Halloween also means a reminder about “vampire” appliances from PG and E. Paul Moreno, with marketing and communications, says most all common household devices continue to consume at least a small amount of electricity, although they may not be in use at the time. And that can add up, depending on how many you have in your home…

click to listen to Paul Moreno

Other devices wasting the most energy, while idle, include home theater and audio systems, computers, coffee makers, microwaves, and alarm clocks…

click to listen to Paul Moreno

Moreno says there are also “smart” power strips that can switch off on their own. PG and E says the wasted energy across the country is enough to power 11-million average homes. And the utility also recommends buying or borrowing a so-called “Kill A Watt” meter. It plugs into the wall to read how much electricity is being consumed by a device.