Do your PC Habits Get the 'Green' Light?

Energy saving ideas for PC use at home

The majority of us are guilty to some degree of being energy-wasteful when using our computers and other peripherals. Contribute to the saving of natural resources by making a few simple changes in the way in which you use your PC:

• Turn your computer, monitor, printer and other equipment off when not in use
• If your computer has to be kept on, then have the screen set to power saving, so that it turns off automatically after a set time (about 20mins). Power saving setting changes can be made and are usually to be found within the 'Display Properties' area. Refer to your operating system manual for further information on how to change these settings.
• Shut down your computer, monitor, and personal printer or place them in a standby mode when you leave the room for more than 30 minutes.
• Do not use screensavers as they continue to use the monitor at full power and do not conserve energy.
• Do not turn on your computer, monitor, or printer until you actually need to use them.
• Making sure PC scanners are turned off when not being used, as they use a lot of power when they are not being used.

A PC monitor switched off over night saves enough energy to microwave 6 dinners.

and at work...

• Give cleaners the authority to turn off any lights or PC screens that they find left on but not the PC base stations themselves.
• Make sure that power adaptors/transformers for equipment that isn't being used are unplugged or switched off. People leave their mobile phone chargers connected all day long, even when they are away from their desk.

On average offices waste £6,000 each year by leaving equipment on over weekends and bank holidays. Just getting your employees to turn off their monitors when they go home can make a big difference.

See the Light

• Lighting accounts for about 10 - 15 per cent of the electricity bill.
• £1.9 billion is spent annually on electricity for lighting for households.
• Electricity consumption for domestic lights and appliances has nearly doubled since 1970. It's set to increase by 12 per cent by the end of the decade. If every household installed three energy saving light bulbs, the energy saved in a year would supply all street lighting in the UK.

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