To lessen the amount of energy your computer is consuming try some of the following tips:

• Power Down- Whenever your computer is not in use turn the power off. This will prevent something called phantom power load consumption.

• Energy Settings- Built into Microsoft are power savings, these come into play when your computer is temporarily not in use.

• Monitor- When you are using the pc only have your monitor as bright as you absolutely need. Turning the brightness levels down can save lots of energy.

• New Computer- The next time you are in the market for a new computer considers purchasing a laptop instead. These smaller computers use about half the energy of a desktop.

• Replace- After a couple of years of use a computer will slow down considerably. This is the time many people choose to purchase a new machine, however a simple reinstall of windows will perk up your system by doing away with unnecessary files and
Not all of the energy consumption and environmental impact attributed computers comes from actual use. There is a fair amount of energy consumed to create the devices in the first place and once they have served their purpose too many of them wind up in landfills. When computers end up in landfill they not only take up precious space, they can also leak toxic substances into the ground polluting it and many of our waterways. For this reason, several companies have cropped up offering to recycle computers and protect the environment.

These companies do what is called E-Cycle, a cute term for electronic recycling. The problem is often the number of computers they receive overwhelms these companies and the units end up going to the landfill anyway. Some more unscrupulous individuals go a step further and ship these units overseas where low paid workers are expected to strip the devices down in order to mine the profitable metals from them. Not only does this contribute to greenhouse emissions due to the shipping methods, the conditions under which these people work are horrible and dangerous.

When it is time to upgrade to a better model be sure you check with the company you are using to recycle electronic debris. Better yet, try upgrading some of the internal parts such as hard drive and memory and end up with a computer that is comparable to many of the new models on the market. You will save the environment and potentially save yourself some hard-earned money in the process.