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From: Jeff Thies on 30 Jul 2010 13:01
Alex wrote:
> Hi Everyone ...
>
> Today Oprah had an episode about frugal living, and one suggestion was
> to unplug most items when not in use. I've known for some time that
> many electrical items like TV, cable box, etc use electricity even
> when off, but while watching the show I started wondering if timers
> could help cut back on how much electricity those devices use.
>
> My thought is this weekend I'll pick-up a Kill-a-watt meter

I bought my KillAWatt P3 not long ago from Radio Shack for $20. There is
a more expensive model that lets you plug in your electric rate, but I
prefer to calculate that myself.

You'll find that modern transformerless devices use little power in
standby. I could read nothing at all from my assorted battery chargers.

You may wish to check before you decide what is worth the nuisance of
turning off.

Jeff

plus a GE
> 7-day plug-in timer, both of which at home depot would be about $45.
> My thought is to gauge how much electricity the things in our
> entertainment center use per hour when not in use (HDTV, cable box,
> BluRay, AppleTV, and Wii) and if I can set the timer to only bring
> power to these devices say from 4:30pm to 11pm M-F then change the
> weekend schedule as needed, this would cut the usage by a large
> percentage. Then I could do the same for the cable modem/router and
> even the microwave in the house.
>
> Has anyone investigated doing something like this? They just
> installed a Smartmeter at our house, so hopefully soon we'll be able
> to see how much electricity our house uses in 15 minute intervals
> anytime.
>
> Thanks for any advice...
>
> Alex
From: The Henchman on 30 Jul 2010 20:24


"Alex" <samalex(a)gmail.com> wrote in message
news:f6eb4258-ec79-4da6-bc16-197f32310948(a)f6g2000yqa.googlegroups.com...
> Hi Everyone ...
>
> Today Oprah had an episode about frugal living, and one suggestion was
> to unplug most items when not in use. I've known for some time that
> many electrical items like TV, cable box, etc use electricity even
> when off, but while watching the show I started wondering if timers
> could help cut back on how much electricity those devices use.
>
> My thought is this weekend I'll pick-up a Kill-a-watt meter plus a GE
> 7-day plug-in timer, both of which at home depot would be about $45.
> My thought is to gauge how much electricity the things in our
> entertainment center use per hour when not in use (HDTV, cable box,
> BluRay, AppleTV, and Wii) and if I can set the timer to only bring
> power to these devices say from 4:30pm to 11pm M-F then change the
> weekend schedule as needed, this would cut the usage by a large
> percentage. Then I could do the same for the cable modem/router and
> even the microwave in the house.
>
> Has anyone investigated doing something like this? They just
> installed a Smartmeter at our house, so hopefully soon we'll be able
> to see how much electricity our house uses in 15 minute intervals
> anytime.
>
> Thanks for any advice...
>
> Alex

Home depot and their ilk usually put timers on sale around Xmas selling time
cause people buy Xmas lights and fake trees.

Ask your local government or power ultitiy for rebates. They may give one
for use of timers. They do around here once a year.

From: Vandy Terre on 30 Jul 2010 21:18
On Thu, 29 Jul 2010 19:35:33 -0700 (PDT), Alex <samalex(a)gmail.com> wrote:

>Hi Everyone ...
>
>Today Oprah had an episode about frugal living, and one suggestion was
>to unplug most items when not in use. I've known for some time that
>many electrical items like TV, cable box, etc use electricity even
>when off, but while watching the show I started wondering if timers
>could help cut back on how much electricity those devices use.
>
>My thought is this weekend I'll pick-up a Kill-a-watt meter plus a GE
>7-day plug-in timer, both of which at home depot would be about $45.
>My thought is to gauge how much electricity the things in our
>entertainment center use per hour when not in use (HDTV, cable box,
>BluRay, AppleTV, and Wii) and if I can set the timer to only bring
>power to these devices say from 4:30pm to 11pm M-F then change the
>weekend schedule as needed, this would cut the usage by a large
>percentage. Then I could do the same for the cable modem/router and
>even the microwave in the house.
>
>Has anyone investigated doing something like this? They just
>installed a Smartmeter at our house, so hopefully soon we'll be able
>to see how much electricity our house uses in 15 minute intervals
>anytime.
>
>Thanks for any advice...
>
>Alex

Why not just do meter checks at various times of the day? Walking out to the
meter and making a pencil and paper record is cheaper.

For some real fun, turn everything off and check the meter for movement.
Amazing how many appliances have a 'ghost' draw. Not just the television, but
the washer/ dryer/ dishwasher can also have the 'ghost' draw.

From: The Henchman on 30 Jul 2010 22:19


"Vandy Terre" <vandy(a)tanglewood-destiny.com> wrote in message
news:68u656lj7k377ar4etql1boct77ntjqajm(a)4ax.com...
> On Thu, 29 Jul 2010 19:35:33 -0700 (PDT), Alex <samalex(a)gmail.com> wrote:

>
> Why not just do meter checks at various times of the day? Walking out to
> the
> meter and making a pencil and paper record is cheaper.
>
> For some real fun, turn everything off and check the meter for movement.
> Amazing how many appliances have a 'ghost' draw. Not just the television,
> but
> the washer/ dryer/ dishwasher can also have the 'ghost' draw.


Interesting observation and you raised something to consider: We just
bought 5 new appliances for delivery in September. The Washer, Dryer and
Dishwasher all have electronic controls and timers. No mechanical dials or
switches. Stoves have been like that for years. We got a gas stove but
the ignitors are electronic with leds. The self cleaning is electronically
locking with a push of a button.


Gotta wonder what the ghost draw on all this "efficient" appliance stuff.



From: Bob F on 4 Aug 2010 12:08
Alex wrote:
> Michael, you said I probably got the idea from heating, but honestly I
> didn't think about having a timer on the electric water heater until
> reading other posts after I posted my comment. As you suggested I'll
> need to test how much electricity our hot water heater uses, by
> monitoring the meter, but given our hot water heater is in the garage
> with Texas summers, it's VERY warm in there most days as it is. I
> wonder if a timer would help if we only had it turn on the water
> heater from 4am to 6am so the water's warm for AM showers, then again
> from 4pm to 6pm so it's warm for evening kids baths, laundry, etc. I
> bet with the garage staying as warm as it is, that would help keep the
> water warm. Then for winters I could adjust the timer and wrap the
> water heater.

How warm is your incoming water? If it is cold, an extra uninsulated tank
plumbed between the cold water and your water heater could take advantage of the
warm garage to pre-heat your water and save you substantial power. Probably way
more than timers on any/all electrical device(s) in your house.


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