High electric bills

[aduvall]

In general, YES. they tend to use almost the same amount of electricity when turned off, as they do when turned on.

OMG, I have three LCD tvs in my house that run alot! I have have two friges, and one freezer. I guess I should be thinking about how to cut back before my spa even gets here.

So many of you unplug your LCD/Plasma tv's? Because of this?

[Renee]

Hey I found something that might be really useful for everyone worried about vampire electric.
http://www.belkin.com/conserve/ The only advantage that I see in this device over just a power strip is that my kids might actually turn it off when they leave our TV room if the remote is next to the light switches.

That surge protector w/ remote is cool Bonibelle...thanks for sharing!!  Do you know how much one of these costs??  It's a great idea...

[Bonibelle]

Renee, I think it is about $80.00 but that is based on an article in a Family Circle magazine...I have emailed the company but still no answer. I checked in Home Depot for availability but nothing...so maybe this is really new. I like the idea that there are some plugs that can remain on all the time, yet the others will be shut off. All of my connections (HDTV, video game, Bluray, home theater and Verizon DVR box )are connected through one surge protector. If I just shut the entire strip off, it will turn off the DVR and defeat the purpose completely. And I also know that my kids won't turn that strip off...Shoot they won't hang up a towel!! . So if this is really $80.00, based on Hillbilly's estimate it will pay for itself in 8 months..I am sure my electric rate in Pa is as high as New England rates.

[Cdn HockeyPuck]

In general, YES. they tend to use almost the same amount of electricity when turned off, as they do when turned on.

Does that go for Plasma tv's as well? And what about computer LCD monitors?

[Cdn HockeyPuck]

That surge protector w/ remote is cool Bonibelle...thanks for sharing!!  Do you know how much one of these costs??  It's a great idea...

If you click on the buy now link it shows a 10 outlet (8 “Switchable” + 2 “Always On” ) is $59.99 plus $12.99 for a remote.

[Bonibelle]

Here you go... http://www.ucsusa.org/publications/greentips/energy-vampires.html

Thanks  

[Bonibelle]

Check this one out too...don't even need a remote
https://www.chooserenewables.com/xcart/product.php?productid=16227&cat=268&page=1

[Cdn HockeyPuck]

I found a good article on tv consumption here's the link
http://reviews.cnet.com/4520-6475_7-6400401-2.html. It's not twice the power used for Plasma vs LCD but it is significantly more.

What's also interesting is the amount of power consumption when turn on in an Xbox 360 and Playstation 3 and how little power a Nintendo Wii uses.

Power consumption compared

TVs:
Average plasma: 339 watts
Average rear-projection: 211 watts
Average LCD: 213 watts

Other AV gear:
PlayStation 3: 197 watts
Xbox 360: 187 watts
Average PC: 78 watts
DirecTV HR20 DVR: 33 watts
Nintendo Wii: 19 watts
Slingbox: 9 watts
Wireless router: 7 watts

[Hillbilly Hot Tub]

Here is another no one has mentioned...cell phone charges use about $3:00 a month if left plugged in. Anything with the little black transformer box will draw power even if the item is not plugged into it.

With 3 teenagers at home we are always telling them to make sure thier chargers for phones, ipods, cameras and so on are un plugges. $3.00 a month times each item, 3 kids with these items will add up to more than what it costs to run my hot tub!

[Bonibelle]

Ok, so I went to Radio Shack looking for the different surge protectors with either remote or auto shut off features. They didn't have any, but the manager argued for 10 minutes with me that I would screw up the settings by shutting down the TVs and games. What settings? Unless you have a video game set to upload something, what would you be messing up? I understand that you wouldn't shut down the DVR if you wanted record, but I can't get what he means...Nada, do you know?

I'm with you Hillbilly, I want to use my wasted" electric to power my tub and not to bleed out though stuff that is supposed to be off..

I am going to buy three of those strips and put them on my TV's with games and put my bedroom TV on a timer so it shuts off after midnight and doesn't become available until 10pm..since no one ever watches TV in the bedroom any other time. I will monitor my electric and see if I notice a difference.

OH, I am still (in spite of our very cold weather) running my Epic in economy mode with no problems. My son went out to soak the other night and she was still cooking at 101...

[H823Putt]

    I know with my plasma TV I have to reset  the settings everytime I have a power outage. It is like I am just taking it out of the box.

[ndabunka]

Flat Panel TV's are the same as any other TV as far as settings go.  Most people have cable boxes which store things like channels, preferences, etc so any settings on the TV are probably minimal.  Only a VERY few people have "cable cards" in their PC's so the only settings you would loose without a cable card are things like aspect ratio.  You can test it simply by turning off your power and then see what effect it has on your settings.

[Steve]

My guess is that your Sundance will run $40-60 per month TOPS! That's a VERY high estimate.