How many TVs do you have in your house? Many people have TVs in their living rooms, bedrooms and maybe even their kitchen! The more TVs you have, the more energy you are probably consuming. But, whether you have one TV or five, there’s always an opportunity to save energy by following these tips to make your TV more energy efficient:

Make These Simple Switches

Use the ambient light sensor.

TVs will typically come to you programmed with the factory settings, but these are not the most energy efficient settings. Once you get a TV,  one of the first things you should do is check the settings. Most of the newer TV models come with an ambient light sensor to control the brightness of the picture. If your TV has this feature, make sure it is on at all times. This light sensor can detect the amount of light in the room and automatically adjust the brightness of the TV to make sure you never have it set brighter than necessary. Because the TV consumes energy to make the screen brighter, the ambient light sensor can help you cut back on your energy use.

Switch to the blank screen.

Newer TVs allow you to stream live radio directly through the device. This is an incredible benefit of buying best 50 inch led TV under $400, digital TVs, but it can also be a huge waste of energy. If you decide to listen to the radio, make sure you change the TV’s settings to go to the radio screen blank feature. This turns the TV to a blank screen whenever you are listening to the radio so you don’t waste energy on the brightness and colors of a screen you’re not even watching.

Stop These Bad Habits

Power down.

It can be tempting to leave the TV on for background noise, but it’s important to remember if you’re not watching the TV, you should shut it off. But, don’t just turn it off with the remote and think you’re doing your part to reduce energy use. TVs are vampire devices, meaning they can suck up energy even when they’re turned off. To avoid wasting energy, plug your TV into a power strip and flip the switch on the entire strip when you’re done watching TV. This will cut off the energy source so your TV no longer consumes energy it doesn’t need.

Tackle These Projects

Buy a new TV.

If you plan on buying a new TV soon, make sure you choose an energy efficient model. Energy Star certified TVs use about 25% less energy than standard models, so it’s important to look for the Energy Star label as you shop. There are a variety of brands with the label, including Samsung, LG and Vizio, and a number of different screen sizes, so you should be able to find one that fits your home.

When shopping for a new TV, make sure you choose a LED screen instead of a plasma. Plasma screens use two to three times more energy than LED screens, so they are not energy efficient.

Follow these tips and you can sit back and relax in front of your TV without worrying about the energy you’re wasting!