Another GREEN solution from Radiant

Published : 17/03/2010 | Author: HOMEMAKERS | Annelien Nolte

You can now reduce your carbon footprint with this new, smart innovation that is specifically designed to manage the use of electricity when your appliance has been switched off.

Standing by

Many of us are fooled into believing that when you switch off an appliance, you are actually saving electricity. This is actually only true if you literally switch it off at the power point in the wall. Most of us only switch an appliance off or even put it in SLEEP / STANDBY or HIBERNATION mode. Some computer users leave their machines in sleep mode so that when they switch on again, it boots up almost immediately. To enjoy this instant-on feature, the computer is constantly fed a trickle of power so that it is ready for action. This is one reason why standby power is also known as ‘vampire power’ as energy is continuously sucked out of the grid.

Studies show that between 5-10% of power consumed in the average home is used by appliances and home electronics while the devices are on standby. “Many people don’t realise that when appliances are in standby mode, they consume small amounts of electricity unnecessarily,” says Radiant’s Executive Director of Electrical Product Development, Graham Chick. “Over time, this can add up to large amounts of power, especially when thousands of consumers behave the same way.” Standby power makes up a portion of homes’ steadily rising miscellaneous electronic load, which also includes small appliances, security systems, and other small power draws. Standby power is typical 10 to 15 watts per device, and occasionally more. For any single appliance the load is never very large (the most inefficient designs draw 15 to 20 watts, however when factored over all of the appliances can come to billions of watts.

Star of the show

Radiant’s brand new innovation, called The Trickle Star enables computer and TV home theatre users to save electricity. The product is available for both TV and PC usage. It automatically switches off all other equipment attached to either your computer or TV, such as printers, modems, amplifiers, DVD players and speakers when you shut down your PC or switch off your TV using the remote! How’s that for innovation? “The TrickleSaver is effortless to use and reduces electricity wasted on standby power for home theatre accessories and PC peripherals without any additional effort from users,” says Chick.

According to the website: www.thetricklestar.co.za there are three different options when it comes to The Trickle Star:

“PC TrickleSaver - ES100: The TrickleStar PC TrickleSaver reduces the standby energy consumed by PC Peripheral equipment. The product connects to a PC via a standard USB connector and detects the power status of a PC via the USB port. When a PC is powered the product will switch on all peripheral devices. Conversely when a PC is switched off, the product will switch off all peripheral devices. The product is easy to install and provides simple automation to reduce wasteful standby energy consumption. The product is suitable for residential and workplace PC applications. The product can be connected directly to equipment or connected to a standard electrical power-strip with a number of connected devices.  

Features 

In-built relay for switching off devices that consume standby current.
Rear mounting holes for wall, under desk mounting.

TV TrickleSaver - ES200: The TrickleStar TV TrickleSaver reduces the standby energy consumed by TV accessories. The product has inbuilt current sensing circuitry to sense when a TV is on or off. When the TV is on the product will switch on all peripheral devices. Conversely when the TV is off, the product will switch off all accessories The product is easy to install and provides simple automation to reduce wasteful standby energy consumption. The product is suitable for residential and workplace applications. The product can be connected directly to equipment or connected to a standard electrical power-strip with a number of connected devices.  Features • In-build relay for switching off devices that consume standby current. • Adjustable sensitivity for sensing TV status. • Rear mounting holes for wall, under desk mounting.

The TrickleSwitch - a manual control of the PC Tricklesaver - is also available. It sits on the desk and the PC user can manually switch all PC peripherals on or off. By simply changing behaviour, the Trickleswitch will reduce your carbon footprint even further with very little effort.

PC TrickleSwitch - ES150: Whilst a PC TrickleSaver ensures that PC accessories are switched off when the PC is Off, often a User does not require the PC accessories to be On whilst the PC is being used. The product allows a User to manually switch PC accessory devices On/Off and to supply power to devices as and when required thus significantly reducing the amount of vampire power consumed when a PC is on. The product connects to a PC via a standard USB connector and a PC TrickleSaver plugs into a USB connector on the Product. The product is easy to install and provides Users with increased ability to reduce wasteful vampire energy consumption.