Everyone always asks, “is it better to leave a computer always on or shut it off when you’re not using it.”? Before I dive into my thoughts about it, I’d like to state that anyone using a huge gaming rig that has one of those 700W PSU supplies in them should think twice about leaving that rig on more than needed.? Not only is it economically unfriendly, it will rack up the biggest energy bill you could imagine.
That being said, most computers that aren’t custom built or even ones that have proper energy ratings are fine to leave on but in this new green age, there may be a new option.
One of my favorite quotes is, “A light bulb is never blows out when it’s on but only when its turned on,” likes to imply there is a mechanical jerk in a computer when you turn it on.? While that is true, things such as surge protectors or newer monitors prevent against this sort damage.
Now a days, a hard drive is more likely to fail, unless it’s put to idle, and a computer that is left on has fans that are sucking dust into the components which are more likely to die as well.
In a green world, ideally its best to put your computer to sleep or hibernation.? While I do not think it is economically friendly for anyone to constantly leave it on 24/7, if you do, be sure to have it hooked up to a surge protector, keep it on low settings such as CPU, hard drive status and display (keep them off), and make sure you keep it in a clean environment to prevent dust damage!
