August 7, 2006
Powering Off Doesn't Mean There's No Power
As we appreciate the fact that last week's heat wave was last week, the NY Times' Sewell Chan has an article about that the little-known fact that turned-off appliances that are still plugged-in still draw electricity. We mentioned the "standby mode" issue last week, noting that is why Con Ed asks people to actually unplug TVs, printers, computers, and the like when the power demand is high. (It probably isn't a bad idea to unplug them at other times, too.) Many people interviewed were surprised, saying they would have unplugged their various gadget chargers or shut down their computers, with one woman commenting, "The laptop is always connected to the source. I didn’t know that made a difference.” Well, it makes some difference - the Consumer Electronics Association spokesman says that gadgets don't compare to the electricity air-conditioining or lighting sucks out of the system. Which makes us wonder if you've changed your electrical consumption habits? Gothamist thinks we're going to be a little more cautious these days - we know that our little home might not represent much, but if other people unplug one more appliance or use a fan instead of AC during milder hot days, who knows what can happen?
And speaking of last week's heat wave, the city is going to investigate why at least 22 people died from heat-releated causes last week and will see if they could have been prevented. The ME's office says that the number may increase as they continue to do autopsies. What's sad is that many seem to be elderly or disabled people; the stories seem to indicate some people didn't want to leave their homes or turn on fans for fear of a higher electrical bill.
Finally, we're not sure if Con Ed was hacked or if this is how it usually is, but when you Google "Con Ed," the Con Ed description says, "Provides electric service in New York City (except for a small area of Queens), and most of Westchester..." (see image). We called Con Ed, who said they do provide electricity to all five boroughs (but not gas), but maybe LIPA powers up some of Queens. Do you know?
Check out joshbousel's Con Ed On It set on Flickr
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i am a big fan of unplugging everything unless it is in use. It is the tiniest of inconveniences and saves a little cash. I also have the idea that it decreases fire hazards - you know, no old frayed wires sitting around. nyc is so big, that if people at least unplugged stuff they don't use daily, it *would* make a big difference.
The Rockaways are powered by LIPA/Keyspan.
Far Rockaway & Breezy Point are both powered by LIPA. I think that Riis park is too, which makes it the entire Rocakaway peninsula.
LIPA powers the Rockaway peninsula, including Breezy Point.
k - I feel exactly how you are. I do attribute it as a small gift from my OCD father, but I feel safe knowing my TV wont explode while I'm on vacation if it's not plugged in.
In response to k, unless you are using something that is over 20 years old, the frayed wire issue is pretty much insignificant and you are actually contributing to the degradation of the insulation when you are constantly pulling and repluging the plug. Like CEA said in the story, it's your lighting and large appliances that ends up causing more electrical usage.
Does switching off the power strip stop the suck? That'd be great is it does, since pretty much all of my standby suckers are connected to various power strips.
Ha! Glad to see I'm not the only one who unplugs everything before vacation lest my apartment burn down (but am also insured, just in case!).
just before joshbousel took the photo of the wooden electrical conduits I asked him if his neighborhood was a now a third-world country. At some point, some doofus in a car is going to crash into the contraptions outside a manhole or there will be a downpour that will seep into the wooden box, and there will be problems again.
Yes, turning off a power strip is fine. Anything with a "hard" switch can be left plugged in. A hard switch meaning a rocker switch, a toggle or anything else where if it's on when you unplug it, it'll come right back on when you plug it back in. For instance, lights, hair dryers, fans, air conditioners and stoves. That's not the case with "soft" switches like on today's TVs, where it resets to a seemingly off state when you plug it back in. Most computers also have soft switches, except for PCs that still have rocker switches on the back of the power supply. But unless you have a lot of "vampire" devices, it probably won't make too much of a difference. Most AC adapters for cell phones, iPods, etc. take less than 5w each on standby, as do many computers when they're sleeping (Macs) or on standby (Windows).
