We have two computers that are turned on all the time.?

Question

How much difference in electricity use would it make if we shut them off when not in use,

Answer 1

power not much
the work computer has to do to restart
ALOT
start up options - hibernate - shut down -screen saver password
go to start at bottom of screen in blue bar (task bar)
go to control panel
choose power options
choose never to all listed there or the settings you want
choose apply then choose ok
if you want to hibernate
then choose hibernate
click advanced choose hibernate
then click hibernate
click enable hibernate
make sure you click apply and ok to everything
also click advanced tab choose show icon on desk top
then you can push power button
windows will close
push button again and you are where you was again
computer does not have to do all that work again
password protected screen saver is good
i use it my self
do this by
close all windows
right click on open area of desk top
choose properties
choose screen saver
choose password protect on resume
this will be your password as you are the administrator
be sure to set the time for screen saver to come on
or and
press the windows key logo + L at the same time located on the key bord
to lock it. when you unlock it will ask for password

Answer 2

It really depends on how much you use them. If its 1 hour a day, then leaving them running all the time is pretty wasteful.

Say each machine draws a consistent 250 watts. *2 is 500 watts. Leaving them on always would mean .5kWh each hour. Over 365 days, and say an average of 15 cents/kWh, that is 657 dollars over the year because of those computers running around the clock.

Of course 250 is probably quite high, as under non-use, a computer wont draw anywhere close to its peak power supply rating. You really have to watch out when you have the computers do things over night like run a distributed computing program. If they're just sitting, it probably wouldnt cost much.

Answer 3

I have over 90 computers, with two on always.

Those two never fail, running http://www.mepis.org

You must reboot any Windows system, as they are crap.
Memory leaks, locked up processes, that run upto 50X slower...

The majority of failures are when you turn OFF or ON any electrical device, even though run only on UPS power. The start up surges kill components and cost more than the power bill over a year of time!

Plus, running ktorrent, you DL and UL files continously, averaging more transfers, over time.

So, the cost per Byte is lowest, when systems are ON always! Plus, no lines, no waiting, to get mail!

Answer 4

Depending on the processor, it is about 107-151 watts per PC, excluding the monitor.
http://www.techreport.com/reviews/2004q4/pentium4-xe-3.46/index.x?pg=15

Including a 40W LCD monitor, that would be about 294- 382 watts for the 2 units. If idle for 12 hours in a day, that would amount to about 3.5 -4.6KW-hr or 1288 - 1673KW-hr/yr. Not much really to hurt the pocket. BUT if there are many who are doing it like you do, that would translate to several tons of CO2 greenhouse gases that could be a significant contribution to global warming.

Answer 5

Not much. You don't say where in the world you are and electricity is different in different countries (US has 110v, Australia has 240v for example) but your computer takes that and turns it into MUCH lower voltages to power the internal parts of your computer. Leaving your computer on is like leaving on a couple of flashlights and a remote control.

Keep in mind your monitor might draw harder.

Answer 6

Not really too much difference.