When it comes to your electric bill, there are plenty of hidden “energy vampires” that are adding to your consumption. Possibly without your knowledge. Some households are going so far as to install a smart energy monitor to keep track of their energy consumption. But even without investing in smart home tech, you can take account of general electricity costs and what your TV adds to your bill.
To put it in perspective, the average no-frills TV costs roughly $30-50 per year to power.
Newer, Wi-Fi-enabled smart TVs with ultra-high definition (UHD) are definitely affecting your energy bill: CNN found that in some cases, a UHD TV will raise the cost to power a similarly sized TV by almost 47 percent yearly.
So, How Can You Enjoy the Latest Technology Without Significantly Adding to Your Bill?
You can start by turning off the “quick start” booting option on your smart TV. It may be handy to automatically have your TV turn off, but this is burning up energy in the background and can add significantly to your costs.
You can also make sure the automatic brightness control (ABC) feature is set to ON. This is an important feature in TVs that will help save energy. Most 50”-55” 4K TVs use about 50 percent more power with ABC off, leading to a surprising bill at the end of the month. TVs from some manufacturers use nearly 64 percent more energy with ABC set to OFF. This can translate to bill that could be well over a hundred dollars per year in electricity just for your Wi-Fi-enabled UHD TV.
A TV that has an Energy Star designation rates the annual energy draw of the appliance and converts it to a projected annual dollar expense. On average, Energy Star TVs use 30 percent less energy than similar models that are non-Energy Star.
So How Does the Energy Star Rating System Work?
There is a star level on every box, from 2-star to 6-star. Consumers save about 20 percent on energy cost per star rating. Here’s a hypothetical example with some easy math: going from using a device or appliance with a 2-star rating at nearly $500 per year in energy usage can be lowered to $300 if you purchase a 4-star Energy Star-rated device or appliance instead.
It’s clear that a simple diagnosis of your TV’s energy rating can save you money, especially if you’re shopping for a new one. But you should also consider an electrical safety inspection by an expert such as Mr. Electric. As the newest technically advanced home devices like TVs and game systems require more energy, some safety hazards could arise if your home is older or about to have a major renovation. Schedule a service with Mr. Electric today.
