TECHGURU

54 MARCH 2010 ELECTRONI CS FOR YOU WWW. E F Y MA G . C O M

SHWETA DHADIWAL BAID
DO POWER SAVERS
REALLY SAVE POWER?
Many companies have found market for their small handheld products that
claim to save 30-40 per cent electrical power, thereby reducing electricity bill.
But can you really save electricity by plugging in a small device?
A power saver unit plugged into a wall socket
I
t is rightly said, Energy saved is
energy produced. Power saver is
a smart attempt in this direction.
The theory behind power savers or
energy savers (used interchangeably
by many people) is foolproof, but there
are a lot of conditions that affect the
practical applications of power saver
devices. Heres what we asked the
manufacturers...
What is a power saver?
A power saver (PS) device resem-
bles a mosquito-repellent plugin gadg-
et (like All-out or GoodKnight) and is
meant to save power in houses, shops
and small offces. It is plugged into a
socket to work in parallel with other
appliances connected to the electrical
circuit of an establishment.
What are the benefits of power sav-
ers?
Power savers primarily save elec-
trical power. However, these also
improve the quality of input electrical
signal, and thus enhance the life-span
of household appliances.
How do they work?
The design of a power saver is
based on the principles of power fac-
tor correction (PFC), harmonic current
flter and surge protection. While PFC
helps in reducing reactive power wast-
age, harmonic reduction improves the
quality of power signal.
In the long run, surges may cause
heating and seriously damage the
household devices. The improved
quality of the signal prevents damage
to the transmission line. The circuit of
a power saver is designed to prevent
heat loss by appliances.
What is inside a power saver?
The device has a big PFC ca-
pacitor and a current harmonic fl-
ter circuit. Some devices also have
metal-oxide varistors (MOVs) that
act as transient suppressors, protect-
ing the circuit from voltage spikes. A
series connected thermal fuse is used
with MOVs to provide protection
in the event of short circuit. Power
savers come with integrated voltage
stabilisation circuit too. A light-emit-
ting diode (LED) is used to indicate
power-on condition.
Is it legal to use power savers?
Yes, it is absolutely legal. Using a
power saver does not mean fddling
TECHGURU
56 MARCH 2010 ELECTRONI CS FOR YOU WWW. E F Y MA G . C O M
A typical home electrical circuit with power saver
TABLE II
Power Consumption by
Different Devices
Device Wattage Number of units Total wattage
Air-conditioner 1.5 kW 1 1.5 kW
Tubelight 40W 4 160W
... ... ... ...
Total 2.1 kW
Before choosing a power saver, you need to figure
out the resistive and inductive loads in your house.
You must have some inductive appliances to avail
the power saving benefit
with the electricity meter. A power
saver is connected to the electrical
circuit after the meter, which means it
does not hamper or manipulate meter
functioning.
Can I use it in my house to save
electricity?
Power savers can be used in fats,
houses, shops or small offces. But
power savings depend on the type of
the load being used in the building.
Will it give me 30 per cent power
savings as claimed by the manufac-
turer?
Most companies claim that their
devices can save 30 to 40 per cent of
power. However, the actual savings
are only 5-10 per cent.
What are the parameters on which
the savings depend?
The power savings depend on:
Type of house. In old houses, wear
and tear in copper wires may result
in current leakage, thus adding to the
power loss. In such houses, power
savers may facilitate better savings.
However, in houses with new wiring,
the percentage saving from power sav-
ers is relatively less.
Type of appliances. More induc-
tive appliances in a house means more
power savings. The saving is only in
terms of wastage or reactive power.
There is no reduction in true power
(actual working power) required by
the appliances to function.
Ageing of appliances. Effciency
of any electronic/electrical appliance
decreases with ageing. This also re-
sults in more heat losses. Power sav-
ers show signifcant savings with old
appliances.
Locality. Areas with high voltage
fluctuations like shops and restau-
rants can gain additional savings from
power savers.
Electricity meter. It also affects the
working of power savers.
Atmosphere. Working of air-condi-
tioners and refrigerators depends on
the atmospheric temperature. Thus the
atmosphere plays an important role in
power savings.
