What you need: Power meter Time required: One hour
Even when you’re sleeping, you’re using electricity. Unless you make a point of switching them off, your router, smart speakers, printer and screens left on standby will continue to draw a small but steady flow of electricity. You might not have thought about it before but, with energy prices rising sharply, it’s time to start taking note of this so-called ‘phantom load’ power consumption (sometimes called ‘vampire power’).
Fortunately, it’s relatively easy to check how much electricity your devices consume and how much they’re costing you. All you need is an energy meter, which you plug into a socket, and then attach a device to using its front-facing socket.
Here, we’ll show you how you can use the Power Meter Plug Energy Monitor (£28 from www.snipca.com/43629, pictured left) to detect energy use quickly and safely. Armed with this information, you can make sensible decisions about what to leave switched on and what should be turned off.
1 Set up your meter
Log into your electricity provider’s online account, or check your latest statement, for details of your tariff. What you’re looking
