"CS" <idontw...@fcc.gov> wrote in message

> Just saw a commercial for the Powersave 1200, which will save you
> hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars in energy bills.  It is targeted
> and designed specifically for residential customers.

> The commercial appeared on the Sci Fi channel, which is well known for
> advertisements from reputable companies. yeah

> So it hooks to your breaker box, reduces the power factor of all your
> appliances (including, according to the commercial, TV's, heaters, ovens,
> stoves, dishwashers, microwaves, water heaters, toasters, air
> conditioners, and coffee makers (implies your coffee will taste better as
> well).  It also filters and recycles the excess electricity in your power
> lines.

> It also cools down TV's, because they, like your other appliances, are
> receiving too much power.  This device only supplies the power your
> appliances require, so there will be no heat in anything not designed to
> actually heat something.  So throw away those fans on your computer!

> Fascinating stuff.  It's UL tested and listed, and has been "recognized by
> the Department of Energy".  They even have a report on their web site.  It
> sure looks like it's from the DOE.  Oh, it was a "Program of the DOE", but
> the actual report was written by the Motor Challenge Information
> Clearinghouse, with a website www.motor.doe.gov that, while having an .gov
> on the end, does not seem to exist.  Or the US government's computers are
> all down. (they aren't)

> Anyway, there's also a "university study" of this device.  Except that
> it's two "PHD's" in the electrical engineering department of Santa Clara
> University.  One is a part timer, the other is a study-for-hire type.
> It's a 10 page report, by two PHD's, from a university, but there's no
> notes, biblio, or anything to show that it wasn't cobbled together in 20
> minutes off the cuff.  And it doesn't even mention this device by name.
> But hey, it's a study.

> It's only $300.  Plus shipping and handling.

> http://www.power-save.com/product.html

> http://www.power-save1200.com/

> Funny thing about the FAQ's.  They know how much the unit costs, they know
> how long it'll take to pay for itself (6 to 12 months), but when asked how
> much money folks can save every month, a long list follows "it depends
> on".

> I'm not a huge math guy, but it can't be that tough.  Maybe they can tap
> one of those PHD's to figure it out.

> My question is this;

> Is this bullshit, baloney, flim flam, or snake oil?

> No doubt it must do something.  Heck, it might just do some of the stuff
> it claims.  But while they commercial claims power plants "can" charge for
> low power factors, they forget to mention that this applies almost
> exclusively to the industrial and commercial sectors.  Residential
> customers rarely, if ever, generate a low enough power factor to be
> noticed by power plants.

> I expect a certain amount of dumbing down in commercials when dealing with
> technical stuff, but this seems to be a collection of outright lies.

> Anyway, I was wondering if this was just a grossly overpriced capacitor,
> and if it can significantly alter a sine wave.

> CS