Power Down challenge aims to reduce power use

Winter Term To-Do List: Ski. Sleep. Study. Catch up on Modern Family. Dance party at ADP.

And “Power Down.”

Middlebury’s famous Winter Term, sometimes known as “Yay-Term” or “Play- Term,” gives students the chance to relax between the rigorous fall and spring semesters and enjoy the Vermont winter wonderland. But this year, the Middlebury community is presented with a challenge to save electricity through the Power Down challenge.

The challenge is, in theory, quite simple: use less electricity. In each large dorm on campus, coordinators will read the  electricity meters weekly and compare the readings to the electricity average for that dorm’s past three Winter Terms.

“It’s not really a competition because there is no one winner,” said Clare Crosby, sustainability communication and outreach coordinator. “Prizes are based on how much each dorm saves respectively.”

Power Down is an individual challenge,, and a chance to do one’s part to reduce Middlebury’s electricity output. For each kilowatt hour that the dorm saves in energy, that dorm will receive 11 cents, the market price of electricity.

We’ve all got to do our part to reduce our electricity. But this raises an important question: how can we do that?

“It’s the little things that really add up,” Crosby said.

If you’re not in a room, turn off the lights. Use a power strip to plug in your electronics.

“There’s the phantom load,” Crosby said. “Chargers, TVs and microwaves take electricity even if they’re not in use.”

So when in Proctor texting friends in Ross, bbming a research partner in the library or casually perusing Facebook on your iPhone during class (kidding!), Crosby hopes students will remember to unplug that charger back in their room. The best way to do this is the power strip — leave everything plugged in but turn off the power when it’s not in use.

Even leaving your computer on with a screensaver won’t save any electricity.

“Screensavers use just as much electricity,” said Crosby. “Set your computer so that it goes to sleep after a few minutes of idleness. And shutting down your computer at night not only saves over 40 kW/h, but also reduces computer wear and tear.”

Crosby also recommends using a drying rack next time you do laundry, or turning off electronics in common areas.These small gestures will greatly reduce each dorm’s electricity output. They’re so easy to do, and the challenge isn’t intended to be difficult.

“Being social is the most fun way to save energy,” said Crosby.

For instance, a group of friends hanging out in one room saves power because the lights are off in other rooms, there’s only need for one music player and you can always share a fridge.

So this Winter Term, powering down not only means shredding from the top of the Snowbowl, but unplugging to reduce our energy output.