This is part 3 of a three-part series about standby power.

If you’ve been reading up on reducing utility bills, you might be hearing about terms like “standby power”, “vampire power”, “phantom load”, or “idle load”.  In this article, we are going to clarify what all these terms are.  If you already know all this–or just don’t care–but want to start figuring out how to rack up savings on your electric bill, here’s a way to figure out where all your home’s idle load is.

For those who like to read up, wikipedia’s entry on standby power has all the details.  Standby power “refers to the way electric power is consumed by electronic and electrical appliances while they are switched off (but are designed to draw some power) or in a standby mode.”  It’s also called “vampire”, “leaking”, “ghost” or “phantom” because …

 

It’s good-for-nothing cost
you didn’t know was there.

 

Because this power consumption is good-for-nothing (-or-little), people often use the word “load”.  It’s a load you unknowingly have to pay for.

 

Idle Load

Idle load is an extension to the concept of standby load.  The NRDC has a detailed article on idle load for those who want a more detailed explanation.  Whether you care about the environment is not the point. Electric utility companies and people managing resources have a concept of “always on load” or “base load.”  The point is that most devices continue to cost you even when you think they are “off”, “standing by” or “sleeping” or “not in use.”  We have this concept because it’s a huge waste and cost.

We’d like our car engine to be completely off when we are not driving it.

 

Would you want your car idling 24/7?

 

Probably not.  There are a lot of idling devices in your home even though you may not believe it’s happening.  This cost of idling is not technically “standby power” because it’s not technically on “standby mode”, but the unnecessary idling is costing everyone big bucks for little gain.  An example is the recirculation pump we mentioned in the common offenders article.

This little pump continuously circulate hot water in your home’s pipes.  There’s no standby mode, but it’s constantly idling “just in case.”  As we mentioned before, it could be costing you $50/month for pumping water 24/7 when you only want quick hot water for your family when everyone’s in a rush in the morning.  Why not put it on a timer, so it’s only pumping for 10 hours per week, not a 100 hours?

Another example might be your towel rack that always keep your bathroom towels nice and warm for the winter.  Does that need to be on 24/7?  Even when you’re sleeping or when everyone is away?

The list of devices with substantial idle load goes on.  Remember these are devices that might not have an off switch, but when they are plugged in, they are constantly working (or “idling”) even when you are not using it or thinking about using it.

Families have a choice.  Some idle loads are worth it.  An efficient freezer or refrigerator to keep your family’s food unspoiled?  Worth it.  Let’s say your fridge eats up $70 per month.  Hey, if you have a big family running a big fridge that’s always stocked, it’s worth it.  If you have a second fridge that’s only really used for Monday Night Football, maybe it’s fine to unplug it when football season is over.  Or if the fridge is keeping a small amount of food frigid, maybe turning down the power is a win-win.

So, in a nutshell, standby power is a type of idle load.  Idle load is unnecessary waste (cost) from all the devices that you kinda believe is off or aren’t even aware that it’s idling.

If you are curious what the idle load and standby power for your home is, check out our article on determining your home’s idle load and how to save money.