Kill A What?
I had no idea that you could check out a Kill A Watt Dectector from our local library until I read about it this morning in The Athens Banner-Herald. What a cool idea. Apparently, libraries across the state now allow patrons to check out the Kill A Watt Energy Detector Toolkit and calculate the annual costs of running home appliances.
The hand-sized gadget is plugged in between the outlet and any appliance or power cord and measures how much energy the machine uses. Officials with the Georgia Environmental Facilities Authority and the library system hope curious people will visit their local libraries to take advantage of the detector, which may encourage Georgians to decrease their energy use.
Electronic devices suck power from the outlet even when the machine is turned off, and energy experts are starting to point to that so-called "vampire load" as the next place to save energy, the article points out.
"Anything that lights up or has a clock on it - like a VCR - is drawing power," said Bonnie Jones, public relations director for Jackson Electric Membership Corp. "Even though your computer is in sleep mode, it's costing you money."
Read more about this free device HERE and go grab one at The ACC Library and give it a try!
28 September 2009
