Banish Office Vampires
Posted on October 22, 2009
Filed under Green
The odd, saving grace of the state’s budget crunch is that we’ve all become much more aware of the resources used in the office. No more printing those e-mails, meeting notes, or…anything. While reading a document on a computer screen has taken some practice, in the long run we will probably not go back to wasteful printing, even after this fiscal crisis.
According to Planet Green, an eco-lifestyle network from Discovery (Discovery Channel) Communications, not only does saving energy save money, but it turns out that a greener office is a healthier and more productive place to work.
So this might be a good time to “go green” in your office. But how? This is the first of a two-part series on easy ways to get started.
Turn Off Electronic Equipment
Planet Green’s article, How to Go Green: At Work , recommends you set your computer to low energy settings from the Power Options Properties in the Control Panel. Also turn off the computer when you leave for the day and on weekends. Turn off lights, printers, monitors, projectors and other electronic devices when they are not in use—even during the week.
Unplug Electronic Equipment
To take this a step further, pull the plug on these devices to conserve even more energy. According to a 2002 report from the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, “Lopomo [low power mode] energy use is responsible for about 10% of total electricity use in California homes. To make sure that…[electronic appliances]…are all the way off, pull the plug rather than flipping the switch on the machine.”
A great article on the How Stuff Works Web site explains that by pulling the plug on electrical devices, you can reduce the amount of “vampire power” an electronic device pulls just by being plugged in to the wall outlet. For example, a cell phone charger continues to pull electricity if it is plugged in, even if there’s no cell phone recharging. Computers, TVs, appliances—most any electrical device continues to pull electricity from the outlet—even if it’s turned off!
Turn Off Devices from a Power Strip
But before you spend time crawling around your office turning devices on and off each day, consider plugging devices into a power strip and simply press the OFF button on the power strip when you leave for the day. This not only turns off the appliance, but keeps the energy-sucking “vampires” from running up the electric bill.
So for an eco-friendly office, turning off unused appliances is good. Unplugging these devices is even better and avoids wasted standby, or “vampire,” power. Plugging devices into a power strip and turning this one device on and off as needed is a convenient way to conserve the electricity use in your office.