Do power savers really work, or are they a new scam that is being heavily advertised to people who have no technical knowledge?
I’m an experienced electrical engineer and certified energy manager, and I will tell you the honest answer about this energy saving boxes and power savers for homes so that you spot the scams and protect yourself.
And don’t worry, because I will also give you examples of legit electricity saving devices that work.
Table of Contents
Do Power Savers Really Work?
The power savers don’t really work in reducing electric bill at home, shops or offices if they were advertised as closed boxes, power factor correctors, voltage regulators.
These are designed to help the sellers make money from whoever purchases them thinking that they can help in saving money on the energy bill.
Why Are Energy Saving Boxes Not Worth The Money?
It’s because they don’t work as advertised by significantly cutting the electric bill.
The way that power saving devices such as energy saving boxes, power saving plugs, and other similar products are advertised is either based on some secret energy source that no one knows about, or based on the fact that they do power factor correction or voltage stabilization to the extent that is supposed to reduce electric bill.
And from my experience in electrical engineering and energy management, I can tell you that these claims are incorrect as you will see next.
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3 Power Saver Fraud Examples & Why They Don’t Work
Example #1: Power Factor Corrector/Capacitor Box for Home
I have explained in another article why you can’t reduce electric bill with capacitors at home.
But in short, there’s something that is called the power factor, which is normally less than 1.
The lower this power factor goes, the higher the losses on the utility company will be.
This is why some companies charge customers an extra fee if the power factor went to a low level such as 0.8, mainly caused by having many motors connected to the meter.
However, this happens only with big industrial consumers, and not for residential or commercial consumers, which is why the utility uses special meters for industrial consumers that measure the power factor value.
And that’s why, only industrial consumers need to do power factor correction, and it cannot be done with a small box, but it needs calculations from a specialized person in order to do the necessary sizing of the capacitor.
And the ones trying to sell you the power factor correction device for home are lying to you by telling you that it helps you by reducing the electricity bill.
The meter at home doesn’t read the power factor, and therefore, you won’t get charged for it at home, shop, or office.
This is why there’s no point from using a power factor correction box, aka capacitor box, at home or at non-industrial places.
Example #2: Plug-in Electric Power Saver Device That Stabilizes Voltage
The plug-in power saver that is advertised as one that stabilizes voltage in order to save you money is another big lie that doesn’t work.
They tell you that voltage bumps and irregularities can increase an unnecessary energy to be consumed, and that these devices stabilize the voltage and regulate the current at home, which leads to less consumption, and up to 20%-50% saving on the bill!
That’s a complete lie.
The voltage reaches customers stable and regulated, and if there’s any distortion or bumps in voltage, it would be very low, and doesn’t really cause an increase in the bill, even to the extent of 5%.
For example, the voltage at US and Canada is rated at 110V, and at most of other countries at 220V.
The utility have protection systems in place that will trip off the main circuit if the voltage increases more than, let’s say, 3%.
So, let’s assume that the voltage might increase at some point by 2%, that’s fine as it won’t harm the equipment, and it will not cause an increase in the bill that can be saved by these energy saving boxes or devices.
The saving that this box would make, assuming that it really works, would be very negligible and won’t make up for the high price that you paid in order to get it.
Example #3: Meter Power Saving Box with Secret Technology
There are some power saving boxes that are advertised as boxes that can bring some lost energy and give it to your home for free, and you need to connect them to the panel beside the electric meter.
And these are sometimes advertised like the two previous types, either as power factor correction capacitors, or as voltage stabilizers.
I have already explained why voltage stabilizers and power factor correction boxes for home don’t work.
But when it comes to having a secret source that gets you free electric energy, then that’s a complete lie.
As per the law of conversation of energy, energy can neither be created nor destroyed; but rather, it can be transformed or transferred from one form to another.
There’s no point from using this box, because all the electric energy you will get will come from the utility meter, and not from the box, which means that you will be charged for every single penny.
