Green guidelines recommend disabling standby mode on various household appliances.
When I think about it, my TV for example must be on standby for about 20 hours in each 24, which means 140hrs per week or (reaches for calculator) 7,280 hrs per year!
To switch off standby mode I would have to struggle behind the set to get to the wall-socket or likewise to the TV connection.
Would putting a torpedo switch in the cable be a sensible & easy way to do this please?
But thats just a small TV Douglas. Add in the other items such as phone chargers 'video' recorders, computers, satellite boxes etc it mounts up. Multiply by the 28 million households in the UK and thats a fair bit 'wasted'.
Perhpaps rather than a torpedo switch a timer? or use a lead with switched plugs on it that can be reaced?
Anything in 'standby' has to have at least part of its electronics ready and running, e.g. the software. It has to constantly be ready to receive the signal, usually from a remote. If it was off and not listening then it couldnt do anything.
Just a small point...you really shouldn't have to "struggle" (or otherwise find it difficult) to disconnect any electrical item from the mains. Plugs and sockets should be easy to access in case of problems with equipment (risk of fire etc).
For instance many TV's will be plugged into a multi plug surge device that will be behind a cupboard/stand and will have all the recording equipment on. For many the originating plug is accessible so in the event of an emergency it can be straight off but you wouldnt want to do that nightly especially if you are recording items through the night.
I have been doing this for years and trying to get others to do it. My Panasonic flat screen has a switch just at the back but on the end so can reach it without a problem.
most of my stuff - TV/DVD/CDradio/Freeview box is on a multiplug from a single wall socket. I switch off at the wall every night. Stopped bothering with night time recordings as I found I wasn't watching most of them.