Remembering all the energy conservation tips we learn is hard. Why not let these gadgets do the heavy lifting for you?

Turn off lights when you’re not in the room. Reduce the setting of the thermostat by 4 degrees when you leave the house or go to sleep. Unplug unnecessary devices when they’re not in use. The list of “easy” ways to save energy grows longer by the day, and some of us are better at executing them than others.

And just to make things more complicated, we’ve recently discovered phantom energy leaks–energy that’s wasted when devices are plugged in, but not in use.

Thankfully, energy conservation gadgets are emerging every day. Leveraging the power of smart and mobile technologies, these devices bring the “set it and forget it” mantra into the realm of energy conservation. These gadgets will remember to save energy even when you forget while also making it possible to monitor your energy usage from afar, and over time! (And they also make great holiday presents for the green geeks on your list.)

 5 Energy Conservation Gadgets That Work (Even When You’re Not Home!)

1. EcoGuard Smart Outlet & Meter

Developed by Telkonet, this gadget has the ability to monitor and stop the flow of power to one or both outlets, turning off lamps, televisions, appliances, and any other energy-consuming appliances when the room is unoccupied. The EcoGuard [PDF] also monitors cost, voltage, amperage, kWh, and other metrics in 15-minute increments. The only drawback is that it’s only designed to work with Telkonet’s EcoSmart energy management system. If you’re not ready for that type of investment, check out the Belkin Conserve Socket ($9.99) that can be programmed to turn off during certain periods of the day.

2. Nest Thermostat

These days, it’s hard to read anything about home energy conservation without a mention of the super-sexy Nest Thermostat. Like many gadgets these days, the Nest is intelligent, which means it can learn from your habits to optimize its own performance. Instead of complicated programming, you just turn the Nest thermostat up and down to suit your needs. After about two weeks, it will learn your habits, and begin to adjust itself based on the time of day. When you’re not around, it can be controlled from your phone.

3. Conserve Valet Smart USB Charging Station

I’m pretty good about turning off lights and managing the thermostat, but one thing that often makes me wince is plugging my phone in to charge, and then totally forgetting about it. Not only is this bad for my smartphone battery, it’s also a big waste of energy. The Conserve Valet Smart USB Charging Station from Belkin solves this problem beautifully. The table top gadget lets you charge all of your mobile devices in one convenient place, and automatically shuts off power—including standby power—after devices are fully charged. It even senses when new devices are added so you always get a full charge, and has an innovative cord management system to keep things neat.

4. Ecobutton Halo

Did you know your laptop or tablet has a plethora of settings to help conserve energy? Even more important, do you know where they are and how to manage them? Yeah. Ecobutton Halo is an affordable, plug-and-play device that’s meant to make energy conservation easier when it comes to computers. This simple USB plug-in instantly puts your computer into the most efficient sleep mode possible. “If you get up to get a cup of coffee, just tap the Eco Button and you’ll save energy while you’re away. When you return, tap the button again and your computer will instantly wake up, showing how much energy you saved and returning to your previous screen,” explains the Alliance to Save Energy. And it’s only $9.99!

5. Lutron Maestro Dimmer Switch with Occupancy Sensor

OK, this is for all of you with forgetful kids and spouses that are always leaving every light in the house burning bright. The Lutron Maestro Dimmer with Occupancy Sensor has a 150 degree motion detector with an angle up to 30 feet, so when the room is empty, the lights automatically turn themselves off. You can also pre-program the sensitivity and the time or operate it manually.

Related on Ecosalon:

The Green Kitchen: Painless Energy Conservation

10 Must-Have Green Gadgets for Your Home

10 Handy Green Gadgets You’ll Love To Use

Top image: nilsvik

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Every time you leave the water running while brushing your teeth, you vow you will break the habit soon because you care deeply about the planet’s resources. Eating meat makes you feel sad, knowing we are no longer hunters who cannot survive without animal protein, yet those subliminal burger ads are bringing out the Edward in you. And every time you leave the TV on all night, you wake up without the proper REM sleep and a higher power bill.

Be compassionate with yourself. Baby steps, dude. Baby steps.

At EcoSalon, we are proud to hold your hand and walk you through those first steps to becoming the conscious citizen of the world you envision. Here are 10 resolutions to get you from A (affluenza) to Z (zooplankton).

1. Phantom Energy

The no-brainer action you can take right now in your home to eliminate daily waste is to pull the plugs on appliances, machines and lights not in use. You will discover the savings and rewards by checking out this post.

2. Downer Meat

If you are what you eat, do you really aspire to be a sickly cow, pig or chicken? That’s exactly what you are pumping into your bloodstream and your family’s diet every time you buy and serve meat that has been treated with growth hormones and antibiotics and raised in inhumane, filthy conditions. Review how to avoid this putrid protein which is not only harming your body but the natural resources we treasure. Eat this up.

3. Over Dependence on Electric Appliances

Hanging your laundry out to dry will not bring down the hood! Give it a go and see how much it cuts down your power bill. Also, switch to Energy Star appliances to reduce the waste. Other steps include buying rechargable solar batteries, watching commercial-free television (meaning less TV) and yes, finding a mate more satisfying than your computer and other electric gadgets. Turn on here.

