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Study shows turning off computer at night saves energy, big bucks
Posted by Melissa Burden | The Flint Journal April 13, 2009 14:53PM

GENESEE Michigan -- It's as simple as hitting a button. Doing it daily can save big bucks over the course of a year.

A study recently released by software company 1E and the Alliance to Save Energy found U.S. organizations waste $2.8 billion a year in energy costs by leaving computers on overnight.
Flint Journal extras Energy saving tips for homes and businesses

• Turn off copiers and computers at night and on the weekends.

• Set fax machines and printers for sleep mode when they aren't in use and network one printer for multiple users.

• Use ovens, dishwashers, washers and dryers and office equipment in the early morning or late evening.

• Replace older appliances with more updated and energy efficient models.

• Dial down your thermostat in the winter and dial it up in the summer to save on heat and air conditioning costs.

• Install a programmable thermostat.

• Use compact fluorescent light bulbs with the ENERGY STAR label.

• Air dry dishes in the dishwasher instead of using a drying setting.

• Plug electronics into power strips and turn off the power strips when the equipment is not in use.

• Lower the thermostat on your hot water heater to 120 degrees.

• Wash full loads of clothes and dishes only.

• Read more energy and money saving tips at www1.eere.energy.gov/consumer/tips and www.michigan.gov/mpscalerts.

Sources: Michigan Public Service Commission and U.S. Department of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy

While your business or household may not reap those eye-popping savings, making sure your computer is shut down at the end of the day and on the weekends can shave energy usage and money off your electricity bill.

About six months ago, Manufacturers Equipment & Supply Co. employees began shutting down the company's 50 computers six nights a week to save money, said Chris Schollar, manager of business performance for the Flint-based industrial parts distributor.

"We just basically made it part of the end of day procedure," he said. "Nobody had any problems with it."

On the one night the computers aren't powered off, an anti-virus check is done, Schollar said.

Schollar didn't have electricity savings figures available, but said he got the money-saving idea from reading a publication the company receives.

1E's Web site, 1e.com, has an online energy savings calculator where you can get an estimate on how much your business or household could save by powering down computers at night.

Even hitting the power button on one computer that you often leave on during the work week and sometimes over the weekend can save you $34 a year.

If you have 20 computers that are sometimes left on in the evening and over the weekend, the savings grows to $526 a year.

Luke Petherbridge, an environmental science senior at the University of Michigan-Flint, said he has been shutting down his computer at night for years.

"It does save you quite a bit of money and it also saves you quite a bit of computer problems," said Petherbridge, 23, of Grand Blanc.

Petherbridge, who is helping with an Earth Day event from 11 a.m.-2 p.m. Wednesday at the U-M Flint Pavilion, said he has practiced energy saving practices for years.

He said he shuts off lights when he leaves rooms, turns the TV off when it's not in use and uses compact fluorescent light bulbs.

"My energy bill is a lot lower than it used to be," he said.

And it's not just individuals and businesses looking to save energy and money.

School districts across Genesee County have partnered with energy consultants to learn how to save cash by turning lights out when leaving the classroom and turning back heating and cooling systems once students leave.

The Goodrich School District partnered in July 2008 with Energy Education Inc. and hopes to save $1 million in energy costs over four years.

Rick Bell, the district's energy manager and a business and computer science teacher at Goodrich High School, said until last July the district left computers in its labs running 24/7.

But by shutting the computers down at the end of the school day and over the weekends, the energy savings for one lab of 35 to 40 computers is about $230 a month, Bell said.

"It's a huge saving when you really calculate it out," he said.

The recent energy study found that almost half of U.S. workers who use a computer at work normally don't shut them down at night and 1E's Chief Executive Officer Sumir Karayi urges employers to set up procedures for turning off computers.

"A computer uses energy even when it appears to be idle," Karayi said a news release. "Shutting down PCs when not in use will help businesses to significantly reduce costs while preventing tons of carbon dioxide from being emitted into our atmosphere."

Businesses such as HealthPlus of Michigan Inc., based in Flint Township and Flint-based Citizens Republic Bancorp Inc., say their employees already power down computers at the end of the day.

"It is standard procedure for HealthPlus employees to shut down computers when leaving for the day to reduce power consumption," said Becky MacDonald, HealthPlus manager of network services and support.

MacDonald said the health insurer has about 500 computers companywide, but cost savings for turning them off at night weren't available.

The company also is increasing its electronic delivery of reports to reduce power used by printers, MacDonald said. Producing electronic reports to staff has cut printing costs by about $30,000 a year, HealthPlus says.

At Citizens Republic, the company doesn't have a formal policy but spokesman Brian Smith said it's common practice and employees are encouraged to shut their computers down at night.

"We've been doing it for many years," Smith said. "As far as savings, we can't put a number on it."

Citizens Republic also has lights that automatically shut off at night in parts of its downtown Flint headquarters and when light bulbs burn out, they're replaced with low energy bulbs, Smith said.

"We're always looking for ways to manage energy expenses," he said.