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Belkin power sockets plug power drain

Many of the appliances we have around the home continue to use electric power even after they are turned off. This power is called phantom or vampire power and can add up to about 5 percent of the power consumption in the home. This power consumption can be avoided only by removing the appliance plug from the power outlet. Since that is not very convenient, we tend to leave the appliances plugged in. Now a solution is at hand with the Belkin Conserve Power outlets. The Belkin outlet plugs into the wall socket and has a built-in timer that effectively disconnects the appliance from the power supply, eliminating phantom consumption. Three time settings provided are at 30 minutes, 3 hours or 6 hours on a slide button and a green LED lamp indicates that the timer has been turned on.

Conserve Energy with the Flip of a Switch

Any appliance that has a standby power mode or a clock or timer display uses power even when when turned off. The power drawn may only be a few watts. Since the Belkin switch costs $6.99 each, it may be good to use these only where the power savings are significant.

The first candidate for the Belkin power saving plug is the home computer system. Especially if you use a desktop, the power consumption from the monitor and the printer can add up to 30 or 40 watts even in the standby mode. Typically, you may wish to leave the computer in the sleep mode, but turning off the monitor and the printer will save power. Besides the power saving, this is also a good precaution against fires and short-circuits. The Belkin switch on these devices can be set to 30 minutes. Even if your computer usage session lasts longer, the switch on the Belkin can be restarted. The time setting can also be increased by moving the setting button. The Microwave oven, the dishwasher and the clothes dryer are typical home appliances that are used for short periods of time but left plugged in all the time.

The major power savings will, however, come from a power intensive appliance like the bathroom water heater. The electric heater is controlled by its internal thermostat to turn itself on when the water temperature drops 5 to 7 degrees below setting. These heaters keep the water at the set temperature all day, when the usage of the water may only be at certain hours in the morning and the evening. If this electric heater is connected through a Belkin switch with, say, a 3 hour time setting, the water heater will turn off and save energy through the day. A 30 minute setting will be too small to heat cold water to the required temperature. In a typical home, there would be two or more bathrooms, each with a water heater. The Belkin switch can be placed near the bathroom light switch so that the heater can be turned on when needed.

An innovative alternative use for the Belkin plug would be to limit the time of use of gaming consoles in teen age children’s rooms.

Belkin is a 1000 employee and $1 billion corporation headquartered in Los Angeles. It makes a wide range of accessories for lighting, power supply and computers and its products are available through electrical and electronics retailers and also through mail order websites

Via: jetsongreen

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