4. Refusal to Compost and Recycle at Home and at Work

Seriously, this is the new way of keeping up with the Joneses. It’s not about the new car in the garage but the bins on the curb. Our landfills are rapidly filling up, and said to be the most telling time capsules of our history as a modern people. Reuse and composting is everything because when you are throwing something out, remember, there is no “out.” Get on board, January 1! Back peddle to find out more.

5. All Driving and No Biking

We’ve told you how to improve your gas mileage, but you should also do what you will be forced to do in the future: Drive less because gas is pricey and bad for the air. Bike when you can, walk or take public transportation and get more fit a the the same time. You’ll also save on dreaded parking tickets! Looks good!

6. Wasting Water

Turn off that tap, shorten that shower, switch to a low water flush toilet, use towels more than once, switch out your green lawn for succulents. It’s that easy to make a difference for a thirsty world – growing more thirsty every day. Extra reading here.

7. Using Plastic and Other Disposables

Buy reusable water bottles and challenge yourself at the market to avoid single use plastic bags and packaging of all sorts. Take reusable bags with you, and when you forget, keep reusing the paper ones the market issued until they are ready to be recycled. Carry a reusable lunch box to work. Use cloth napkins, biodegradable utensils and plates. Say NO to plastics no matter what you hear in The Graduate. Save paper, and save trees! More info here, here and here.

8. Being Too Rushed to Buy Fresh, Local and Organic

You love your body, right? Not loving it means not taking the time to shop and eat sustainably, whether frequenting the local farmer’s market to choosing organic from the shelves of your neighborhood market. It’s not just about shedding pounds in the new year, but taking stock in the crock, and slowing down on the cooking and consuming. You will find healthiest people love their bodies this way.

9. Not Shopping Eco Wear

Wear your green on your sleeves in the coming year by investing in eco wear. It’s a matter of putting quality above quantity and supporting emerging vendors of garments woven of healthy fibers sans the harsh chemicals and dyes. Shop the top online eco boutiques.

10. Consistently Exposing Yourself to Chemicals You Can Avoid

Our moms got their hair and nails done weekly, and used make-up laced with poison that seeped into the skin. We don’t have to expose ourselves to chemicals in our everyday beauty and household products, but it takes discipline. Beauty background here.

Image: Sally M

The post Give It Up for 2010! EcoSalon’s Round-Up for Creating a Greener Year appeared first on EcoSalon.

Phantom energy sucks. Even when turned off, plugged-in electric devices are draining the juice in your house, a phenomenon that can add up to more than 65 billion kilowatt-hours of power each year. Save energy, and you save major cash.

The Union of Concerned Scientists calls the culprits of this waste vampires which silently suck away more than $5.8 billion annually of extra energy, which sends more than 87 billion pounds of heat-trapping carbon dioxide into the atmosphere each year. Although few of us are in the dark about this waste, we do little or nothing to limit the stand-by mode of our glowing devices, mostly because we are too tired, or too busy, too lazy. Also, some cable boxes lose all their data when unplugged and microwave ovens are installed in 50s fashion – inserted in a wall shelf with no access to the cord.

Unplugging when possible is the easiest weapon to combat these vampires and the little things make a big difference. A huge time saver also is to plug your electronics into a power strip or surge suppressor that can be shut off with a single switch.

First, you should identify the nocturnal monsters. They’re not as hot as the Cullins family but are powerful nonetheless. Here are the top 10:

1. Adapters with rechargeable battery-powered cordless phones

We have these in several rooms and I’m sure you do, too. You don’t want the phones to go dead, but you also need to curb that extra $100 to $200 you are spending each year on those phantoms.

2. Cell phones and chargers

How many times do you leave the charger plugged into the outlet and hanging on the counter or your desk? Just start to notice this and pull the plug.

3. Televisions

If you’re able to get behind your TV unplug it after viewing. If not, connect it to a power strip. You’ll deserve an Emmy for effort.

4. Power Tools

Cordless drills and circular saws? Home Renovations suggests you go this route, and if you don’t, we suggest you keep your tools unplugged.

5. Microwaves

You should see the dinosaur in the teacher’s lounge at my kids’ school! Scary, and it never gets unplugged, unless I go in there and do the job. It’s so easy to unplug when these appliances are freestanding and not inserted into cabinets. Experts say the clocks use more power than the ovens themselves.

6. DVD players

These should be on the same power strip as the TV to avoid draining the grid.

7. Digital Clocks

It can be alarming to think these essential time tellers suck energy when standing by all day while you are away. CBS News tells us a good guide is to unplug anything with a digital clock. If you don’t mind the flashing clocks, put them on a surge protector and shut them off, and only turn them on when you’re using the appliance. The memory chips are on, even when we’re not using the appliance.

8. Computers

Is that lap top hooked up when you go to sleep? Is the docking station still active when you are getting your Zzz’s? Try powering down at night to have sweeter dreams.

9. Computer Monitors

We forget to unplug these, as well, wanting them fired up and ready to go when we are ready to work.

10. Digital camera chargers

Just like our cell phones, we get in the habit of recharging and forgetting. Learning new habits is challenging the results make for a much brighter energy picture.

Image: j/f/photos, alanclarkdesign, pasukaru76, UweHermann, mattbuck4950, William Hook, kanonn, samantha celera, Let Ideas Compete, g_kat26 and Andrew*.

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