Should I leave plasma on standby?

[admin_exported]

I have a new Pioneer plasma (4280) and don't know whether to leave it on standby or turn it off. The manual states that leaving it on standby keeps the clock and programme guide all up together but cuts all power everywhere else therefore only comsuming 0.4 watts, which I believe to be a tiny amount of electricity.

Should I turn it on and off all the time? Is the life made longer or shorter by constantly switching off completely or leaving on standby. I know the 'current trend' is to turn it all off but I'd rather pay a penny a month on standby and have my TV last twice as long.

What does everyone here do?

 

[Andy Clough]

At the risk of angering the Green lobby, I'd say keep it in standby (especially as the power consumption is low). It's what I do unless I'm going away for a few days.

 

[radovantz]

Standby mode for all other electronic stuff too..

 

[Anonymous]

why would you leave it on standby???????ÿ

 

[Anonymous]

Shame on you, switch it off. No need to waste electricity.

Though I do keep my Pioneer HDD PVR on standby as it loses it's clock if switched off and doesnt pick it back up automatically from a Freeview channel. So it's a pain having to reset the clock. But the TV is switched off.

 

[Anonymous]

More and more of these threads recently, the big pinch has hit the power hungry hard it would seem.

 

[Anonymous]

This isn't a direct reply to Octopo.

I would like to know how much it costs to run a device consuming 0.4 watts for 8 hours... Any brainiacs on here?

Secondly, there is also a school of thought that says;

TV on standby = life of 5 years = new TV in 2014

TV turned off = reduced life of 4 years = new TV in 2013 = bigger overall carbon footprint due to manufacture of TV.

I know it is simplified, but the logic works... When the standby power consumption is pretty high then I would turn it off but my question is not about being green, it is about what is best for the life of the equipment.

 

[fatboyslimfast]

1KWh (equivalent to running a 1000w appliance for 1 hour) typically costs around 16p. Therefore, your standby cost above is 0.057p, or 1.8p per month.

I think the eco idea though is that if 75% of the people in the UK leave something on standby, then we are looking at 1800KWh being wasted for no reason, assuming that they only leave 1 item on and it's rated as yours is.

As the device is only pulling 0.4w, it is safe to say that it isn't kept "warm" as such, and therefore won't have any effect on it's longevity.

So standby is purely a convenience thing...

 

[Anonymous]

Fatboyslimfast,

Thanks for an answer that makes sense on both the equipment and green sides.

Now then, my amp, I am sure, is a different issue.......

 

[aliEnRIK]

fatboyslimfast:1KWh (equivalent to running a 1000w appliance for 1 hour) typically costs around 16p. Therefore, your standby cost above is 0.057p, or 1.8p per month.

I think the eco idea though is that if 75% of the people in the UK leave something on standby, then we are looking at 1800KWh being wasted for no reason, assuming that they only leave 1 item on and it's rated as yours is.

As the device is only pulling 0.4w, it is safe to say that it isn't kept "warm" as such, and therefore won't have any effect on it's longevity.

So standby is purely a convenience thing...

I completely see where your coming from fatboy, and thers no way it will keep it 'warm'. But id say that its probably better keeping it on standby (especially in the winter months) as ANY electricity running through it will help to a small degree. Turning ANY appliance on from 'cold' is going to stress the components.

Id certainly like there to be more studies down on this mind as no one truly seems to know for sure.

 

[Anonymous]

We need to be careful not to confuse the issue here. Modern appliances in standby do little more than keep the clock running / update the EPG etc. It's a far cry from the old days of never turning your amp off as it was bad for the valves.