Energy Smart Homes - Standby Power

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Standby power is the energy used by an appliance while plugged in but not in operation. A large number of household appliances have a standby mode, including televisions, VCR's, DVD's, microwaves, cordless phones, fax machines and computer equipment.

Recent research has estimated that around 10% of electricity consumed in Australian households is attributable to appliances that are in standby mode. That means that around 10% of your electricity bill may be going towards appliances doing nothing.

Australia is one of the world leaders in addressing standby-power issues and is working towards bringing standby power consumption down by working with industry to ensure appliances are designed with energy efficiency in mind.

The Australian Ministerial Council on Energy published a world-first national standby power strategy in 2002 that aimed to reduce standby power consumption of most appliances to less than one watt by 2012.

In the meantime, you can reduce your use of standby power at home by unplugging or switching off appliances at the wall whenever possible.

For detailed information and simple ways to reduce standby power see our Frequently Asked Questions page.

For further information on standby power or to obtain a copy of the 'Quantification of Residential Standby Power Consumption in Australia' report which details the average standby power consumption of various household items, visit the Energy Rating web site.