All of the claims about these energy saving boxes don’t work.
Want Real Alternative Energy Saving Devices That Work?
As explained above, don’t buy devices that promise to cut the electric bill based on unsupported claims, or based on some secret that doesn’t exist.
The saving should come based on a scientific fact, such as:
- Either the appliances itself, like the AC unit or fridge, is built with a new technology that consumes less electric power.
- Or there should be some way to generate electricity from another energy form, like what the solar panels do by converting sunlight into electricity.
Here are some examples of real power savers for home that work and lower the electric bill:
1 – Energy Star Appliances
Appliances that have the Energy Star label, which is based on a program run by the Department of Energy in order to recommend appliances that are built based on the latest energy efficiency practices and technologies.
2 – Solar Powered Appliances
Like solar attic fans, solar lights, solar cookers, solar water heaters, and many other appliances and systems that have their own system that collect the energy coming from the sun and turn it into electricity or heat.
3 – Renewable Energy Electric Generators
Like the complete solar panel system for the whole house, the small wind turbine for residential use, or even portable solar power generators with batteries.
4 – New Technology
Like the LED lighting bulbs that are much more efficient that halogen bulbs or even CFLs.
5 – Water Saving Devices
Because if you save on hot water, you can save on the electric bill as a result if you were using an electric water heater.
And don’t forget that you will save on the consumption of water pumps when you use less water, whether cold or hot.
If you want more specific examples, then you can read my list of 15 real electric energy saving devices for home, and the other list of 15 devices to reduce electric bill in any place.
Conclusion – Should You Buy Energy Saving Boxes?
No, don’t buy any of the energy saving boxes or power savers like PowerVolt, Okowatt, Power Save, …etc.
Energy Saving Boxes & Power savers don’t really work for houses and commercial consumers as they are being advertised.
Check out the two lists mentioned in the last paragraph of the previous section for energy saving devices that really work.
And if you have any question about anything here, or about a specific device, please, leave it in the comments’ section below, and I will do my best to help you out 🙂
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How do the audience know that YOU also is not a scammer. You put down one company to SELL your product and the audience suppose to believe what you say with no problem at all. You can say all these wonderful things about your profession and blah blah blah, but scammers are professionals so you can’t trust ANYONE who is trying to make a buck! You my friend is included in that line up
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I do not sell any product!
I recommended a proven system through a reputable company that has thousands of happy customers, and it is a well known company, and you can find testimonials for them if you look for them online.
Amjad
Why have these scammers / crooks allowed still to advertise this rubbish and why have our governments not stepped in to advise the popoulation or to take legal action against them ??? Derek
Thank you for your question Derek!
Unfortunately, this is a “free” world, and they sell through a free market where the government doesn’t intervene unless there’s a big number of complaints against a specific business name.
same way, you see thousands of MLM companies that are actually pyramid schemes in disguise, scamming tens of thousands of people on the promise of getting wealthy, and rarely we hear that one of them got investigated and got shut down.
Amjad
Hi Amjad,
Just wanted to say well done for this helpful article. I sometimes follow up on these claims of wonder products (and investments) out of curiosity, and it’s always nice to see someone sharing their expert knowledge to help others (that goes for the comments too). A bit disappointing to see a quite shouty response from one person, but I hope that doesn’t deter you form sharing, and helping, in the future
Cheers
Ian
Thank you for your feedback Ian! It’s really helpful.
Amjad
Thank you for the insight on the “Power saving devices”.
We almost bought one, or two, but thought better of it and I’m convinced it is only a money making scam for these companies.
The government is the one who should step in and say, enough is enough. As with gasoline, diesel, heating oil, groceries, textiles, enough IS enough.
So we thank you for an honest review, my husband is also an electrician and he could not see the sense in such a device.
You are most welcome.
I’m glad that I’m not the only one who could see through the nonsense said by whoever promotes these power saving devices.
