Stewardship Tip for Oct 24th, 2008- Phantom Power
Phantom power, also called standby power, phantom load, or vampire power, refers to the power consumed by electronic appliances while they are switched off or in a standby mode. For example, a phone charger, when plugged in, but not charging a phone, will draw about 1.2 watts of electricity. On an annual basis, the phone charger would draw 10.5 kilowatt hours (kWh) and cost roughly $1.15 to operate without performing its primary function!
That is a fairly insignificant amount. However, many devices, such as DVD players, have an active and a passive standby mode. A plasma TV, for example, in active, standby mode (programmed to power on at a specific time), draws, on average, 1452.4 kWh annually. A home that has a radio, cordless phones, a computer and peripherals, a plasma TV, a DVD player, a game console, and a microwave might draw about 2,433 kWh of phantom power and cost $267.67 to operate in a single year. Since most coal-fired power plants will produce between 800 and 1050 grams of CO2 per kWh, our phantom power could be responsible for dispersing 1,946,400 grams of C02 into the atmosphere. If your annual kWh consumption is 12,000 kWh, phantom power would account for 20% of your total!
Unplug the phantom. The best solution to phantom power is to unplug all devices when they are not in use. To make things convenient, put them on a power strip and turn the strip off when you are not using them. You can also purchase power strips that will shut down when an attached device has gone into standby mode, others will sense when a room is unoccupied and shutdown. Another option would be to install a “green switch,” a central switch that can shutoff a set of slave switches. Care should be taken, however, when selecting any sort of automated solution, these will often use phantom power as well.
One additional point to consider, many devices will not tolerate a hard power down. Make sure that you shut all devices down in accordance with the manufacturer’s recommendations. There are times, too, when standby power can be a boon; your TIVO will not record the latest episode of Prison Break if it is powered down.
Why it is important to the fish: Prior to the industrial revolution, C02 was present in the atmosphere and was relatively stable at about 280 ppm. Since 1750, C02 has increased to 384 ppm. Burning fossil fuels to generate power is one of the main reasons for the increase. The rise in greenhouse gases, C02, Methane, and Nitrous oxide, has been implicated by the scientific community as one the primary causes of climate change. Emissions from coal-fired power plants contribute significantly to the C02 in our atmosphere.
In 2007, with record-high, summertime temperatures, the temperature of many streams in the American West rose while levels of dissolved oxygen dropped. Fishery managers had to close several streams in order to protect the fish. Managers in Yellowstone Park closed 232 miles in 17 streams and, with air temperatures exceeding 90 degrees, the Firehole River, one of Yellowstone’s gems, experienced its largest, recorded fish kill.
When we unplug our devices that are on standby, we reduce the amount of phantom power that we use. In turn, we reduce our consumption of electricity and the emissions from our power plants. Our fish are the ultimate beneficiaries.
To calculate your potential energy savings from phantom electricity, try Google’s energy calculator.
This week’s sponsor-partner: Vicious Fishing
Vicious fishing makes premium quality fishing lines in flourocarbon, offshore, and a copolymer monofilament that uses “A.C.T” (Advanced Copolymer Technology) to deliver the “Ultimate” fishing line. Their partnership makes this week’s “Stewardship Tip” possible.
Rising demand for our weekly Stewardship Tip and a new partnership with Fly Cast America now makes the Stewardship Tip available in Spanish. Ahora, reciba el Stewardship Tip en español. Gentileza de Fly Cast America.
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