Energy facts

• Appliances
• Lighting
• Standby energy costs

Appliances

Fridges and air-conditioners

Fridges and air-conditioners that are not well maintained or ventilated can cost up to 30% more to run.

Microwaves and diswashers

• The cost of running a microwave and dishwasher in standyby mode is approximately $14/year
• Switching off those appliances outside business hours will save $12 and 53kg of CO₂ emissions annually

Bar fridges

A very well maintained and conditioned bar fridge:

• Costs $84 a year to run
• Releases 364 kg of CO₂ emissions annually

Unmaintained bar fridge, poor circulation/ventilation, leaking seals, at wrong thermostat settings;

• Costs 10-40+% more to run => $92-$120 per year
• Releases 400-510 kg CO₂ emissions annually

Lighting

Halogen lightbulb

• Just 1 halogen lightbulb
• 50 Watts
• 12 hours a day, 300 days a year, @22c/kWh
• costs $40 a year to run and releases 171kg of CO₂ emissions annually

CFL (halogen replacement)

• 1 CFL, 11 Watts 12 hours a day, 300 days a year, 22c/kWh
• Costs $9 a year to run and releases 38 kg CO₂ annually
• Uses 80% less energy than a standard halogen downlight
• Up to 12 times the life of a standard halogen downlight
• 11w CFL can replace a standard 50w downlight

LED (halogen replacement)

• 1 LED halogen fitting, 3-6 Watts 
• 12 hours a day, 300 days a year, @ 22c/kWh
• Costs $3-$5 a year to run and emit 10-21 kg CO₂
• Uses 92% less energy than a standard halogen downlight
• 4 times more expensive than standard Halogen downlight but up to 12 times the life of a standard halogen downlight
• 3-6W LED can replace a standard 50W downlight (240v system)
• LED replacements are available for a 12v system

T8 Fluorescent tube

• 1 T8 Fluorescent tube
• 36 Watts
• 12 hours a day, 300 days a year, 22c/kWh
• costs $29 a year to run and releases 123kg of CO₂ emissions annually

T5 fluorescent tube

• 1 T5 Fluorescent tube, 22 Watts
• 12 hours a day, 300 days a year, @22c/kWh
• Costs $17 a year to run and releases 75 kg CO₂ per year
• Uses 40% less energy than a standard T8 fluorescent tube
• Brighter than a standard T8 Fluorescent tube (need less overall fittings)
• Last 25% longer than standard T8 Fluorescent tube
• 22w T5 requires retrofit or conversion kit to replace a standard 36w T8 tube

T8 LED (fluorescent replacement tube)

• 1 T8 LED fluorescent replacement tube, 6-18 Watts
• 12 hours a day, 300 days a year, @22c/kWh
• Costs $5-$14 a year to run and emits 21-62 kg CO₂ per year
• Uses 50-80% less energy than a standard T8 Fluorescent tube
• 6-18w LED can replace a standard 36w T8 tube
• Less heat generated, longer life, and light fades much less than standard T8 Fluorescent tube
• Direct replacement possible

Standby energy costs

Workstation

• An average workstation has 4+ devices plugged in (e.g. modem, mobile phone charger, laptop charger, blue tooth headset)
• The standby usage of these will costs $12-$27 a year to run
• Switching your workstation devices off outside of business hours will save $14 or more and at least 116 kg CO₂ a year

Office equipment

Appliance	Watts	Standby cost
Small printer	4.5	$8/yr
Printer station	22	$39/yr
Telephone headset	4.89	$9/yr
Fax	6.4	$11/yr
LCD TV	7	$13/yr
Scanner	8.2	$15/yr
Electric whiteboard	70	$126/yr
Mobile phone charger	4.0	$7/yr

• The standby power of these 8 examples total $228/yr
• Switching them off outside business hours saves $144/yr (60+% reduction) and 623+ kg CO₂
• Only switching these appliances on when needed will create a greater savings

Last updated 3 May 2011