Pay attention to that humming sound: that's your computer sucking up energy.
Whether you work in an office or at home, powering a computer is probably using more electricity than you think, and contributing to your personal greenhouse gas emissions, particularly when the electricity is generated with fossil fuels like oil or coal.
Research shows most people leave their computer on throughout the entire business day, including lunchtime and meetings, but only use their computers an average of four hours a day.
Plus, running a computer continuously at full power generates heat, which causes indoor temperatures to rise and increases the demand for air conditioning in the summer months.
If you work from home, consider that your network of home computers, monitors and printers can use more than 200 kilowatts per year per computer.
Tally how much time one computer is on each day and multiply that by its energy usage. Now take a look at your electricity bill and see how the costs of staying connected can add up.
Going on standby can be good
Reduce your energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions by enabling the monitor's energy-saving features when you are away from your computer for a short period of time. In "stand by" mode (also called sleep mode, hibernate or power down mode), your computer typically drops to 50 per cent of its maximum power consumption.
Set your system to turn off your monitor after five to 10 minutes, and to put your computer into sleep mode after 15 to 20 minutes. You can also find third-party programs that will actually turn off your computer for you when you are not there.
If your computers must be left on after-hours, turn off the monitor. This will not affect the programs you are working on. Monitors consume over 75 per cent of the total energy required to run a computer.
More energy tips for the work or home office:
. Turn off lights and equipment when a work area isn't being used.
. Buy a monitor that is the right size for your needs. Generally the larger the monitor, the more energy it consumes, with the exception of an LCD monitor.
. Print on the opposite side of used printer paper for drafts and personal communications.
