STANDBY – It’s got to be easily turn off and on-able…

Energy rating labeling is to extend to other products in the UK. The kind of A-G energy ratings that we often only see when we buy a washing machine or freezer may become ubiquitous across a wide range of products including cars and especially Hi-Fi sets  and televisions. The TV manufacturers have been somewhat cagey in publishing their energy consumption figures and may drag their feet a little longer in making these official figures available. These same manufacturers are due to come under additional pressure to reduce the power consumption of electrical items when placed in the ubiquitous Standby mode (which I often think should have been labeled “Not really off..”)The International Energy Agency’s 1-Watt initiative got approval from last years G8 summit in Gleneagles. The agency says that if all OECD countries commit to standby consumption levels of no more than 1 Watt on all standby enabled devices then peak electricity demand would be reduced by 20GW, the equivalent output of twenty large power plants.

It’s been estimated that gadgets left in Standby mode in the UK are responsible for £740m of wasted energy each year alone and are responsible for 4m tonnes of excess carbon dioxide emissions. The biggest culprits are seen to be Stereo systems, responsible for 290m of wasted energy. These are followed by Video recorders (£175m), televisions(£88m), games consoles(£70m), computer monitors(£41m), DVD players (£19m), and set-top boxes(£11m).

Turn it off mate! I would if I could.