Vampire
electricity is the belief that cords left plugged into outlets, even when not
connected to a device or being used at all, are still sucking electricity and
raising electric bills. Students don’t need to purchase expensive power strips
advertised to protect against the sucking of electricity.
Myth-busters,
a television show dedicated to solving life’s myths, looked into this. Using
Kill-A-Watts (a device placed between an outlet and a plug to measure the wattage
being used), the Myth busters measured the wattage on a wireless phone charger,
and a MacBook Pro power adapter. With the devices not plugged into the
chargers, the vampire electricity myth proved to be false.
With heating apartments and houses, there are proven ways
to keep electricity bills as low as possible. Covering all bare floors with
carpeting or rugs adds to heat retention, especially if little to no floor
insulation.
Lowering
temperature on heating devices when leaving the house is another way to lower
the use of electricity.
Always leave an open space for heating to work and move
throughout the house; do not cover air vents with drapes or shades so that the
air is able to not work as hard to heat the entire space. Opening blinds during
the day can help to heat spaces using sun’s natural heat.