Yes, turning off a power strip is fine. Anything with a "hard" switch can be left plugged in. A hard switch meaning a rocker switch, a toggle or anything else where if it's on when you unplug it, it'll come right back on when you plug it back in. For instance, lights, hair dryers, fans, air conditioners and stoves. That's not the case with "soft" switches like on today's TVs, where it resets to a seemingly off state when you plug it back in. Most computers also have soft switches, except for PCs that still have rocker switches on the back of the power supply. But unless you have a lot of "vampire" devices, it probably won't make too much of a difference. Most AC adapters for cell phones, iPods, etc. take less than 5w each on standby, as do many computers when they're sleeping (Macs) or on standby (Windows).
Get the F outta here, I'm not unplugging all my stuff because THEY say so.
Show me something scientific, then I'll do it. You think all the big offices in the City do this? Get outta here. They do what anyone else would do, shut off unused lights.
I did my part by replacing all Incandescent bulbs to Compact flourescent.
Of course, I unplug everything in our mountain home because we are not there during the week.
But for our apartment in the City, it's really no big deal.
So, Show me the Money.
I always kill the power strip into which my router/cablemodem/tv/stereo are all plugged. It shaves a couple of dollars a month off of the bill. I saw the biggest difference from putting the fridge down to the second-warmest setting. Sure, it takes longer for things to cool down but I'd rather have the money than ice-cold Pepsi in the bottle since I have ice in the freezer anyway ;).
Constant Date: It does stop the suck. For example, I can tell from my Dell laptop power source. When it's plugged in and the strip is on, a little green LED on the power source itself is lit up. When the strip is off, the LED goes out.
Like Bob Dole says, it's an easy as hell way to turn off the constant suck. And in case you're worried about whether you'll lose your channel presets and all that--you should check your particular TV, but most newer ones keep that information intact even when disconnected from the power.
The most important thing is for everyone to just use less electricity, particularly on peak demand days. It's good for your wallet and good for the environment. Go to Home Depot and buy 6, 60 watt compact fluorescent bulbs for $10.00. Then wait for the savings. Go to Con Ed's website and sign up for 100% wind power while you at it.
More long term, the city needs to encourage more energy efficiency not just in new construction jobs, but in any repair work and regular maintenance. Most old buildings are really pretty wasteful of energy, although too many newer buildings have automatic air heating and cooling year round, 24/7 that is not controled by the tenant.
Yes, turning off a power strip is fine. Anything with a "hard" switch can be left plugged in. A hard switch meaning a rocker switch, a toggle or anything else where if it's on when you unplug it, it'll come right back on when you plug it back in. For instance, lights, hair dryers, fans, air conditioners and stoves. That's not the case with "soft" switches like on today's TVs, where it resets to a seemingly off state when you plug it back in. Most computers also have soft switches, except for PCs that still have rocker switches on the back of the power supply. But unless you have a lot of "vampire" devices, it probably won't make too much of a difference. Most AC adapters for cell phones, iPods, etc. take less than 5w each on standby, as do many computers when they're sleeping (Macs) or on standby (Windows).
Yes, turning off a power strip is fine. Anything with a "hard" switch can be left plugged in. A hard switch meaning a rocker switch, a toggle or anything else where if it's on when you unplug it, it'll come right back on when you plug it back in. For instance, lights, hair dryers, fans, air conditioners and stoves. That's not the case with "soft" switches like on today's TVs, where it resets to a seemingly off state when you plug it back in. Most computers also have soft switches, except for PCs that still have rocker switches on the back of the power supply. But unless you have a lot of "vampire" devices, it probably won't make too much of a difference. Most AC adapters for cell phones, iPods, etc. take less than 5w each on standby, as do many computers when they're sleeping (Macs) or on standby (Windows).
Yes, turning off a power strip is fine. Anything with a "hard" switch can be left plugged in. A hard switch meaning a rocker switch, a toggle or anything else where if it's on when you unplug it, it'll come right back on when you plug it back in. For instance, lights, hair dryers, fans, air conditioners and stoves. That's not the case with "soft" switches like on today's TVs, where it resets to a seemingly off state when you plug it back in. Most computers also have soft switches, except for PCs that still have rocker switches on the back of the power supply. But unless you have a lot of "vampire" devices, it probably won't make too much of a difference. Most AC adapters for cell phones, iPods, etc. take less than 5w each on standby, as do many computers when they're sleeping (Macs) or on standby (Windows).
I had always under the impression that lights drew very little power--as opposed to major appliances. Guess I'll have to start turning them off.