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Have you ever had an electricity bill that was much more than what you were expecting? There have to be ways you can knock down your electricity bill, right?
There are a few things that always need electricity like your fridge, clocks, etc. Are there other appliances that you can end up unplugging to save some money here and there?
Will unplugging appliances help you save any extra money?
There are several appliances that typically sit on your counter. You have a toaster, a microwave, a coffee pot, a blender, a crockpot, and more. Some of these may not be on your counter all the time, but a few of them are.
How much electricity do these appliances use?
Will you save money if you have a clean counter and put away your appliances after every use? If you make toast every morning, should you unplug your toaster? Will you save money by unplugging your toaster and storing it in a cabinet?
If you have a two-slice toaster, it can use anywhere between 700 to 1,000 watts. If you have a four-slice toaster, it can use anywhere between 1,200 to 2,500 watts. When the toaster is in use is when it uses the higher wattage. If you have a smart toaster that displays time, then your wattage usage will go up since there is a screen on all the time.
Exactly how much power a toaster uses depends on the type of toaster you have as well as how much you use it.
The cost for using your toaster regularly runs about 73 cents a month and almost $9 a year. You can leave your toaster on the counter as it doesn’t cost all that much to sit there.
To see the most popular toasters just click here.
Do Toasters Still Use Electricity When They Are Not Being Used?
Have you ever looked around your home and looked at all the items you have plugged in? You have lamps, TVs, entertainment systems, and maybe even couches plugged in in your living room. You have many kitchen appliances and a refrigerator plugged in in your kitchen.
You have lamps, charging devices, and possibly a TV plugged in in your bedroom. There is something plugged in using electricity in almost every room. Do these appliances use electricity even if they are off? When you are not using your toaster, does it still use electricity just because it is plugged in?
Your toaster is still using energy even though it is not in use. However the amount of electricity it is using while not being used is only a few cents a month. This is referred to as a “phantom load” or “vampire energy.”
Vampire energy is when an electronic appliance consumes energy even if it is turned off. Fortunately, the toaster doesn’t use that much energy and won’t cost very much sitting on your counter even when it is left plugged in.
What Appliances Use Electricity Even When They’re Off?
Electronics are the wave of the future. In order to use your phone, it needs to be charged. To charge your phone, you need electricity. To watch TV, it needs to be plugged in. To cook with your stove, it needs to be plugged in. To make sure your food doesn’t spoil, the refrigerator needs to be plugged in.
To make sure that you have clean clothes, the washer needs to be plugged in. Almost everything we do to survive and thrive is attached to electricity, this also means that the electric bill might run a little high.
Is there a way to reduce your electric bill? If your appliances are always using electricity, is it worth it to unplug some? What appliances use electricity even when they’re off and which ones use the most?
Most appliances and electronics that are plugged in in your home are always using at least a little bit of energy. Here are a few of the appliances in your home that are always “on” even when they are off.
- Entertainment Center: Almost everything you use for entertainment is always using electricity. When your TV is off, it is never really off. It is using energy to remember channel line-ups, language preferences, time, date, etc. Instead of inputting all your information every time you log in, your TV is always using electricity in the background. Video game consoles, cable/satellite boxes, and DVD players will also use energy even though they are off.
- Home Office Equipment: During the lockdown of 2020, many people found space in their homes to create a home office. Even if you are not currently working in your office, it is still using a lot of electricity. Typically, there are computers, monitors, printers, lamps, and power strips in the office. Anything in the office that has a digital display will always be using electricity. Though it may increase your electric bill, it might be worth it to leave your computer plugged in so you won’t have to enter in your information after every bootup.
- Kitchen Appliances: Another big offender of always using electricity is the kitchen. There are so many appliances that are always on in the kitchen. If you’re like the majority of people, you always leave your microwave plugged in. A few other appliances that are never unplugged are the stove and refrigerator. These three appliances are necessary to leave plugged in and unfortunately, do add up in your electric bill. However, there are other appliances in your kitchen that can be unplugged to save you some money. You can unplug your toaster, coffee pot, crockpot, blender, toaster oven, etc. Unplugging these “minor” appliances can help you cut down on electricity use in the kitchen.
- Chargers: It can be very convenient to have a charger plugged in in every room. However, the convenience of a charger in every room can add up. These chargers are constantly drawing energy as they are sitting there ready to be used to charge your device. You can unplug your charges and leave them on the countertop or junk drawer until you are ready to use them.
- Washer and Dryer: Washers and dryers are other culprits of using energy despite not being used. As much as you would want to save electricity by unplugging appliances, this may not be a battle worth fighting. You would need to move your washer and dryer to unplug it after every use. You would need to move them again to plug them in when you are ready to use them. Not many people really enjoy doing laundry; unplugging the washer and dryer would just add on to the already awful chore.
Final Thoughts
It doesn’t cost much to make your toast in the morning as a toaster doesn’t cost much to run. You can unplug your toaster after use to save some money, but a toaster won’t use much energy if you use it all the time or even if you leave it plugged in all of the time.