Additional Information
How much money can you save???
Rule of thumb: 1W = 1.00$ per year. That is, for every Watt of reduction in electricity usage, you save $1 per year on your electrical bill.*
The precise total of electricity and money that the UFO helps you save depends on what appliances are powered with the UFO, the type of appliance and its usage. The main way the UFO cuts consumption is by using automation to make sure that there is no standby power consumption.
According to a 2004 report prepared by the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory for the California Energy Commission, the amount of electricity used in standby power in California homes, is more than 15% of total consumption.**
In addition to reducing standby power, the UFO helps you save energy by automatically turning appliances on only when needed or to start them during off-peak hours.
While home monitors and smart meters can only guess the amount of savings, with the UFO you know exactly how much you save for each specific appliance. Read some typical uses of the UFO Power Center below, and see how you can attain even greater energy savings.
** "Developing and Testing Low Power Mode Measurement Methods", September 2004, California Energy Commission, prepared by Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory.
Energy Savings in home Entertainment Systems
The UFO Power Center provides an elegant and effective solution to mitigate the passive and active standby power problem. It is possible to cut energy usage in home entertainment system by more than 50%, without changing any viewing habits or having to perform daily on/off operations manually.
Below is an example of savings in a home entertainment system.
Baseline Weekly Energy Costs
The baseline was obtained over a week of normal watching pattern, including an evening out, without any automation settings in the UFO. After one week, the average daily consumption was of 4.18 kWhr or $0.75 (at $0.18 per kWhr).
Using Automation
The measures taken to drastically cut energy consumption involve the simple observation that there is no reason to keep the appliances turned on when there is nobody at home. However, since there is a TiVo, the schedule has been set around the evening times of prime television rather than strict home occupancy. The first thing was then to set a Schedule for the other set-top boxes sockets to be powered on only from 6pm to 11pm.
The second saving measure is about reducing the time the AV Receiver/Mixer and the TV stay powered on. Unlike the TiVo, there is no reason to turn on either one unless somebody is watching. This makes the two perfect to use in sockets with Roles. I set the socket TV as Master with a low threshold of 2 Watts, and the AV Mixer as Slave.
Calculate the Savings
After adding the simple automation settings described above, I used the home entertainment system for another week and then checked the weekly consumption again. The average daily energy consumption is now of 2.1 kWhr a day or $0.37 (at $0.18 per kWhr) which is 50% of the energy used without a UFO.
What people are saying…
“The UFO Power Center, besides being the coolest and most versatile power strip I've ever owned, has also taught me precisely how much energy various things around my house use. The software is really neat and makes the unit easy to demonstrate to friends. That is part of the design, energy conservation as a conversation starter. You can use the UFO Power Center to evangelize on behalf of Mother Earth.”
— David Coursey
“We use the UFO to monitor energy use in our conference room. We have a computer, large monitor, and lighting plugged into the Energy UFO. It's great to be able to see the energy used by each device and take steps to modify our energy use when necessary.”
— Santa Barbara Community Environmental Council
“The EnergyUFO app for iPhone is really the best non-game app ever!”
— Silvio Revelli
“I have a normal entertainment setup, with LCD TV, stereo, DVD/VCR combo, Wii, and cable box. Turns out that it burned about 35 watts 24 hours a day. My family uses it only 4 hours a day. So I set a simple schedule on the UFO, within 10 minutes of setting it up, turning things off at night and on when we're home. I saw the results immediately.”
— Ken Novak
“To make improvements in efficiency, first you have to find, measure and monitor the inefficiencies. And to do this, you need technology.”
— "Sixth Wave" by James Bradfield Moody and Bianca Nogrady
Use the UFO Power Center in your Home Entertainment System
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Table 1: Standby Power of Common Appliances*
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|
Appliance
|
Average (W)
|
Min (W)
|
Max (W)
|
|
AV Mixer
|
44.20
|
14.20
|
87.40
|
|
LCD TV
|
1.60
|
0.20
|
18.40
|
|
Projection TV
|
31.40
|
0.80
|
90.50
|
|
Plasma TV
|
1.40
|
0.10
|
3.20
|
|
DVD Player
|
8.80
|
3.80
|
19.20
|
|
DVR
|
27.80
|
18.40
|
38.80
|
|
Set Top Box
|
17.80
|
14.50
|
22.20
|
|
Home Theatre
|
24.10
|
6.00
|
51.00
|
|
Subwoofer
|
11.00
|
2.10
|
24.70
|
|
Stereo System
|
16.50
|
3.50
|
39.40
|
|
Media Center PC
|
86.90
|
61.90
|
111.90
|
Note: this is consumption in standby, when the appliance is NOT in use. Consumption while in use will be considerably higher.
