With rising energy prices more and more people are thinking of “Going Green” and figuring out ways to save energy . I had a friend recently who came over and saw my Dell 5100cn business printer on standby.  He said that it is an energy vacuum, sucking lots of energy even in standby mode and says that he turns off his printer whenever it is not in use.  Sound advice, but he goes on to say that unplugging all electronics including computers, DVDs, TVs can save a lot of energy as well.  It turns out that this is exactly what is recommended  here, here and here.

One key statement that was made was the fact that “75% of the electricity used to power home electronics is consumed while the products are turned off.”  Wow, what a nugget.   I’ve got 20 electronic devices plugged in and on standby at any one time and will definitely try to unplug a few of them when not in use.  Well, these are sound tips that can easily be implemented, but others have been verging on extreme remodeling to make a green case.  It turns out that it can be a very expensive proposition.  Is it worth the cost to install new framing, insulation, piping, and appliances ?  It all could add up very quickly and whole situation can turn red instead of bright green as the costs of going green can strip away a lot of resources and cash more so than what is expected of the investment.  Before shelling out 1000s of dollars going green , do an easy ROI calculation on the energy savings vs the cost of the new green solution.  If the break even of going green is >7 years, it may not be a worthwhile investment as there are other opportunities that may give rise to a greater return.