WCCO's Project Energy - Power-Saving Pop Machines

WCCO’s Project Energy: Story by Bill Hudson

Excerpt from video:

“We’re trying to do the right thing by the environment but certainly money is an impact with budget’s being cut in cities all over the place,” said St. Peter City Administrator Todd Prafke.

That’s one of the factors motivating the city to purchase six small devices that will cut off power to the vending machines when nobody’s around. They are called “vending misers” and they operate much like a light switch activated by motion.

Should a customer walk into the room, the infrared device senses a customer’s presence and tells the unit to cycle the cooling compressor. It simply keeps the vending machine from running on and off throughout the night.

That continuous cycling on and off is costly. The average soda vending machine in service will use around $300 a year in electricity.

Links:

• Read the full Project Energy feature by Bill Hudson on WCCO >>.
• Watch the video at wcco.com >>
• Learn more and participate in the bulk-buy >>