Why Keeping One Appliance Plugged In Overnight Is Driving Up Your Energy Bill

 

Every month, millions of homeowners stare at their electricity bill with the same frustrated question: Where is all this money going? Between 2021 and 2024, the average monthly electric bill climbed by $22, adding $264 annually to household expenses. Residential electricity rates jumped 13% from 2022 to 2025. Most people point to the big stuff – air conditioning, heating, the clothes dryer. But Corey Gilgan, owner of Oregon Generators, a Portland-based generator installation and energy services company, says the real culprit might be something sitting right on your kitchen counter – something most of us never think twice about.

The appliance Gilgan has in mind isn’t new, and it’s not smart. It doesn’t heat your home or cool your food. It sits there quietly, doing very little, running 24 hours a day. And according to Gilgan, it’s one of the single biggest contributors to what energy experts call “phantom load” – a term worth understanding before we go further.

Phantom load (also called “standby power” or “vampire energy”) is the electricity that a plugged-in device pulls from the outlet even when you’re not actively using it. Many appliances continue to draw a small amount of standby power when they are switched “off” – and these phantom loads occur in most appliances that use electricity, such as televisions, stereos, computers, and kitchen appliances. Think of it like leaving a garden hose running at a trickle. Each drop seems tiny. Over a year, the water bill tells a different story.

The Appliance Nobody Suspects

Now, here’s the reveal. The device Gilgan is talking about isn’t your TV, your laptop charger, or even your gaming console. While most people focus on big-ticket energy hogs like air conditioning or heating, Gilgan says the microwave is the appliance he sees costing people the most in phantom energy – and it often flies under the radar.

Think about your microwave for a second. You probably use it for a few minutes each day – reheating leftovers, defrosting something, warming up a cup of coffee. For the other 23+ hours, it sits there with the clock glowing, completely “off” in your mind. Except it isn’t. Most homeowners have no idea their microwave is drawing power 24/7, even when they’re not heating up leftovers – because microwaves keep internal circuits running and digital displays lit up at all times.