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Electronics Repair (sci.electronics.repair) Discussion of repairing electronic equipment. Topics include requests for assistance, where to obtain servicing information and parts, techniques for diagnosis and repair, and annecdotes about success, failures and problems. |
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#1
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standby mode consumption vs longevity
i was horrified when after reading here that the standby mode of most
tv/vcr/cable boxes is around 4-10w. if an 80w tv is on 2 hrs a day and standby 22, then you have standby consumption which approaches that of usage! my question is, does standby mode prolong the life of the device? if i add a timer to cut off power from the wall socket during the night will it theoretically shorten the life of the tube/vcr or cable box? i will pay much more attn to the standby wattage specifications next time. thanks, Sam |
#2
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The standby power of a typical TV set is about 5 to 7 Watts. It is the
about the same for most cable boxes, VCR and etc. At about this amount, the power usage meter from the power company may not even respond. It is when you get many of these 5 Watt loads around the house, they can add up. Having 10 units that work at 5 Watts, adds to about 50 Watts. Then this is noticed. Even a small electric alarm clock can consume about 3 to 5 Watts. It is not good to unplug your units from the AC line. Some of these types depended on the standby power to maintain their set-ups and configurations. If you have a pay TV cable box, it will probably have to re-initialize itself each time the power us cut off. As for the lifespan, it is best to not have a complete shutdown each time it is used. In many industrial centres, they leave their equipment on 24/7, and generally get a better lifespan out of it. I have a cable TV pay box at home. It has been sitting on top of the TV for about 3 years now, and has never failed. It is never unplugged from the power. The TV is from 1993, and it is still going strong. The TV is in standby all the time when not used. It is used about 6 to 10 hours per week to watch the odd thing. I have computers at some locations that are running 24/7, and rarely have failures. I simply blow the dust out of them every year in the spring time. I have a few machines that are going in to their 5th year with a zero failure. I never had a hard disk fail. I did however in one machine have a sound card failure, and in another one, I had to change the power supply. This is a good average. -- Jerry G. ====== "Sam" wrote in message om... i was horrified when after reading here that the standby mode of most tv/vcr/cable boxes is around 4-10w. if an 80w tv is on 2 hrs a day and standby 22, then you have standby consumption which approaches that of usage! my question is, does standby mode prolong the life of the device? if i add a timer to cut off power from the wall socket during the night will it theoretically shorten the life of the tube/vcr or cable box? i will pay much more attn to the standby wattage specifications next time. thanks, Sam |
#3
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"Sam" wrote in message om... i was horrified when after reading here that the standby mode of most tv/vcr/cable boxes is around 4-10w. if an 80w tv is on 2 hrs a day and standby 22, then you have standby consumption which approaches that of usage! my question is, does standby mode prolong the life of the device? if i add a timer to cut off power from the wall socket during the night will it theoretically shorten the life of the tube/vcr or cable box? i will pay much more attn to the standby wattage specifications next time. thanks, Sam It really is a growing problem as the numbers of these devices increase. Quite possibly the worst offenders are the class II transformers that are everywhere, the old style heavy block wall warts and VCR's using magnetic transformers, these usually have high resistance primary windings so they can never draw enough current to overheat. If you look at the wattage input and output ratings they rarely exceed 50% efficiency and a typical house has at least 5-10 of them. |
#4
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It is not good to unplug your units from the AC line. Some of these
types depended on the standby power to maintain their set-ups and configurations. Furthermore, if you have any items that use a linear power supply, constantly unplugging and plugging in the device could strain various parts in that power supply, including the bridge rectifier module or rectifier diodes. - Reinhart |
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