International research has shown that households can save as much as 10% of their annual electricity bill by reducing their ”phantom” power or standby power consumption. But South Africa has no research examining this energy- sucking phenomenon and shows little interest in the international community’s moves to curb standby power waste.
Phantom or standby power is the energy consumed by appliances while switched off or not performing their main function. It’s the power, for instance, that your cellphone charger draws when it is still plugged in but isn’t being used to charge your phone.
Andrew Etzinger, general manager of Eskom’s demand side management programme, estimates that between 5% and 10% of an appliance’s energy consumption takes place while it is in standby mode. But, says Etzinger, the standby power being drawn varies dramatically from appliance to appliance and, as a result, it is a difficult value to establish.
Professor LJ Grobler of North West University says that because theories on standby power vary, this might be why South Africa has ”neglected to research the issue”.
There is no reason it should not be addressed, says Peet du Plooy, trade and investment adviser at the World Wildlife Fund. He says attempts to curb standby energy waste are by no means a ”final solution” to saving energy, but it is one of the ”smallest and easiest” things to tackle and should be attempted.
With households consuming about 16,5% of national energy demand, South Africa could make dramatic power savings if consumers switched to more energy-efficient appliances. Countries, such the United States, Australia and the United Kingdom, have moved to address the amount of phantom power they consume.
The International Energy Association (IEA) says a European, Japanese, Australian or North American home contains on average about 20 devices constantly drawing power. These include, says the IEA, devices with remote controls, permanently illuminated digital displays, as well as many larger appliances, such as washing machines and air conditioners. As a result between 5% and 10% of total electricity and roughly 1% of global carbon emissions can be attributed to standby power, says the IEA.
In response to this needless waste of energy the IEA instituted the ”1-watt” plan as far back as 1999. The proposal sees participating countries aiming to lower standby power to below 1W in all products by 2010. Last year Australia announced it would regulate all appliances to meet the 1W standby target by 2012.
The government says about 10% of all energy used by Australian households is made up of standby power. This equates to about 750kg of greenhouse gas per house each year.
Australia uses the Energy Star rating programme, an international standard for energy-efficient equipment that was created by the US Environmental Protection Agency. The voluntary endorsement Energy Star label targets standby power consumption.
The US department of energy says that last year the Energy Star programme saved the country enough energy to power 10-million homes. US consumers are encouraged to investigate the energy efficiency of the products they buy through websites like mygreenelectronics.org. The site allows consumers to calculate how much energy average household appliances use while on, off and in standby mode. The site says an analogue television, even when off, still draws 4W of electricity. Video games, when idle, draw 36W and satellite decoders, when off, draw 14W.
Last year the BBC reported that standby power in the UK chewed 7TWh (terawatt hours) of power, translating into 800 000 tons of carbon released into the atmosphere. After the British government conducted its 2006 energy review, it found that 8% of domestic consumption was phantom power use. As a result it announced moves to outlaw standby buttons on TVs and video and DVD players to try to save energy, the Times reported.
In the commercial sector Etzinger gives a similar ballpark figure of 5% to 10% phantom power consumption per appliance. He points out, though, that much industrial and commercial equipment used in South Africa has a low-power mode, including office PCs.
”Industry motors that run all the time do consume energy, but there are new motors available with variable speed drives that adjust depending on the strain being placed on the motor,” says Etzinger.
US IT firm Verdiem has created the Surveyor software program that measures and reduces PC network energy costs. Verdiem says energy wasted by PCs that are on full power but not in use can cost a company $15 to $40 per PC annually. Through local partner Energy Cybernetics this software will be launched in South Africa before year-end, says the company’s managing director, Gustav Radloff.
Etzinger argues that people should interrogate sales people about the energy efficiency of the products they buy. ”Be informed as consumers,” advises Etzinger.
The department of minerals and energy affairs is instituting an appliance-labelling programme to help households become more energy efficient. Appliances are graded for energy efficiency from A to G, A being the most efficient and G being the most inefficient.
Alternatively, South Africans can simply turn off all unnecessary electrical appliances and go a long way towards saving power.