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Cutting the energy cost associated with using our computers can be a good thing to do for the environment and an even better one for your wallet. It may surprise you to find out how much power your computer actually uses. Many people leave their computer on all of the time because they feel this is better for their PC. While PCs are designed to run constantly there is no harm in turning it off when not in use. Consider an average computer with a 300 watt power supply and a 17″ monitor left to run 24/7 with an electricity cost of 11. 81 cents per kilowatt hour would wound up costing you approximately $25.85 per month or $310.25 per year. If you have a high end gaming machine with a large graphics card the cost will be considerably higher, as will the potential savings. Rather than leave it on constantly, you turn your machine off or set it to hibernate or standby when idle. There are settings in your computer you can adjust to help reduce its power consumption considerably. Below I will explain how you can adjust them.

1.)Before enabling hibernation you should be aware of the two options you have. The first is to hibernate. Windows will save all the current active data on your PC to the hard disk when hibernation is activated. When you are ready to start to work again, press the start button and Windows will restore your PC to the exact state it was in before it went into hibernation. This restores all your open applications just as you left them. The second option is “Stand by”. It’s very similar except that Windows will store all the active data into your ram when the system goes into standby (AKA sleep). When you’re ready to resume just press any key on your key board and Windows will restore your applications just as you left them.

2.)The first thing to do is go to the power options in the control panel and enable “Hibernation”. To do this click, start, control panel and power options. Click the “Hibernate tab” and enable hibernate by checking the box. This state uses minimal electricity and preserves your work in its unfinished state.

3.)Next click the”Power schemes” tab. Yo have several options on each here that you will see when you click on the left downward arrow. The options will be listed in a drop down box. In this example we chose “Minimal Power Management”. Turn off the monitor after 15 min. of inactivity, never turn of hard disk, system standby by after 15 min. and hibernate after 30 minutes. ( See first image)

4.)Now click the “Advanced” tab. Set the two options for what you want the computer to do when you press either the sleep or power buttons on your key board. In our example we set the computer to shut down when the power button is pressed. You can do this or set it to standby or hibernate. You can also have it ask you what you want to do or do nothing at all. Now set the option for the sleep button. This one is very important because you can press the sleep button to put your computer in standby if you have to leave your work unfinished for a while or to hibernate if you will be gone for a few long period of time. Once finished click,”save as,” apply and OK you’re finished.

5.)Now navigate to the desktop and right click on an empty part of the screen and select properties. Click the “Screen Saver” tab. In the drop down box select none. Click, apply and OK. That’s it. Now you can operate your computer as before , but at a much lower cost.

Tip: If you’re concerned about security while your computer is hibernating or in standby mode check the prompt for password box when resuming under the advanced tab.

There are many free online calculators that can help you get an estimate of your computers electricity usage to help calculate your savings.

Warning: Some computers may not be set up to support hibernation. This may be changed in the BIOs, but let someone who is very familiar with PCs to do this since a mistake there could render your computer in operable.

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