Is it dangerous to leave the computer on? Explaining electricity costs, advantages and disadvantages

Have you ever left your computer on, thinking, ``I'll use it again tomorrow and it's a pain to shut it down''?

At the same time, some people may feel that leaving the power on may not be good for the computer.

In fact, you should be careful if you leave your computer on for long periods of time as it may cause problems in the following areas.

• Security
• lifespan
• Disasters such as fires
• The main body will break
• electricity bill etc.

In this article, we will specifically explain the above-mentioned problems that can occur when you leave your computer on.

Is it bad to leave your computer on? This is the conclusion

Leaving your computer on allows you to use it whenever you want, but it also has the following disadvantages:

• Dangerous in terms of security
• The lifespan of your computer may be shortened.
• Disasters such as fire may occur
• The main body may be damaged
• Electricity bills may rise

In this section, we will explain each of the disadvantages listed above one by one.

Leaving your computer on is a security risk!

One of the disadvantages of leaving your computer on is security.

This is because if you leave your computer connected to the Internet for a long time, the risk of being infected by viruses and other viruses increases.

There seems to be no problem in most cases if you take proper measures such as security software, but if you are constantly online without updating etc., you can be exploited for vulnerabilities and be subject to cyber attacks. It is also possible.

Viruses cannot enter unless the power is on, so the risk is lower than if the power is always on.

As you can see, leaving your computer on all the time is dangerous from a security perspective, so you should be careful.

Leaving your computer on all the time can shorten its lifespan.

Leaving your computer on for long periods of time may shorten its lifespan.

This is because parts are subject to stress due to heat generation, etc.

When your computer is running, it generates heat.
The generated heat is dissipated by a fan, etc., but if the main unit is left on for a long time, heat may accumulate.

As a result of the heat build-up, internal parts continue to be exposed to heat and deteriorate, shortening the lifespan of the computer.

Leaving your computer on for long periods of time can put stress on its parts and shorten its lifespan.

Leaving your computer on can cause fires and other disasters.

Be careful not to leave your computer on as it can build up heat and cause a fire.

In fact, there has been an article about an accident where a laptop computer caught fire.

Fire at Kashiwazaki-Kariwa Nuclear Power Plant's seismic isolation building Fire started from a computer
The cause of this fire is under investigation, but in any case, there are cases where fires occur due to computers.

If your computer heats up and dust accumulates, there is a risk of it catching fire, so you should also clean it regularly.

If your computer is large and has good cooling performance, the effect of heat will likely be small, but if you have a small computer or a computer that does not have good airflow, you need to be careful.

In this way, leaving your computer on for long periods of time can lead to fires and other disasters.

Leaving your computer on for long periods of time may damage it.

Please be careful not to leave your computer on for long periods of time as this may damage the computer.

Heat generation is one of the reasons why the main unit malfunctions.

For example, if you leave a small computer or laptop with poor cooling performance on for a long time, the heat dissipation won't be able to keep up with it, causing thermal runaway and potentially causing it to malfunction.

Gaming PCs with excellent cooling performance often have no problems, but if you keep a regular computer on, you may want to check to see if the temperature is getting too high.

We also have an article that explains software that can check the temperature and health status of your hard disk, so if you are interested, please read it.

Diagnosing the lifespan of a hard disk, how to use Cristal Disk Info

If you leave your computer on all day, your electricity bill will increase.

Please be careful not to leave your computer on as it may increase your electricity bill.

For example, if you leave your computer on for a month, your electricity bill could be around 500 to 4,000 yen.

The method for calculating the electricity bill per hour for a computer is as follows.

• Electricity fee for consumption W÷1000×1kWh
  (Here, it is 31 yen.*National Home Appliance Fair Trade Council (as of February 2023))

In the case of a desktop computer, the power consumption is about 30 to 150W, so it can be assumed that the electricity bill will be 0.93 to 4.65 yen per hour.

If you leave it on for a whole day, it will cost you 22.32 to 111.6 yen, which means that for 30 days, your electricity bill will be 669.6 to 3,348 yen.

Of course, computer models, usage conditions, and electricity rates vary, so the amount may not fall within this range.

In any case, if you leave your computer on for a long time, you will incur a certain amount of electricity bill.

Is it bad to leave your laptop on in sleep mode?

Many people may leave their laptops on in sleep mode, but as explained above, there are risks to leaving them on.

In this article, we will explain leaving your laptop on when it goes to sleep from the following points of view.

• electric bill
• battery
• dust etc.

So let's take a look at them one by one.

