Don’t panic! Vampire appliances are not going to come alive at night and drain your blood or turn you into an appliance. However, they are going to do some serious damage to your electricity bill!
A vampire appliance is simply any electrical appliance that uses electricity when they are turned off. You probably already realize your television isn’t off when you press ‘standby’. The concept is true of many other appliances in your house. What may surprise you is that even cell phone chargers will use power when they are plugged in but the phone is not plugged into them.
If you suspect you have vampire appliances it’s a good idea to contact a Sydney electrician and get the problem resolved sooner rather than later.
Although their power drain individually is small, collectively they can make a difference to your electricity bill and the environment. Turning these devices off properly can make a huge difference to your energy bill.
Examples of Vampire Appliances
You’ve already discovered that a cell phone charger will draw power when plugged in and not in use. The same is true if you leave the cell phone plugged in after it is fully charged.
But, this is not the only vampire appliance in your home.
A microwave is always on standby, as are many domestic ovens. Your television, DVD player, satellite box, and even a games console are probably activated all the time. Even your computer can suck energy when left plugged in unnecessarily.
It’s not just your energy bill that will suffer. Additional energy usage has a direct effect on the environment. Learning to switch things off is a great way to reduce the greenhouse gases you’re producing. This means you are doing your bit toward fighting climate change.
If you’re not sure whether an appliance is a vampire appliance or not then assume that it is. Basically, anything that can be turned on without having to physically plug it in, is likely to be a vampire appliance.
Perhaps the easiest way to identify a vampire appliance is to look for the clock or other light glowing on the appliance. If they have this then they are drawing power all the time.
As mentioned, individually the power drawn is low, but collectively it is significant.
Eliminating Vampire Appliances
The most obvious approach is to unplug everything when you’re not using it. This will ensure it can’t draw off the power grid and save you a significant amount of funds. You can monitor your electrical usage by taking regular meter readings or installing a smart meter.
If you can’t turn it off overnight then make sure it is on a separate switch to other items. This will allow you to turn most items off and leave those on that need to be. You’ll notice the difference in power consumption.
In fact, experts believe you’ll save a considerable sum of money by turning things off when they are not needed. That alone makes it worth trying.
