Putting a stake through vampire electronics - electric toothbrush sale

WASHINGTON (CNN)--
The festival of buying big electronics may remind consumers of Halloween, not Christmas. Think vampires.
"All devices have the potential to become vampire devices because when they are in standby mode, it is actually a feature of sucking out extra power," said Assistant USA . "S.
Alexander Carlner, Minister of Energy
Many appliances require a power supply even if it looks completely off to keep the electronic key pad ready.
Alan Mel of Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory has been working on vampire electronics for many years.
"Every family now has 10 to 50 of these products, which adds up to a month of your electricity bill," he said . ".
We plugged a DVD player that didn't even play the DVD into the watt-hour meter, showing that it consumed 11.
Power on 32 watts.
"I have turned it off and now its drawing is 6 watts," Maier said . ".
Because for the demand of "instant on", closing does not mean closing.
"These electric toothbrushes don't consume too much power," he said, and even Mel would be surprised.
But plug in that meter. . .
"Oh, I'm wrong," said Mel.
"This electric toothbrush is about 1.
8 W constant. . .
As a result, energy consumption is about $2 per year.
Mel's home computer is right next to him.
But its power is 65 watts.
Do you know the two small dots on your microwave?
"These two points are the reason for the three watts," Mel said . ".
President Bush ordered the federal government to buy products with no more than 1 watt of spare power.
"We expect our institutions to get rid of these vampires," Bush said in 2001 . ".
California banned the sale of more than 3 watts of equipment.
But nationally, Catherine Kennedy of the Natural Resources Conservation Commission said, "The federal government has not yet set standards for these, and we need some new laws to make this happen.
Manufacturers believe this will increase the cost of the product.
Energy experts recommend simply unplugging the appliance or using 21st century garlic or stakes: a power strip that can turn off several vampires at the same time.
Your electricity bill may cost a lot of money.
Experts say keeping the appliance in "standby" mode can use a month's power.