Electricity bill doesn't cost that much

If you leave your laptop on when it goes to sleep, you probably don't have to worry about the electricity bill that much.

This is because the power consumption per hour when a laptop is in sleep mode is around 1W.

Using the above calculation method, the electricity cost for 1W ÷ 1000 x 1kWh (31 yen) = 0.031 per hour,

• 0.744 yen per day (24 hours)
• 22.32 yen for 30 days

It becomes. So it costs less than 100 yen.

Please note that this calculation is based on power consumption when the device is in sleep mode for a month, so the actual amount of power consumed is when the device is in use.

In this way, you can say that even if you leave your laptop on in sleep mode, your monthly electricity bill will not be that high.

Battery deterioration problem

Another issue is battery deterioration.

People who leave their laptops in sleep mode and leave them on are likely also connected to power adapters, which can cause battery deterioration.

If your laptop has a removable battery, you may want to remove it and use the adapter to power it. (Nowadays, there are some items that cannot be removed)

Each manufacturer has different opinions regarding batteries, so it's a good idea to check with the manufacturer of your laptop.

Easy to collect dust and difficult to clean

If you leave your laptop on for a long time, the heat generated can cause the accumulated dust to catch fire.

Laptop computers are harder to clean inside than desktop computers, so dust can accumulate inside them.

Furthermore, their heat dissipation performance is lower than that of desktop computers, so there is a risk of a fire if left on.

As you can see, laptops are difficult to clean and tend to accumulate dust, so leaving them on for a long time can cause a disaster.

It may not be much of a problem if it goes to sleep, but I think doing a light cleaning periodically can also give you an opportunity to shut down.

If you want to clean your laptop, we recommend this article.

How to clean your laptop to make it last longer! Explanation of points and fees when requesting

Benefits of leaving your computer on

In the above section, we explained the disadvantages of leaving your computer on all the time.

On the other hand, there are some advantages to leaving your computer on:

• Ready to use
• Remote access anytime

However, as explained above, if you leave your computer on for a long time, there are security issues and the risk of overheating, so you need to take these into consideration.

Ready to use

The advantage of leaving your computer on is that you can use it whenever you want.

If you start up from a state where the power is off, it will take about 15 seconds to 2 minutes.
It depends on your computer's specs and whether you are using an SSD or HDD, but it will take some time to start up.

Some people may find it troublesome to wait for the power to turn on every time they do a small task, and I think there are many cases where they leave it on for that reason.

If you leave it on, you won't have to restart the browser tab you're researching or the app you're using.

In this way, the advantage of leaving your computer on is that you can start working immediately.

Remote access anytime

Another benefit of leaving your computer on is that you can access it remotely from a distance.

If you want to perform remote access using an application, etc., the computer to be connected must basically be running.
If the power is off, you won't even know it's connected in the first place, and the connected side won't be able to find the receiving side either.

There are some that allow you to turn on the main unit via the server when accessed, but this requires settings such as the BIOS.

You may even leave your device on to connect to the computer you use at work from home using the apps and services mentioned above.

Nowadays, more people are working from home, so being able to access it anytime is an advantage.

In this way, the advantage of leaving your computer on is that you can access it remotely from a distance at any time.

If you absolutely have to leave your computer on

If you must leave your computer on for purposes such as remote access or data collection, it is best to use a desktop computer or gaming PC with excellent cooling performance.

This is because small computers and regular notebook computers have concerns about their heat dissipation performance, and there is a risk of parts deterioration and fire.

Many people may think that there is no problem even if they leave their computers on, but as introduced earlier, there are cases of fires caused by the computer itself catching fire.

Therefore, it is recommended that you take measures to prevent the temperature from getting too high, or prepare a computer that is as resistant to heat generation as possible.

If you absolutely have to leave your computer on all the time, it would be a good idea to use a desktop computer or gaming PC with excellent cooling performance and airflow.
Please also focus on security measures and use with care to avoid viruses.

Summary: Avoid leaving your computer on as much as possible.

In this article, we have come to the conclusion that we do not recommend leaving your computer on all the time.
This is because there is a risk of problems occurring in various areas, including security.

Depending on the computer you use and how you use it, it may affect your electricity bill, so it's a good idea to turn it off when you're not using it.

However, if you turn the power on and off too often, you will end up consuming more power and putting a strain on your HDD or SSD.

If you are taking a break for about an hour, we recommend putting it into sleep mode.
Other than that, avoid leaving your computer on as much as possible, and turn it off when you go to bed.