite easily, sometimes automatically, if they aren't in use.

In sum, the ability to combat the waste incurred by Vampire Power lies in the hands of the individual.  Having the initiative to unplug our various electronics before we head out for the day or climb into bed at night can prove to make a beneficial difference in a big way.  Again, the choice is our own.