What is a phantom load?
The Phantom load is the amount of electricity that’s being drained by equipment when it’s off. Any device that has a remote control or instant on capability (TVs, VCRs) is part of your phantom load. Any device that has a digital time display (microwave) or plugs into the wall with a power adapter aka “wall cube” (iPod, Cell Phone, answering machine, hair dryer) is drawing power continuously. We don’t gain anything for this electrical use, yet it represents a significant amount of electricity usage. That is, even though each device seems to use just a little bit of electricity and cost us a little bit of money, it really adds up. The amount of electricity now being used by devices when they’re doing nothing is enough to meet the electrical demands of entire nations! The phantom load of the United States is approximately equal to the electrical consumption of the countries of Greece, Peru and Vietnam combined. This phantom load continues to drive up demand for power plants with all the n
A phantom load is a hidden use of electricity which one might easily overlook in doing an energy audit. For example, a television with a remote control turn on capability will be drawing some power all the time, whether the TV is turned on or off. Another example is the common wall warts (step down transformers) used to power lower voltage devices such as answering machines. A few such devices drawing power 24-7 can quickly add up. 04C) What kind & how many Batteries do I need? The problem of sizing a battery bank arises when designing a PV system. This discussion assumes you have done an energy audit and know how many kilowatt-hours you need your battery bank to be able to deliver. The general solution is to convert your energy required from kilowatt-hours to the amp-hour units in which the batteries are specified, while taking into account various efficiency losses and use that total to calculate the number of batteries. ToDo – redraft this Let us say you use ‘M’ watts from the batte
