Question:
Unplugging my smart TV to save electricity? Will I need to re-tune it each time?
?
2013-01-24 16:13:44 UTC
Hi! My electricity bill seems to be huge and I don't know why as I'm very good about turning things off. However, I do have a large (new) smart TV on my wall, but I never unplug it or the DVD player as I am worried that I may have to re-tune/reconnect them if I turn them off. Does anyone have any advice on that? They are both LG devices and were installed for me when I bought them.

Also, I have many extension cords for electrical items, and one has switches on the box where you add the extra items. Are these cord extensions using up power on standby too. even if the items plugged in are not on? If I use the Extension which has switches, is this the same as turning something off at the mains or are the items on standby? Thanks!
Six answers:
anonymous
2013-01-25 02:47:33 UTC
On your television's handbook specifications page it shows two power consumption figures: one for ON when in use, and the other for STANDBY. You'll see that when in Standby it is using less power than a bicycle headlamp.



Over a year that is still a few of ££ of electricity so it's worth turning off and not leaving it in Standby overnight or when you are out.



The television set will not lose its tuning or set up information if you unplug it overnight. But it is better to use the socket switch rather then actually pulling the plug. There is always a risk of mechanical damage sooner or later if you are groping around behind a telly, or grovelling on a skirting board, trying to push a plug in. Find the tv power switch and use that instead (if it's on the side or just "around the corner" then put a small label on the front to show where it is).



Tv sets and video recorders are very good at memorising their configuration stuff, and some tellys can retain it for a few months without any power supply.



Instead of pulling the mains plug every night you should turn the appliance off at the mains on/off switch on the television itself. This will cut the power supply and so it consumes nothing. But it has the advantage that it's usually easier to reach this switch than the mains socket, and you won't risk damaging the plug.



If you are using an extension lead with switches on each socket of the "bar" then you can use these rather than pulling the individual plugs. But remember that if you switch off the mains socket that the extension lead is using then you will have removed power to all of it so you don't need to turn off each individual one on the "bar".



If your electricity bill is very huge then it's not likely that your television is doing this. Even a 50" telly doesn't consume more than a couple of 100W light bulbs, and it's only about 15-20W when on standby.



Most of your electricity consumption is by appliances that generate heat: cookers, hobs, electric fires, immersion heaters, electric shower heaters, and similar.

The next largest consumers are motors: freezers, fridges, washing machines, dishwashers, tumble dryers (note that the washing and drying machines also have heaters so they really suck up electricity when in use). A freezer that has lots of empty space will consume enormous amounts of electricity trying to freeze the air, so always keep yours full (even if it's only rolled up newspaper).

Old fridges also use more electricity because their pumps become inefficient.



Make sure that you always turn off lights. A lot of people are bad at this and turn on a light without turning it off again when they've finished what they're doing. Leaving lights on in empty rooms will use substantial amounts of electricity that will show up on your quarterly bill. The same applies to outside lights: unless they are actually being used by someone to navigate around your garden you should turn them off. (security lights should always be PIR operated).



Computers can use very significant amounts of power even when left "idling". An ordinary PC and its peripherals can consume the equivalent power of a 300-750w electric fire, that's a lot of "juice" over a day. So always turn it off if it is not doing something, or when you've finished with it unless you will be returning within half an hour. They don't mind being turned off and restarted.
?
2016-08-09 02:44:47 UTC
I've eradicated standby electrical energy in my house and it has saved me someplace between $50 and $70 every month. I turn off the lights every time i'm not instantly returning to the room. I unplug chargers when now not in use, that includes my laptop and toothbrush (I plug in in a single day as soon as per week) i have my television, vcr, stereo and sport programs on a energy strip with a switch, when the tv goes off the switch is flipped no extra stanby electrical energy. Any factor will a gentle or a clock is drawing electricity, I have no idea how you can tell about toasters or other home equipment, however if it is effortless I say just do it. There is a system thay which you could purchase to look how a lot electricity whatever makes use of. You plug it into the wall socket, then plug within the appliance and it offers you a reading. I've seen one known as a killawatt meter, I put a hyperlink to it.
LG WRman Greg
2013-01-24 20:44:41 UTC
Hi Mook, LG WRman Greg here,



Unplugging the LG TV and other electronic devices in the household can actually save up a bit on your electricity bill. Here are two report on the debunking of the myth that appliances use no energy when turned off: http://www.ehow.com/info_7758266_unplugging-devices-save-electricity-bills.html and http://www.consumerenergycenter.org/myths/appliances.html From these articles and the research I have done, simply turning off the TV does not guarantee that they will not further consume more power, so the best way to save up on your bill is to unplug them from the outlets. Now the safest way to do this is still turning off the devices (the TV, the DVD player...) completely and then unplugging them. Do not unplug them while they are still on, as it could possibly damage the internal component of the TV. Plug, over 80% of LG TVs, particularly the LM-series Cinema 3D Smart TVs, have been certified by the Energy Saving Trust to help you save money on your electricity bills so it's an additional support for your monthly electricity budget.



LG WRman Greg out!
Grumpy Mac
2013-01-25 09:19:38 UTC
Check your local Amazon. You can buy small devices called "Watt-o-Meters" that you put on the end of your extension cord, wait 24 hours and it will tell you how much power the devices attached have used up. Then you can move it to some other device to measure it's power use on standby for 24 hours.



Turning off the power to digital electronics is 'bad'. It can create a spike of power when you turn things on that can damage things. As you have found, the more sophisticated devices like your television revert to factory settings when you kill the power.



One advice - you can reduce your TV power usage by as much as 30% by properly setting the brightness. Pop a Pixar movie into your DVD player and go to the disk setup menu. You will find test-patterns and instructions for setting brightness, contrast and color.



As previous posters have said - your main power drain are heavy devices like ovens, refrigerators, fans, etc. Digital tends to NOT be power-sucking.



Hope this helps.
kg7or
2013-01-24 17:14:41 UTC
When the TV is plugged in but "off" (actually, in Standby), it's using only about one watt of power or less. That's about one-hundredth of the power used by a medium-size incandescent light bulb.



Power strips and surge protectors do not use power, regardless whether anything is plugged into them. They simply pass it on.
bbt91945
2013-01-24 16:21:01 UTC
Unplugging your tv is not really going to save you money on your electricity bill.


This content was originally posted on Y! Answers, a Q&A website that shut down in 2021.
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