Report: Idle appliances are power-suckers
Electrical appliances that use electricity even when not working are a major energy consumer, a Canadian federal study showed.
The Natural Resources Canada study found a typical Canadian home annually consumes between 44 and 59 watts of standby power in devices that have clocks and stand-by functions.
That equates to between 389 and 513 kilowatt-hours of stand-by energy per house per year, which in Canada, translates to 3.2 to 4.3 percent of total residential electricity consumption, the Canwest News Service reported.
The report said many Canadian homes have 20 or more electric devices such as computers, microwave ovens, cordless phones and cable TV devices that use electricity even when turned off, accounting for 0.5 and 25 watt usage.
Last year, the Canadian government committed to an initiative by the International Energy Agency to reduce standby power use in all appliances to just one watt, the report said.
Copyright 2008 by United Press International