41: Don't use a screen saver — set your display to sleep by ihough

Every time you complete this action, you will reduce emissions by an estimated 0.3 lbs. CO₂e.

This may come as a surprise, but these days most screen savers don’t actually save energy (or your screen). Screen savers were originally designed to prevent “burn-in” on old CRT monitors. CRTs create an image by shooting electrons at the screen to excite phosphors which then emit light. The phosphors eventually “burn out,” becoming dimmer over time. If a static image was displayed on the screen for a long time, the phosphors used to display the image could become noticeably dimmer, resulting in a “ghost” of the image being permanently displayed. Screen savers reduced this problem by displaying constantly moving images if the machine was idle for a certain time.

Modern CRTs use improved phosphors, display many colors, and rarely display static images for long times, so the risk of burn-in is very small. And burn in does not occur in the LCD (flat panel) displays used with new computers and laptops. So there’s really no need to use a screen saver. And unlike old screen savers (Starfield anyone?), modern versions usually display bright images like photos. In other words, they use just as much energy as keeping your display on!

If you want to save energy, set your monitor to sleep after 3 to 5 minutes. If you really like your screen saver, try setting it to come on after 3 minutes and then set your display to sleep after 5 to 10 minutes. Just don’t pretend the screen saver is anything but decoration.

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