HOW TO HACK YOUR ELECTRIC BILL
HACK ONE: Batch and Shut Off Your Gadgets
• What to Auto-Shutdown When You’re Away or Unconscious •
Device Cost to Keep Plugged In (And Turned Off) For One Year
LCD Computer Screen $1.13
TV (CRT) $3.07
Game Console $1.01
Surge Protector $1.05
Digital Cable Box $17.89
Computer Speakers $1.80
DVR $36.0 8
DVD Player $1.55
Inkjet Printer $1.26
Coffee Maker $1.14
Microwave $3.09
MONEY YOU GET TO KEEP THIS YEAR.... $78.73
At $163 per month, the average U.S. homeowner’s utility bill is getting increasingly bloated. It’s not going to get any better thanks to new rounds of rate hikes being rolled out by big investor-owned utilities. Thankfully, there’s an ingenious way for you to keep that money for yourself (and maybe even game the system a little, too).
Energy meter devices like Kill-A-Watt are great, but do you really need a new gadget to tell you how much power your old ones are using? The low-budget hack is to batch all your stuff on power strips, then turn the strips off when you’re going to work or to bed. For the real win, you can automate. A new generation of programmable power strips like the Titan Controls Apollo ($25.75) and the Tripp Lite ($35.21) let you schedule regular, up-to-the-minute shutdowns using digital calendars.
This data represents energy use in kilowatt hours for a whole year, assuming the device is in off mode for 23 hours each day. Cost is based on the national average for residential grid power. If you live in a state with more expensive electricity, you’ll likely pay more just to keep those gadgets plugged in!