Myth 11

It's all right to leave your computer in sleep mode overnight.

A computer in sleep mode still uses a considerable amount of electricity in order for it to jump right back into action the moment you need it.

Turn yours off every time you're not going to use it for a longish time. Click here to check out some of the various programs that are available for free and can help your computer use less electricity or even shut down at chosen times.

Myth 12

LCD monitors use so little electricity you might as well leave them on.

A 17-inch LCD screen uses 35 watts of electricity ? not negligible at all!

Myth 13

Most electronic devices take more energy to turn back on than to merely leave them on.

This is untrue. The surge that supposedly leads to an increase in consumption when a device is turned on is so minute that it's almost not measurable. In addition, it occurs for only a fraction of a second and is not costing you any money.

Even if the device used double the electricity (it doesn't) for a whole second (the tiny surge, if one can call it that, lasts for only the tiniest fraction of a second) it will still make sense to turn your device off even if you're not going to use it for a mere two seconds.

The power surge of your electronic devices is insignificant and there is no price to pay for turning them off.

Myth 14

An appliance that is turned off doesn't use electricity.

Unless such an appliance is turned off my flipping the hard switch at the socket or unplugging it, it will still draw a small amount of power.

According to the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, standby power accounts for about eight percent of American household electricity consumption.

Myth 15

It uses less electricity to boil water if you're using hot water from the tap.

It doesn't really make a difference to your electricity consumption whether you're using hot or cold water. You've already consumed electricity to heat the water in the geyser so you're not saving much if anything. Running the water until it is hot is, however, a waste in itself.

Myth 16

Food cooked in water cooks faster on the stove if you set it to 'high'.

Water boils at about 100 degrees Celsius and turning the stove up won't heat the water any further than that. Once you've brought the water to boil, turn the heat down just high enough to keep it boiling with the lid on.

Myth 17

It takes more energy to cool a room in which the air-conditioner has been off all day than to keep it running.

Cooling a hot room down always takes less electricity than leaving the air-conditioner turned on all day long.

Myth 18

Turning the air-conditioner all the way down will cool a room faster.

Air-conditioner thermostats are quite simple, turning the device on until the desired temperature is reached at which point it will turn off again.

Myth 19

Leaving a ceiling fan on cools a room.

Ceiling fans do not cool a room at all. It only makes it feel more comfortable, because of the movement of air across the skin. So, when you leave the room turn the fan off.

Myth 20

Regularly cleaning the winding black pipes behind your fridge will make it much more efficient.

Doing so won't hurt, but you won't be saving much more than a cent or so.