Green Guide: Saving on Energy Bills

In most of the developing countries and even in some of the developed countries, the primary source of energy are fossils with coal being the most widespread sadly. Coal as we all know is mostly made of carbon which is the essential ingredient for one of the most notorious greenhouse gases, carbon dioxide.

If you believe in numbers as I do, then by the end of this section you will see a clear benefit in using energy efficient appliances. In order to further discuss the consumption of energy and environmental affects, let us start from the basics. The simplest way to describe the consumption of energy is by taking the example of an average household incandescent 60 W light bulb and comparing it with a 13 W CFL (Compact Florescent Lamp) that has the same brightness level.

An average 60 Watts incandescent light bulb (assuming it is on 24/7) consumes around 60 W * 24 hours or 1.440 kWh (1440 W) in a day. In a year it would consume around 1.440 kWh * 365 days or 526 kWh. Now, according to sources one metric ton of coal produces around 2,710 kWh of energy. Therefore, to find out how much coal is burned to light a bulb we simply divide, 526/2,710 metric tons.

This means that an average light bulb would require the power plant to burn .19 tons or 190 kilograms of coal per year. This is a phenomenal amount of coal! How bad exactly is it? Well, we know that one metric ton of coal produces around 2.9 metric tons of carbon dioxide, then .190 tons of coal would produce around .190*2.9 tons or 550 kilograms of carbon dioxide a year!. You might ask, how can something that weighs one ton as solid produce 2.9 tons of gas? This is where a bit of chemistry kicks in. In order to produce carbon dioxide 1 atom of carbon and 2 atoms of oxygen combine (CO2). Since the atomic weight of carbon is 12 and that of oxygen is 16, the ratio of carbon to oxygen would equate to 1:2.667. Because coal is mostly (but not entirely) carbon, this means that one kilo of carbon would combine with 2.667 kilos of oxygen in the air to produce 3.667 kilos of carbon dioxide. Let's not venture too deep into science now, its sufficient to know that it is possible for a solid to gain weight as it turns into a certain gaseous form.

Now let's compare these numbers with an energy saver 13 W CFL that has the same brightness of 800 lumens as a 60 W incandescent bulb. Following the similar calculations as above, we can determine that 13 W CFL would consume 113 kWh of energy and 41 kilograms of coal a year. 41 kilograms of coal would produce 118 kilograms of carbon dioxide a year, only a fraction of its incandescent counterpart!

So which one is better? Well, you do the math. If you still need a bit more convincing how about this. An average 60 W incandescent light bulb would cost you around $98/year in U.S (assuming the average 18.5 cents/kWh). An average 13 W CFL, on the other hand, would only cost you $21/year. Neat eh? Now obviously the light bulbs will not be on 24/7. But still, you get the point.

To give you an insight over how much electricity your household appliances consume check out their wattage ratings. The rating is usually provided in kWh, this is the measure of the amount of power used in an hour by a particular appliance. An air condition unit that has a rating of 500 watts would use .5 kW in an hour, 1 kW in 2 hours, and 1.5 in 3 hours. Your is energy consumption is charged by kilowatt-hour (kWh). If the cost of electricity is 15 cents per kWh in your region, then your 500 watts ac unit will cost you 7.5 cents per hour. If your PC wattage is 400, you will be charged 15 cents after two and a half hours. You can find a great comprehensive list highlighting general house hold appliances and their wattage ratings Here!. Some of the more general appliances and there energy consumption is as follows:

Central Air Conditioning Unit (2.5 tons) = 3500 Watts
Window AC Unit (medium) = 900 Watts
36" Ceiling Fan (High Speed) = 55 Watts
Clothes Dryer = 4400 Watts
Dishwasher (Heats water) = 3600 Watts
Refrigerator = 700 Watts
PC = 250 Watts
Toaster = 1300 Watts
Microwave Oven = 1400
Electric Oven (350 F) = 2000 Watts
Water Heater (Electric) = 3800 Watts

To find great tips and information on reducing the consumption of energy, you can check out the following links:

A friend of mine recently started switching everything off and unplugging them instead of leaving them on standby, and apparently he saw a difference of more than $25/month in his energy bill.So what are phantom loads? Many household appliances continue to draw power even while they are switched off, or in standby mode . This phenomenon is called the phantom or the vampire loads.

Daily household appliances such as cell phone chargers, desktop computers, DSL Modem, coffee makers, set-top boxes, Speakers, television sets. DVD Player, microwave oven, garage-door openers, and all the general appliances connected to power sockets draw electricity in ideal state or even when switched off. These suckers can consume an average of $250 electricity a year. The link below shows a great chart that summarizes the energy consumption for household appliances in normal, ideal and switched off states.

The best way to neutralize the phantom loads is by using a power strip and plugging all the components of a single interface. For example you could have all the components of the computer such as CPU, monitor, printer and scanner plugged in to a single power strip. Similarly you could have all the components of your home entertainments system, such the TV set, DVD player, speaker, and gaming console plugged into an other. In this way you could easily neutralize the phantom load of one interface by just "unplugging" one of the power strip. Also remember to buy energy star appliances as they reduce the affect of phantom loads.

You can easily monitor the power consumption of your devices using a watt-hour meter. Watt-hour meter is a simple device that can help you a lot in killing the phantom loads. You just simply plug a device into the watt-hour meter and plug the watt-hour meter into a power socket. The display on the watt-hour meter will show you the power consumption of that particular device. You can even get a watt-hour meter that monitors the power consumption of the entire house.