How much energy are we wasting while we sleep?

High up on my reading list for last week was the recent report by the Energy Saving Trust: Powering the Nation. In amongst some fairly common sense energy awareness info was something that felt like a genuine wake-up call. When you work in an industry like ours it gets harder and harder to be surprised by hints and tips, but this really caught my eye:

“On average, our study households spent between £50 and £86¹ a year on their appliances in a standby state. This compares with an observed, average annual electricity bill for all households monitored² of around £530. Consequently, we see that total standby consumption³ can amount to nine to 16 per cent of domestic power demand.”

It’s one of those ‘once you know it you wonder why you didn’t know it’. So simple. And so overlooked.

It shouldn’t be. With energy costs on the rise (again) the strain on our budgets and pockets is starting to show. But despite good intentions and a wealth of information out there it seems most of us are unaware of how much energy we’re wasting while we sleep. It stands to reason: just because we’re not doing anything doesn’t mean our home isn’t. But we’ve turned off the lights, switched off the telly and turned down the heating – so what now?

According to the Energy Saving Trust we can do a lot more to stop energy waste overnight by turning everything off at the wall or not leaving items on standby. Seems reasonable. But then, walking around the home making sure everything is properly switched off day in/day out could very easily be another chore I just don’t get round to.

What are we aiming for?
In an ideal world in an average home, the energy base rate would be around 200W, but for most of us it’s a lot more than that. So the notion that I could save anywhere from nine to 16 per cent of my energy bill just by unplugging and switching off at the wall every night is compelling. I’m just not sure I want to add it to my (already long) list of things I have to do as I head to bed.

So how do we take the effort out of energy saving? One way would be to invest in an energy monitor whose data you can view online and on your mobile.  Because most monitors show you what’s happening in the home and make your energy use visible. That’s a given. It’s when you start using the monitor as part of a connected system that the real benefits become obvious.

With smart plugs attached to appliances and controlled through an online account you can switch everything off at the wall with one click of your mouse. Even better, most systems support a mobile platform so you can take your smartphone up the stairs with you and turn everything off once you’re tucked up. That certainly appeals to me.

The joy of a connected system is that wherever you are, you can be absolutely sure that your home is at its true base energy rate, costing you less and less as you discover more and more ways to drive costs down. Judging by the intelligent monitoring systems out there, pretty soon I’ll be saving energy in my sleep.

Join the conversation
We have a dedicated Facebook page where you can compare your base rate with a community of like-minded people and find out even more ways to cut cost and energy use. www.facebook.com/GEO.GreenEnergyOptions

By Christine Rush, geo 

₁. Average minimum standby was measured at 343 kWh, costing approx. £50 annually. If this minimum average is taken to be a constant background standby consumption, average maximum yearly standby consumption was 591 kWh costing a maximum of £86 (if in standby 20/7) using an average electricity price (2011/12) of 14.5 pence per KWh.

₂. The study found the total average annual electricity demand for all dwellings monitored in the survey (excluding electrically heated homes) to be 3,638 kWh.

₃. Including both background standby, typically unavoidable electricity use inherent in a number of household products and avoidable standby consumption, e.g. turning products and gadgets off at the switch.