[thomaskkk]

I've just been faced with that question. From my point of view, it's just not worth it; you probably shorten the life of the product by repeatedly turning on and off the power strip and that would cause more damage. I'm just saying this because I just find it odd that a person does this but still uses a boat load of plastic bags for the bin and such. Anyone else got any takes on this?

[Wckcvhsg]

Your about half right.....but only because you bring up the recycling/Plastic bag part lol


Personally i used to turn off the TV from stand by when i heard how much it used. But when i actually found out for myself how much it uses i just turn it off at the switch when i can be arsed....like 70% of the time.

It's not the same as leaving the device on at all.

[thomaskkk]

The plastic bit...forget that for the moment, I brought that up because I sensed hypocrisy in his words. To be honest I think it might have occured because of the news that they're planning to introduce road tax and stuff for pollution, here in UK. IMO, the classification system seemed unfair...guess it got him thinking[rofl]

On the other hand, seriously speaking, I find that it's best to prolong devices lives and pay a little price for the convinence and make sure you do everything else right - BYOB, use energy saving lights (9W vs 60W and such...do the maths) & less junk >> small power savings.

[Wymdqcvb]

Most "new" items have a really low power usage when they are in standby. But, even if it is a low amounts of power, millions of people doing it, just think how much power that could use.

I turn everything in my room off, cept my digital box cause thats annoying and takes ages to boot up when switched on again.

[Wckcvhsg]

You know what....i never turn my digibox off either!

But then again it only uses 10 watts :P
If anyone argues with that, i used to have snakes and lizards. The total amount of power i used heating and lighting those animals was WELL OVER 10 watts.

[thomaskkk]

Same here with that blasted sky+ box but it isn't mine though

The only equipment that need power 24/7 in my possession are 2x routers (20W max for both), 1 server with an HD (NSLU2 with a WD passport so that's around 25W or so too). I also have my mobile phone charger always connected but not switched off as the power strip is a pain to reach (5W under load).

I wonder if there's an efficent way of getting the job done.[surrender]

[GlictStiply]

I never leave things on standbye, even when I leave my room for 10minutes I normally try to remember to switch the television properly off etc.

Most just seems lazyness, it's really not all that hard to flick a switch.

[thomaskkk]

I never leave things on standbye, even when I leave my room for 10minutes I normally try to remember to switch the television properly off etc.

Most just seems lazyness, it's really not all that hard to flick a switch.

I turn things off such as lights and such but w.r.t TV/Sky box, I just turn them all off via the remote as the powerstrip behind the cabinet is once again, a pain to reach.

[Wckcvhsg]

I used to turn my PC off all the time whenever i didn't use it for so much as 10 mins, but now all i do is turn the monitor off instead. I wonder if it's worth putting it in sleep mode instead


and yeh i have a router which is on 24/7 too!

[Gogogo]

some ythings should be turned off because they can't be trusted, like TVs. In the winter I leave most things in standby because I need to heat the house constantly anyway.

[Wckcvhsg]

I hope you turn your battery chargers off when they arn't in use

[thomaskkk]

I used to turn my PC off all the time whenever i didn't use it for so much as 10 mins, but now all i do is turn the monitor off instead. I wonder if it's worth putting it in sleep mode instead


and yeh i have a router which is on 24/7 too!

Desktops, I always configured them to go into S3 standby in 10 minutes (considering hibernate but HD space maybe an issue) and also kill the monitor and HD after 5 mins. My laptop, again, the same but even less when on battery.

A little [offtopic] but...

Since getting the little server though, the uptime of my laptop for example when downloading has dropped; my server does the download and I just turn on my laptop when it's done. E.g. I downloaded 4x *buntu (Ubuntu and Kubuntu and their alt CDs as well) and the server took on the task.

Did I mention that I also reduced my use of DVD-RWs and CD-Rs? [yes]. If my slug had a little more power, I'd try to figure out how to set it up so that my laptop can boot off of it to do the K/ubuntu install and save a bit of cash and also drawer space.

In the long run, I'll be saving a fair bit. So...

[Gogogo]

I hope you turn your battery chargers off when they arn't in use

I sit near the battery charger throughout the charging process to monitor the battery. If I have to go to the crapper for example I check the balance of the battery before I go so taht I can be confident that they're not going to go boom in the next five minutes. I also have remote controlled switches in the house, so when I go out I press "All Off" on the remote and it turns off most of the lights and the battery charger socket just in case I make a mistake.

[Wckcvhsg]

I was just joking

But that's cool how you have an "All off" switch!

[thomaskkk]

tah, are you using any home automation thingy for that all off switch by any chance? Also what do you mean by can't be trusted?

[Wckcvhsg]

Batteries (rarely) set on fire if they don't charge properly!

Or they get really really really hot!

[Gogogo]

No, just a remote that controls different recievers that plug into sockets around the house.

CRT TV's have a tendency to catch fire because dust collects inside them I think. It's recommended to always switch off the power completely when one goes to bed or leaves the house.

[thomaskkk]

Are these plugs self made? How much power do they draw to keep the rf-reciever on?

[Gogogo]

They are store bought. It doesn't say how much, probably ~1-2 W or thereabout, but any power they might use is converted to heat anyway so it doesn't matter.

[Meowmeowz]

They do reckon that 10% of a average houses annual electricity bill is spent on stanby home electronics.
I do think stanby only is a design flaw on alot of equipment, Something like the PS2 isnt to bad as it can be power from the stanby button or turned of properly using the rocker switch which i often do.