GreenerGagdets Widget for Energy Consumption and Recycling

Notice anything new? Scroll down our homepage and take a peek at the latest addition to 2ndGreenRevolution.com on the right side bar of the site under the moving “Topics” cloud. These new additions both come from GreenerGadgets, a newly launched site by the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) that provides some great tools for those that want to calculate their energy consumption and potential savings. Both are fairly easy and simple ways to add a little more accountability to the world of electronic gizmos. According to a press release by CEA, the U.S. consumer electronics industry recently “set a goal to recycle one billion pounds of electronics annually by 2016.”

By simply putting in your zipcode, the first widget renders a google map with all the nearby locations you can drop off your old electronics to be recycled. It also provides mail-in options.

The second widget is an energy calculator that approximates the energy costs of leaving electronic appliances on and/or plugged in. Simply fill in the amount of hours per day you use certain electronics such as TVs, laptops, DVD players, cable boxes, modems etc. and how many hours they are plugged in but not it use and it calculates a total cost per month and year. While the amount of money used to pay for electricity to power these electronics is small per device, an ever-growing number of devices means that even small costs can become significant if spread over many gadgets. If these devices are not turned on or in use there is, of course, still the boogie man, phantom loads, and energy vampires to worry about.

Try the tool about half way down on the right side of our site to find a recycling drop off point or to calculate your energy use. Note: we are in “beta mode” with this widget as we are just trying it out. As we debate whether to keep it, re-position it, or simply link to it in this post, let us know if you have any feedback.

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