How much electricity does an ATT modem and router use?

[DawnCt1]

DS#1 just got service from ATT. He has noticed that his electric bill has gone up noticably since he got it. He says if he turns it off, he has to put in the passwords, codes, etc. Does it consume that much electricity?

 

[HM]

We're starting to think any router uses a lot of electricity. Our electric bills this past year have all been much higher and we've been taking steps to reduce our footprint with LED lights and such, so it should have been going down, not up. The big difference is a wireless router that is on 24/7.

 

[cabanafrau]

We've had wireless routers for several years, along w/ AT&T DSL service, switching last year to their U-Verse pkg. We haven't noticed any increase in our electricity usage connected w/ either the router &/or the U-Verse hook-up.

Is it actual electricity consumption that's gone up, or just the bill amount? For us, whether it's the electricity, gas or water, our bills have continued to climb even while our usage has gone down.

 

[HM]

Our usage has gone up (our bills show last year's same month usage and bill amount). We've been trying to figure out what else could be a culprit.

 

[golfgal]

Interesting question--Ifound this:

A typical desktop computer uses about 65 to 250 watts. To find the figure for your particular computer you can contact the manufacturer (not me), or see my section on measuring electrical use.

Add another 17-72 watts for an LCD monitor, or about 80 watts if you have an old-school 17" CRT. Don't forget related devices. My cable modem uses 7 watts, my D-Link DI-604 router uses 4.5 watts, and my Motorola phone box for use with Vonage uses 2 watts while idle (3 when I'm on the phone).

Most laptop computers use about 15-45 watts, far less than desktops.

With most devices you can look at the label to see how much energy they use, but that doesn't work so well with computers because the label gives the theoretical maximum, not the typical amount used. A computer whose label or power supply says 300 watts might only use about 70 watts when it's actually running, and only 100 even in peak times with serious number-crunching and all the drives spinning.

As long as your computer goes into sleep/standby when you're not using it, your computer doesn't use squat for electricity, compared to the rest of your household. You'll save a lot more energy by addressing your heating, cooling, and lighting use rather than obsessing over your computer. For most people, their computers' energy use is not a significant portion of their total use, even if they use their computers a lot. Of course, you should absolutely make sure your computer is set to sleep automatically when you're not using it, because it's silly to waste energy, but your computer likely isn't even close to being the biggest energy-waster in your home. (See more about sleep/standby.)


How much it costs to run your computer

To calculate your costs use this formula:
Watts x Hours Used


x Cost per kilowatt-hour = Total Cost
1000

http://michaelbluejay.com/electricity/computers.html

 

[dawson5]

get that Kill A Watt thing and find out.

A lot of the information is already online on what things use, just plug it in to the michael bluejay electricity calculator and see what it costs you for a months usage. You need to know if you are on a tier or a load. If you are on tiered for usage, the first level is at one price, second level is at another and so on, usually three levels. Then there is the load. Load is when you try to space everything out so that nothing is running at the same time. If you have dishwasher, washer and dryer all running at the same time, all electricity is charged at a higher rate during that time. It was interesting figuring all this out, we had a few months of large electricity bills that freaked me out.

 

[GeorgeG]

Electronics don't usually use a lot of electricity, but HM makes a good point about things that are on 24/7. Electric companies bill in units of kilowatt/hours, which is the amount of current used over time, so even a low wattage item will add up over time. One way to look at it is if you leave your car running, even at an idle, it continues to use gas just sitting in your driveway. So, basically, you are paying for the convience of having it available when you want it. Even so, a new router shouldn't use enough electricity to make that much difference that you notice it. Perhaps there is something wrong with it or the culprit is something else.

 

[bicker]

A typical desktop computer uses about 65 to 250 watts. ... Add another 17-72 watts for an LCD monitor, or about 80 watts if you have an old-school 17" CRT. ... My cable modem uses 7 watts, my D-Link DI-604 router uses 4.5 watts, and my Motorola phone box for use with Vonage uses 2 watts while idle (3 when I'm on the phone).

This really crystallizes the issue: The big power-eaters are the computer and monitor; the modems, routers, and other adapters are pretty small by comparison, at least per hour. If you don't turn off your computer CPU, then I wouldn't worry about the modem or router... their power consumption is just noise, by comparison.

 

[HM]

Our desktop is off when not in use. We're mostly using laptops now, so the wireless router is essential for connectivity. We've recently bought a better router (for other reasons), so we'll see if it makes any difference. And meanwhile, we're still investigating other things (more laundry? more hot showers? more time at home so more things plug-in items being used?) that could be causing the jump in our monthly electric bill.

 

[Frantasmic]

He says if he turns it off, he has to put in the passwords, codes, etc.

The router should be password coded anyway, for his own use. Usually, you enter it once and your computer remembers it.

If the router isn't password protected, it is possible he is providing "free" internet service to several people in his neighborhood. However, even all that free service through the router, if it is indeed occuring, shouldn't increase his electric bill too much.

 

[arminnie]

I have a second home that can be vacant for months at a time. I never turn off the modem, router, refrig, hot water heater. My bill is about $10 a month if I am not there.

 

[golfgal]

Our desktop is off when not in use. We're mostly using laptops now, so the wireless router is essential for connectivity. We've recently bought a better router (for other reasons), so we'll see if it makes any difference. And meanwhile, we're still investigating other things (more laundry? more hot showers? more time at home so more things plug-in items being used?) that could be causing the jump in our monthly electric bill.

I would guess that your increased usage has more to do with how HOT it was/is this summer then anything. Our electric bill was quite a bit higher the past couple months then it ever has been and I am sure it is because of the heat-and a rate hike but our usage was up so it wasn't all because of the rate hike.

 

[bicker]

Good point. We installed super-insulating skylight shades and our electric bill still increased this summer, but taking into account degree-days, we probably saved a good bit of money.

Just looking this up. (This is specific to my situation.)

July 2010 = 243 degree days
July 2009 = 162 degree days
July 2008 = 158 degree days

The difference for June and August weren't as pronounced. For June, June 2010 was a lot higher than June 2009, but only a little bit higher (but still higher) than June 2008. For August, August 2010 was much higher than August 2008, but only a little higher than August 2009. However, for all three months, 2010 was still the highest of the last three years.

Just for instance.