That big new HDTV in your living room may be costing you more than just your monthly payments. Many of the new big-screen TVs consume plenty of power.

It’s a problem that’s beginning to get some attention. California regulators are drafting rules that would require retailers to sell only energy-efficient flat-screen TVs. According to the Los Angeles Times, during a peak viewing time when most sets are on, such as the Super Bowl, TVs in California collectively suck up the equivalent of 40 percent of the power generated by the San Onofre nuclear power station running at full capacity. Televisions account for about 10% of the average Californian’s monthly household electricity bill.

Just how much does it cost to operate a flat-screen TV? That depends on the type of TV. The electronics Web site CNET tested 139 TVs, rating them by watts used per square inch as well as overall costs. Applying Chelan County PUD power rates to CNET’s calculations, energy costs would range from a low of $7.86 per year to run a Philips 42-inch LCD model to $52.53 per year to power a 58-inch plasma-screen Panasonic. (CNET used the annual average cost of 10 cents per kilowatt hour for its calculations; Chelan County PUD’s cost is 2.9 cents per kilowatt hour).

Depending on the technology behind the TV, energy costs can vary dramatically. Standard sets use a cathode ray tube, with those smaller than 40 inches drawing roughly 73 watts when on. An average flat-screen LCD TV of the same size also uses 70 watts, while a similar plasma TV consumes an average 246 watts.

If you’re still shopping for a new set, or just curious about your power use, you can calculate your costs using this formula:

Wattage X Hours Used / 1,000 = Kilowatt Hours (KWH)

Then multiply the kilowatt hours used times the cost of power (the average cost for Chelan PUD customers is 2.9 cents per kilowatt hour).

Blue Energy Star labels began appearing in November on all TVs that use less energy when turned on. Before November, Energy Star labels only indicated how efficient a set was when it was turned off.

You can stop your TV from drawing any power at all by unplugging it, or by plugging it into a power strip that can be switched off.

Related links
How Much Do Your Appliances Cost to Operate? (Chelan PUD brochure)

Tags: Add new tag, HDTV, LCD, plasma, television, TV

This entry was posted on Monday, February 23rd, 2009 at 4:50 pm and is filed under Appliances, Electronics, Energy conservation. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Responses are currently closed, but you can trackback from your own site.