'Energy Vampires' Can Cost Hundreds Of Dollars Per Year

POSTED: 4:11 pm EST February 2, 2012
UPDATED: 11:05 pm EST February 2, 2012

MANCHESTER, N.H. -- Electronic items throughout your house could be sapping energy and costing you money even if you're not using them.The U.S. Department of Energy estimates that these "energy vampires" add about 10 percent to the average monthly electric bill.Images: Secret Energy Sappers In Your Home "When you walk away, you go off to work, 10 percent of your bill is what you left behind running," said Professor Charles Kennedy of Pinkerton Academy-Manchester Community College.Big appliances such as refrigerators or furnaces are obvious energy consumers, but in most homes, there are dozens of smaller electronics constantly plugged in.News 9 asked some students at Pinkerton Academy to help test various common electronic devices to see just how much they can cost each year.Seniors Stephen Curreri and Trevor Marsella tested a dozen common household items. They based the cost on an average electricity rate of 13 cents per kilowatt hour.One device that's not really optional is a smoke detector. Fire officials recommend using some detectors that plug into the household power supply."Having six of them would be $40.40 per year," Curreri said.Night lights can add up to. One that's on for 12 hours and off for 12 hours will cost about $2.69 per year.A coffee maker that's plugged in but never brews coffee costs $2.16 per year.A cellphone charger actually doesn't cost that much, the students' tests showed."If the phone is already charged, it'll drop down the energy it's using, and it only takes energy as the phone needs more juice," Curreri said.Some items were costlier. An Xbox used for 10 hours per day can cost $45 per year, partly because even when it's shut off, it's using some electricity."It uses 4.3 watts when it's off and not doing anything," Marsella said.A cable box left plugged in costs about $27 per year. A laptop computer with printer and speakers used eight hours per day adds up to $1.79 per month, while a tower computer costs $6 per month.But newer technology is helping to mitigate the cost. Tests of an older alarm clock versus a newer one show that the older costs about five times more than the newer one to run.And cable and satellite operators said they are making their receivers more efficient. Comcast said the cable industry is taking steps to reduce energy costs, with operators providing service to about 85 percent of customers planning to make sure that 90 percent of new set-top boxes are compliant with the strict Energy Star Version 3.0 efficiency standard.DirecTV said that it joined the Energy Star set-top box program in 2009, and since then, nearly all its customers have boxes complying with the version 2.0 or 3.0 standard.Using compact fluorescent light bulbs also makes a difference, with the students' tests showing that a new bulb may cost $8 per year, compared to $34 for a traditional bulb.Altogether, the numbers add up. With average use, using all the items tests would cost about $221 in a year."Next time I walk away from the computer, wherever it is, I'll make sure it's asleep or shut it off," Kennedy said.Energy experts said costs can be cut by putting devices in sleep mode, if they have it. Devices not in use can also simply be unplugged. And a power strip can help by letting you easily shut off several devices at once.

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'Energy Vampires' Can Cost Hundreds Of Dollars Per Year