Slay phantom loads that drain your energy dollars.
Surprise! Your appliances use electricity and cost you money even when they are switched off. The same is true for your stereo, coffee maker, microwave, clock radio and other electronics. Yes, even chargers for cell phones and MP3 players may siphon energy when plugged in - even if they're not charging a thing!
A "phantom load" is any appliance or electronic gadget that uses energy even when turned off. Some people call them "vampire loads" because they suck, literally, small amounts of power 24 hours a day 365 days a year.
Check out these specific examples that may be draining money from your wallet.
The good news is that you don't need garlic or a wooden stake to ward off these energy vampire loads. Simply checkout a Kill A Watt from any County Library. This device allows you to see what your appliances are actually using when they are off and calculate what they are costing you annually.
This worksheet is useful to quantify all of the plug loads and their vampire loads. This is a worthwhile exercise for any homeowner, tenant, parent, or prospective science fair project submission.
Once the vampire loads have been identified there are many solutions. The easiest is to unplug devices that are not in use. Put other devices on a power strip and turn them all off when not in use. It's just that simple.
Now go out and kill those energy vampires!
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