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Which is better for the long-term health of your personal computer (PC) – to turn it off every night or leave it running? This debate has raged between computer experts for decades.

Proponents of letting the computer run 24/7 point out that a PC consumes slightly more energy when booting up than when idling. There’s also the issue of “thermal stress” placed on a computer’s internal components from the expansion and contraction caused by being regularly turned off and on.

But as long as your computer goes into standby mode when you’re not using it, it uses hardly any energy compared to other appliances.

“I think thermal stress was a much bigger issue back in the days before modern PCs. Today’s computers are not as susceptible to problems resulting from climate variances,” points out John Graminski, Southwestern Electric Cooperative director of information technology. “Besides, leaving your PC on all the time causes additional wear on the system’s mechanical components and can reduce its service life.”

Graminski also recommends using the PC’s power management tools, which can be set to automatically switch the computer into a low-power state when it’s not in use. Most power management settings allow the user to separately turn off the monitor, hard disks and central processing unit (CPU) after they sit idle for specified lengths of time.

“You can put most PCs into a ‘sleep’ or ‘standby’ mode before leaving the house, and that will help conserve energy,” adds Graminski. “A good standard is to set the power management application to turn off the monitor and hard disk after 20 minutes and the CPU after two hours without use.”

It’s also a good idea to plug your monitor, printer and other accessories into a power strip with a surge protector. When this equipment is not in use for extended periods, turn off the power strip to prevent it from drawing power.

Source: U.S. Department of Energy Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy