Tom Witkin

Marketing and Collaboration, Department of Energy Resources (DOER) 

View Tom's Bio

Did you get some sort of new electronic gadget as a holiday gift? If you did, you have a new, easy opportunity to save energy in your home.

The typical American household owns about 25 pieces of consumer electronics. Turns out that these fun electronic widgets, especially the older ones, can be real electricity hogs. Hopefully, your newest gifts are better about burning fewer electrons than similar products from not so long ago. If not, there are simple steps you can take to reduce their electricity appetite. Check out an informative, fun-to-read blog by Peter Lehner of the National Resources Defense Council: Pulling the Plug on Energy Waste: A Guide to Efficient Consumer Electronics. 

And, if you want to learn more about practical ways to save energy and money that don't relate to the holy grail product that integrates your computer/library/phone/music/etch-a-sketch into one tool, check out this Energy Smarts blog and tips.

Tags: consumer electronics, energy efficiency, gadgets, saving electricity