Ghost consumption is something that is always present in our homes. It can be a problem for electricity consumption and should be controlled. What can you do to avoid problems? We are going to tell you how you can see if you are wasting electricity at home and be able to have a control to try to lower the electricity bill each month. You will see that simply by taking into account some tips, you can save money monthly.
It is estimated that phantom consumption can be over 10% of the total bill. Logically it will depend on each case, but you can get an approximate idea. Can you imagine paying 10% less each month on your electricity bill? As simple as trying to end this phantom consumption.
Calculate phantom consumption
Phantom consumption is, for example, leaving the television on Stand By. The red LED on all day will consume electricity. Also chargers, electrical appliances that you have connected even if you do not use them, the microwave clock, etc. There are many small devices that, added together, can cause consumption to increase.
But how can you calculate your phantom consumption and see if it is a lot or a little? It is very simple, although for this you will have to access consumption in real time. You can do it through the application of the energy distributor, such as Endesa (it is not necessarily the company with which you have contracted the electricity). You can also do it from the distributor’s website.
This will give you access to the online meter and be able to see, in real time, how much energy you are consuming at any given time. For example, maybe you are consuming 0.10 kWh, 0.50 kWh, 1.50 kWh, etc. It will depend on the devices you have connected at that time. If, for example, you have an oven on, logically it will be higher.
To calculate the phantom consumption, the idea is that you turn off all the devices that you may have on, such as the television, a computer, the lights… Basically, leave the house as if you were going out for a few hours. Once you do that, you can look at the counter online and see exactly how much you’re consuming. We recommend that you do it several times and thus avoid errors, such as the refrigerator starting to work right at that moment, etc.
Once you have written down the figure, such as 0.12 kWh, what you are going to do is lower the circuit breakers except for the one in the kitchen. Basically, you are going to turn off everything you have in your home, except the refrigerator, which would always be on. If you have the television on Stand By, it will turn off completely. Same with potential chargers etc. Again, you will see what the consumption is in real time.
Perhaps you have seen that at that moment the consumption in real time is 0.04 kWh, for example. You simply have to subtract and you will have a difference, in the example we have given, of 0.08 kWh. Has it been too much? Then you will have a higher phantom consumption. That will already tell you how much you could save on your electricity bill if you take phantom consumption seriously.
Cut out unnecessary spending
So what can you do to end that phantom consumption? A good idea is to simply completely turn off everything you don’t use. For example, disconnect the television from the current and not leave it on Stand By, unplug the microwave, chargers or any device you may have.
It is also good to use power strips and if they are smart, better, since you can control each outlet separately and without having to be at home. They are very useful for suddenly disconnecting various devices, such as television, speakers, video players and other chargers that you have in the same area.
In short, as you can see, phantom consumption can become important in a home. It is key that you take certain measures to reduce the cost of electricity. You can calculate exactly how much energy you’re wasting and that will help you check out some gadgets that you can adjust.