* "Appliance Standby Power Consumption: Store Survey 2005/2006", Ministerial Council of Energy of the Australian National Framework for Energy Efficiency and the New Zealand National Energy Efficiency and Conservation Strategy.
Use the UFO Power Center in your Home Office
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Table 2: Standby Power of Common Appliances*
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|
Appliance
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Average (W)
|
Min (W)
|
Max (W)
|
|
Fax/Copier
|
8.60
|
3.20
|
19.30
|
|
HD/CPU Box
|
4.20
|
4.10
|
4.30
|
|
Laptop
|
1.40
|
0.80
|
2.30
|
|
LCD/CRT Monitor
|
36.40
|
14.80
|
60.90
|
|
PC Speakers
|
7.50
|
2.40
|
9.90
|
|
Laser Printer
|
8.20
|
2.30
|
22.40
|
|
Portable Heater
|
1.70
|
0.70
|
3.00
|
|
Power Supply
|
0.70
|
0.00
|
2.80
|
Note: this is consumption in standby, when the appliance is NOT in use. Consumption while in use will be considerably higher.
* "Appliance Standby Power Consumption: Store Survey 2005/2006", Ministerial Council of Energy of the Australian National Framework for Energy Efficiency and the New Zealand National Energy Efficiency and Conservation Strategy.
Use the UFO Power Center in your Kitchen
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Table 3: Standby Power of Common Appliances*
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|
Appliance
|
Average (W)
|
Min (W)
|
Max (W)
|
|
Microwave Oven
|
3.00
|
0.00
|
5.50
|
|
Handheld Vacuum Cleaner
|
7.40
|
1.50
|
31.50
|
|
Espresso Machine
|
3.60
|
2.90
|
4.10
|
|
Toaster
|
0.30
|
0.00
|
2.30
|
|
Dishwasher
|
2.70
|
0.40
|
7.40
|
|
Washing Machine
|
0.90
|
0.40
|
11.80
|
|
Top Loading
Washing Machine
|
3.20
|
0.80
|
5.20
|
|
Dryer
|
5.50
|
2.00
|
9.60
|
|
Juicer
|
0.30
|
0.00
|
4.80
|
Note: this is consumption in standby, when the appliance is NOT in use. Consumption while in use will be considerably higher.
* "Appliance Standby Power Consumption: Store Survey 2005/2006", Ministerial Council of Energy of the Australian National Framework for Energy Efficiency and the New Zealand National Energy Efficiency and Conservation Strategy.
Frequently Asked Questions….
Q Is a subscription required or is there any additional costs?
There is no subscription and no additional costs.
Q How much can I save?
The total amount of electricity and money that the UFO can help you saving depends on what appliances are powered with the UFO, the type of appliance and its usage. The main way the UFO cuts consumption is by using automation to make sure that there is no standby power consumption. A saving of $50 per year is easily achievable with a mix of home appliances.
Q Is a PC needed?
There is no need for a PC to use the UFO Power Center. Compare the UFO with other products that require your PC to be always on.
Q Why is the UFO better than a home monitor or a smart meter?
With the UFO you see what you are saving a socket at a time. A home monitor or a smart meter can only give you at best an indication, not a measure, of how much energy a home appliance is using.
Q What do I need to start using the UFO?
You will need a Wi-Fi access point and either an iPhone, iPod Touch or iPad with the free EnergyUFO application.
Q Do I need an Internet connection?
An Internet connection is not necessary. If your home network is connected to the Internet through a router, the UFO Power Center will send anonymous energy consumption data to our servers. In the near future you will be able to take advantage of our Energy Portal to access the UFO from the Internet.
Q How safe is the UFO Power Center?
The UFO is made with non-flammable material and is a very safe device when used accordingly with our Safety Precautions. The UFO Power Center complies with U.S. and Canadian safety standards for electrical products.