Energy Saving Tips:

[Jazzy]

Do you think that switching off your appliances means they aren’t sucking up energy or power any longer? That’s far from the truth. Even if you turn off TVs or coffee makers, if they are plugged into the wall outlet, they are still pulling in little bits of energy throughout the day.

That’s why if you are serious about saving on your electric bill, you will start unplugging appliances in your home. That’s one key to this energy-saving game. Keep reading to find out which appliances are best left unplugged when not in use, so you can save money and energy.

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Do you unplug appliances you're not using? (If not: why not)

 

[Stravinsk]

Appliances I use every day - no. However there was a time when my electric bills were sky high and I really had no clue what was sucking so much energy, so I wound up unplugging nearly everything except my fridge and computer. The bills came down. I didn't narrow it down to one device, but something was sucking electricity even when it was off.

 

[Lamb]

We keep things like our Keurig, can opener and toaster plugged in all the time except for when we travel.

 

[tango]

It seems to me there's far more potential to save energy by doing things like turning the heat down a degree or two and only boiling the water you actually need, than there is by worrying that something plugged in but turned off might be drawing a couple of watts of power.

 

[Messy]

No I read that it didn't matter much, but I did put plastic on the windows and have left central heating out a lot this winter.

 

[tango]

Anything that keeps warm will be an energy hog. Years ago I had a really nice coffee maker that had a shelf for espresso cups, that it kept warm so your coffee cup wouldn't get cold. When you're only drawing an ounce of coffee into a cup it matters if the cup is cold. The trouble is it drew a lot of power to stay warm, so I configured it to go into standby mode when not in use. If I wanted an espresso I drew an ounce of plain hot water into it once it woke up, then let it sit a while, then drew my espresso into the warmed cup. A little more hassle but a lot less electricity bill.

The amount of energy we've saved by insulating is incredible. It's hard to compare like with like accurately since this last winter was relatively mild but just blowing insulation into the spaces I haven't lined with panels yet has made an enormous difference. The other night it dropped to only slightly above freezing, we didn't turn the heating back on, and the temperature indoors still didn't drop below 65.