Gadgets the Big Energy Users

... households could save up to £37 pounds a year on their energy bill by turning devices off at the wall.

A report by The Energy Saving Trust (EST) entitled "The Ampere Strikes Back" has suggested that by 2020 hi-tech gadgets such as flat-screen televisions, computers and other gadgets will be responsible for nearly half of a typical households energy consumption. The indication is that these hi-tech consumer electronics will usurp household lighting and kitchen appliances as the biggest drain on the home users

energy use. The EST is a was set up by the government in 1993 to to help cut greenhouse gas emissions, tackle climate change promote energy conservation.

The report points to the rise in the numbers of single person households aligned with more affordable and a wider variety of gadgets means that the average household will have more "energy hungry" devices than they would have over 20 years ago. In 1982, only three percent of homes had a pc (or equivalent) compared to 60 percent today. Also households are more likely to have more than one of each device e.g. a TV (often the energy sapping large screens sets) for each room, more than one stereo etc.

The EST report stated that modern day devices need more power to run than previous models for example some digital radios use as much as four times power compared to traditional analogue sets. The report also indicated the prevalence of leaving gadgets "on standby" rather than switched off (some gadgets don't even have an off switch) is a big factor in the "great energy sap". This is of cause for concern as the report suggests that by 2020, televisions on standby will be responsible for 1.4 percent of all domestic electricity consumption! To this end the EST suggest that households could save up to £37 pounds a year on their energy bill by turning devices off at the wall.