Do you think you could stand to save a couple of hundred dollars a year on your energy bills? Think about it, that’s a new pair of really good shoes, two or three pairs of so-so shoes or maybe even a pair of deeply discounted Christian Louboutins. Regardless of how you spend the money you save; it is still extra money in your pockets to use wherever you need.
You need to keep your handheld electronics charged, but what are you doing about the charger once the battery on your device is full? Are you leaving it plugged into the wall? Did you know that your charger is still drawing electricity even when it isn’t connected to your wireless device? Well, it is, and it is costing you money that you could be using on something more important.
Every charger you leave plugged into the wall uses .26 watts an hour, and when your device is fully charged and you leave it connected to the charger, that is costing you 2.24 watts of energy each and every hour. With the average cost of electricity running 12 cents per kilowatt hour, just unplugging one charger could save you $2.35 each year. Turning off and unplugging your desktop computer can save around $77 and, by doing the same with your laptop, can save up to $46 a year. Starting to add up isn’t it.
So you agree, but think unplugging your electronics would be inconvenient, well there is a solution for that. It is frustrating trying to crawl behind the head board, or the end table just to plug something into the outlet. It is so much easier to leave your electronics plugged into the wall. To alleviate this problem, invest in an inexpensive power strip that has an on/off switch. The power strip lets you make one trip behind your furniture to reach the plug, and then plug your device into the strip. Simply turn off the power strip after your electronic devices are fully charged, and wha-la, no more wasted electricity. In fact, any electronic item, like a stereo receiver, DVD player, or gaming console continues to consume energy, even when powered off.
Take a stroll through your home to find the electronics you can unplug from the wall until you need them. Unplug your DVD player, game console, and your receiver in your living room. Disconnect your laptop from the wall when you aren’t using it. Put your desktop computer on a surge protector that you can turn off and on, and finally, use an extension cord to plug in you cell phone charger. When you phone battery is full, tuck the extension cord back behind the couch where you can easily reach it when your phone needs charging. By just turning these few electronics off and unplugging the cords from the wall, you could save nearly $88 a month on your energy bill, clearly on your way to affording the shoes of your dreams.