Energy Consumption of HD DVR
pkyc0
Newbie

How much engery is used by the HD DVR, even when off?

My electric bill jumped $25 and after getting fios tv with the hd dvr. It seems like the DVR is recording 24/7. Is there a way to turn it off and save some energy?

I know i've definitely had the tv on more now that i have fios tv and the weather is cooler, but there is no way those are causing my electric bill to jump 50%. Especially given that i was on vacation 1/2 of the month and no one was home.

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Re: Energy Consumption of HD DVR
PJL
Master - Level 3

A report on another blog said the following:

  Actiontec router draws approximately 16 watts
  ONT draws less than the rated 38 watts, more like 20 watts
  STB draws around 38 whenever it's plugged in to the power -- doesn't matter what it's doing

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Re: Energy Consumption of HD DVR
Justin46
Legend

I have never measured the kwh consumed by my DVR, but I saw posts several years ago at dslreports from a guy that did measure it.  If I remember correctly he said it consumed about 38 watts when turned on, about 35 or 36 when turned off. That measurement was done before the relatively new screen saver, which I suspect will make the consumption just about identical, on or off. Most of the DVR remains electrically active 24/7 because of the need to record anything you have scheduled, plus the need for it to keep the Guide updated, receive Verizon updates or resets, etc.

If you assume $.10/kwh and 38 watts, then a quick calculation of a 30 day month, 24 hrs/day works out to about $1.10/month, unless my math is bad (school was a long, long time ago Smiley Very Happy ).

If you have just had FiOS installed as opposed to adding TV service, keep in mind that you now have the ONT which draws power, plus the power needed to keep the battery charged, plus the router and any other STBs.

But $25/month sounds excessive. I think there must be some other source. But it is pretty easy to verify what is using the power - I bought a device called the Kill A Watt, the model is P4400; it is a small device that will measure the power consumption of anything plugged into it. I bought it from newegg.com for about $12, have seen it recently for maybe $15 or $20, free shipping and no sales tax, at least for TX. You might want to get one of those. As I said, I have never measured the power consumption of my DVR, or any of the other FiOS boxes, but maybe I should.

Hope this helps.

__________________________________
Justin
Verizon FiOS TV, Internet, and phone
QIP6416-P1, IMG 1.7C, Build 09.83
Keller, TX 76248

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Re: Energy Consumption of HD DVR
Keyboards
Master - Level 3

@pkyc0 wrote:

How much engery is used by the HD DVR, even when off?

My electric bill jumped $25 and after getting fios tv with the hd dvr. It seems like the DVR is recording 24/7. Is there a way to turn it off and save some energy?


The DVR is never really off.  It always buffers the 2 tuners (if you're not recording).  It is probably better for hard drive lifetime to no spin it up and down constantly and it always has to be ready to do scheduled recordings.
The only way to truly turn it off is to unplug it.  If you have nothing scheduled to record while on vacation that will work, otherwise there is no way to save energy.  It doesn't matter who's DVR it is, AFAIK they all behave this way.
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Re: Energy Consumption of HD DVR
Hubrisnxs
Legend

http://forums.verizon.com/t5/FiOS-TV-Technical-Assistance/FiOS-Energy-Consumption-Energy-Star/m-p/40...

http://www.dslreports.com/forum/r18599695-

http://lancej.blogspot.com/2008/03/verizon-fios-electricity-use.html

These are three really good resources to get the skinny on FiOS energy consumption.  the Router is a big energy hog, and the dvr's and cable boxes come in 2nd.  

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