Striving4Zen

Turn It Off — While this is an incredibly simple thing to do, it can save a huge amount of electricity over the course of a year. Many people have been reluctant to turn off their computer because they believe that it’s bad for the computer or that it will actually use more energy in the long run. Neither one of these myths are true. Computers are designed to handle more on/off cycles than you will possibly use in the life of the machine, and the energy surge required to boot up your computer is equal to about the same amount of energy used to run your computer for 3 minutes. If you simply can’t bear to turn your computer off due to long booting times, put your computer in sleep mode when you’re not using it, or at least turn off the monitor at night. If you’re forgetful, a program called Local Cooling can be set to automatically put your computer in sleep mode, turn it off, or turn off the screen.

Don’t Use Screen Savers — There was a time when screen savers were actually a practical thing, designed to protect the phosphorescent lining of monochrome monitors. Most new monitors are LCD, and if you use a screen saver on an LCD monitor it can actually reduce the lifespan of the monitor. So that slide show of your dog in various costumes may be cute and funny, but it isn’t helping your monitor nor is it helping the environment. Keeping your screen active and moving uses more energy than setting your monitor to go blank or shut down when your computer is not in use. In some cases, screen savers can actually prevent your computer from going into the power saving mode.


Thanks Frugalist!

Labels: computer, save energy, tips