Unfortunately, these devices are being promoted to normal people who usually know very little about energy principles in order to take advantage of their desperate need of reducing the bills, and the government must do its job in protecting them.
Amjad
I was foolish enough to purchase one of these so-called power saving devices on
Amazon UK. It came from a third party seller and cost very little. However, before
it arrived, Amazon sent me an email informing me that it could be dangerous and
even catch fire as it is incorrectly wired. When it did arrive I contacted Amazon
who told me not to return it and they gave me a refund within 48 hours.
I’m glad that Amazon has sent you the warning and promised to refund your money.
Thanks a lot for sharing your experience. It’s very important to help others who read it stay safe.
Unbelievable that some sellers try to make quick money with these “power savers”, even if it was at the expense of the safety and security of others.
Best regards,
Amjad
I have bought 2 of these energy saving devices and plugged them in and I have not seen any type of savings. They are a scam and recommend nobody buy these things. Have had them for over a year now and I got no results. Save your money!
Thank you Brian for the feedback. I hope everyone reads your comment before they spend a dime on these devices.
Amjad
As an Electrical and Electronics engineer with 40 years of experience I have to laugh at these power saving devices.
Equipment efficiency is the only way of saving on your bill or alternative power source. The best energy saver on the market would be the off switch !!!
Thank you for your comment Steve!
Unfortunately, people who desperately want to save on their bills are willing to believe any claims they hear about these power savers, even if such claims don’t make sense.
Amjad
What about Power Factor if your system is already Capacitive??? Opposite to what they are correcting.
Hello Dave and thank you for your question!
The Power Saver Device will increase the capacitance of the system in that case, and thus, will increase the current drawn from the meter, but the value of the kWh drawn will remain almost the same.
Amjad
Unfortunately I bought 4 of them and did not see any savings.Now I am stuck ,I did not buy them from amazon and have no paperwork to return them.My son looked into them and found out that they are a Fraud big time.
Sorry to hear that you couldn’t get your money back 🙁
This entire article SHOUTS “bullshit” to me. I believe you’ve been paid (if you exist) big bucks by the power companies to keep us from using these devices. Also, you’re trying to sell YOUR solar panels by conning us into believing these devices don’t work. I do not believe that reputable companies like Walmart would allow these devices to be sold on their websites if the devices did not work, as you claim. And if MY comment gets onto this website, because it tells the TRUTH, then I will be shocked. Sellers like you will ONLY allow comments that favor your opinion and your products. The internet is FULL of hogwash and deceit and ads like this (yours) are right at the top of the list for scamming and deceiving those of us who are looking for LEGITIMATE information about products we should and should not purchase. I obviously do NOT trust you or anything in this article.
Ok Angela,
Go and buy these devices from Wlamart and Amazon, let them run for a month with the same usage of electricity with your appliances like the month before (same usage for everything: water heater, AC, lights, fans, …etc.), and then compare the two bills, and give us your feedback.
Amjad
I am an electrician and i can say that this article is correct. These supposed energy saving devices dont work. Solar panels, wind turbines etc do. Do some research before you buy these so called energy savers.
Thanks a lot Terence for your feedback on this matter. It helps others save their money and time.
Amjad
You are WRONG, Angela. I am a retired utility engineer, but anyone who has studied electrical engineering would tell you that these devices are, indeed, a scam. The best they could do is to slightly decrease the load current to hour home, but they well DEFINITELY not reduce your energy supply. I suggest you talk to someone who understands electrical engineering to confirm the scam.
Thank you for your help in clarifying the matter. It really helps people save themselves from such scams.
Amajd
Thanks for your insight and knowledge, and your willingness to share.
Now we know power savers are bust, and not to buy them
Thank-you
Tony
In His Grace
Thank you Tony for your feedback!
I am glad that my article was helpful in avoiding the frauds related to the “magical” power saving devices and electricity saving boxes.
There are many legit devices that can help you lower your electric bill based on real facts and principles, and these power savers are not among them.
Amjad