What is the role of electricity me-
ter?
Electricity is not stable, as fuc-
tuations occur from the supply side. At
the same time, the load in houses is not
balanced. Meters installed in houses
are either traditional torque-operated
or electronic meters.
The traditional torque-
operated meters are highly
sensitive to spikes, giving
incorrect readings some-
times. Electronic meters,
on the other hand, are more
accurate. All these factors
infuence the savings from
power savers.
Visit www.derc.gov.
i n/El ect r oni cMet er s /
Awareness/FAQs.html#a1
to learn more about meter
readings.
Under what conditions
is the power saver really
effective?
If you have only resis-
tive load (bulbs, iron, geyser, etc), con-
necting a power saver to the electrical
circuit wont give you any signifcant
power saving. Even if you add a
tubelight and a fan to these devices,
you wont be able to save much. You
can save only on those devices which
contribute to the inductive load, such
as refrigerators, washing machines,
motors and air-conditioners.
Again, the percentage saving de-
pends on the parameters mentioned
earlier. Power savers save only the
power that is wasted or is not useful.
Are power savers tested or certi-
fied?
Power saver devices may not neces-
sarily be tested. However, agencies like
National Test House perform tests and
issue certifcates. These tests do not
comment on percentage saving. They
provide only factual readings with or
without the power saver in constant-
load condition.
EFY Lab reviewed the test cer-
tificate of a power saver, which
indicated six per cent savings for a
window air-conditioner through the
power saver.
What are the different types of power
savers?
Power saver devices come in dif-
ferent kilo-watt (kW) ratings of power
capacity. Commonly available are
3 kW, 6 kW, 10 kW and 15 kW. Gener-
TABLE I
Resistive and Inductive Loads
Type of load Power saver Examples
benefit
Resistive No Bulb, geyser, electric iron
Inductive Yes Air-conditioner, refrigerator,
water pump, washing machine,
tubelight
TECHGURU
58 MARCH 2010 ELECTRONI CS FOR YOU WWW. E F Y MA G . C O M
The theory: How it works
Most of the household appliances such as refrigerator, air-conditioner, fan, fluorescent tubelight and mixer grinder are inductive in nature.
Inductive loads create a phase difference between the AC current and voltage. The wires and the transformers are also inductive in nature.
Inductive loads require reactive power to work, which increases the current that the source
provides. This can be explained very clearly from the Macs dragging analogy shown in
Fig. 1. The true power or the actual power to drag the load is kW in forward direction.
Power factor is the cosine of the phase difference between the current and the voltage.
When the voltage and the current are in phase with each other in an AC circuit, the electrical
energy drawn from the source is fully converted into another form of energy in the load, and
the power factor is unity. When the current lags the voltage, the energy is wasted in reactive
power and the power factor is less than unity, making the system less efficient.
Power factor correction is a method in which a reactive load is introduced in the opposite
direction to cancel out the reactance of the inductive load by using a power-factor-correction
capacitor.
In India, the power factor is usually in the range of 0.7-0.8 depending on the house and
load. The capacitors used for PFC are a special type of low-voltage capacitors. (Please refer
April 2006 issue of EFY for details on PFC.)
Current harmonic reduction and surge
protection. Power electronic equipment are a
source of current harmonics and electromagnetic
interference (EMI). It means that the input-side
current waveform is distorted as the sum of multiple
frequencies is fed at the input. The harmonic currents
introduce losses in every element of the electrical
distribution system.
The harmonic voltages and currents deteriorate
the quality of power and give rise to the following
unacceptable issues:
1. High voltage and current distortion (total harmonic distortion) at the load
2. High neutral-to-ground voltages at the load
3. Heating losses in transformers, bus duct, feeder, circuit and the appliance itself
4. Reduction in power available from the wall outlet to about two-third
5. Overrated line-frequency transformers and DC-side filter capacitors
There are two types of harmonic filters: passive filters and active filters.
Passive filters are one or more circuits comprising inductors and capacitors and even resistors
sometimes. The values of these components are designed such that they remove particular frequency instead of the entire spectrum of
distortion. Passive filters are less expensive than active filters.
Active filters virtually remove all the distortion from the system. These continuously monitor the distortion in the waveform and provide
controlled current injection in order to remove the harmonics by generating a sinusoidal current waveform that is in phase with the input
voltage. The filter design is dependent on the kVA requirement of the load, harmonic profile of the load current and also the configuration of
the existing system.
Fig. 1: Dragging MACs BMI Walogy
Fig. 2: Utility interface needs harmonic fltering
Fig. 3: Current waveforms
ally, household load does not exceed
15 kW. Therefore a single power saver
can be used with single-phase supply
in houses and shops. For three-phase
connection at a small offce, three pow-
er savers should be installed separately
in each phase.
How can I choose a power saver?
Before choosing a power saver,
you need to fgure out the resistive
and inductive loads in your house
(see Table I). You must have some
inductive appliances to avail the
power saving benefit. A process
called energy audit can help you in
deciding the power saver capacity
that you need.
Table II shows a sample of the ener-
gy audit that you can do individually.
From this table, you can get a rough
estimate of the total wattage of devices
in your house. The total wattage value
will help you in deciding which power
saver to use.
For example, if you have a total
of 20kW load in your house, of which
approximately 15 kW is from induc-
tive loads mentioned in Table I, you
can use a single power saver of 15
kW. If that is not available, you can
use a combination of 10kW and 6kW
power savers. Using a power saver of
more than 15 kW will not give any ad-
ditional saving.
For a small offce with three-phase
connection, you can calculate the load
in each phase and repeat the above
process before installing the power
saver.
Do I have to take any precaution
while plugging in the device?
Power savers are very easy to in-
stall. However, you must make sure
that the neutral and ground lines are
insulated and there is no loose connec-
tion. Plug the power saver in a socket
that is closest to the mains circuit
breaker.
TECHGURU
60 MARCH 2010 ELECTRONI CS FOR YOU WWW. E F Y MA G . C O M
What is the life-span of a power
saver?
The lifespan of power savers de-
pends on the life of PFC capacitors
(measured in the number of burn-
ing hours) used. PFC capacitors are
manufactured by Siemens, ABB, GE,
etc. From their datasheets, we found
that the life of a capacitor is 6-8 years.
Some capacitors come with even higher
burning hour ratings.
What are the other benefits?
Power savers reduce the heat-
ing loss in appliances. This helps in
improving their life. Also, the lower
value of current harmonics improves
the quality of signal. This reduces the
carbon emission on the power genera-
tion side. Thus, it is benefcial for the
utility company providing electrical
supply. For 1 kW of power, 11 kg of
carbon is emitted.
How much do these devices cost?
The range is widefrom Rs 400 to
Rs 1600. This cost is not dependent on
additional features or higher savings.
Rather, it is based on the capacity of
the devices and varies from one brand
to another.
Tips on buying a good power
saver?
Power savers have been much
hyped through SMS marketing and
telemarketing. Here are a few buying
tips:
1. If you have very few inductive
appliances in your house, power saver
may not be the option for you.
2. Buy the power saver only from a
reputed company.
3. Seek existing customers testimo-
nials/comments.
4. Go for a power saver that comes
with guarantee period exceeding 30
days, as you cannot judge its benefts
in less than 30 days.
5. Try buying from a seller who
offers money-back guarantee, as there
are duplicates with just an LED circuit
available in the market.
6. If you have a small offce and a
three-phase supply, the power saver
may be effective.
Where from can I buy a power
saver?
Visit www.eleb2b.com and select
the section for domestic power saver
manufacturers. You will get the list of
all the manufacturers along with their
contact details.
The author is a senior technology journalist at
EFY
Contributors to this article
1. Ravi Kumar, E.S. Electronics, Bengaluru
2. Dr Manish Sharma, professor, IIT Delhi
3. Milind Patwardhan, professor, VIT Pune
4. Wintech Power, Delhi
5. Buztec, Chandigarh
6. Electronic Control System, Nagpur
7. EFY Lab, Delhi
email: sales@futaba.com.sg
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smgroup@vsnl.com
+91 80 2338 7197,