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krw  
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 More options Jul 8 2007, 7:55 am
Newsgroups: alt.engineering.electrical
From: krw <k...@att.bizzzz>
Date: Sat, 7 Jul 2007 19:55:05 -0400
Local: Sun, Jul 8 2007 7:55 am
Subject: Re: Question on Powersave 1200
In article <139084nmvpun...@corp.supernews.com>, idontw...@fcc.gov
says...

> 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.

Save you "thousands"?  What if you don't pay "thousands"?

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

Nobody ever lies on TV, right?  The commercial is on the SciFi
network, assume it is also SciFi.  ;-)

> 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.

Well, you don't want your coffee to taste of stale electricity, do
you?

> 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!

Ah, the laws of thermodynamics has been repealed, at last!

> 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)

UL doesn't certify efficacy.  If the certification is real (doubt
this) it only means that it shouldn't catch fire or electrocute
someone while being used as designed.

> 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.

THey find doctors to say that diet pills work too.  Well, if that's
all you eat...

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

Crap!  Demand free S&H!  These charges are always bogus!  ;-)

> 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".

Nor what you pay for electricity...  Hmm, sounds like a constant
dollar source.  I wonder if the Fed knows about this?

> 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.

Maybe they better buy off a guy from the math department at that
great educational institution too.

> My question is this;

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

Yes, yes, yes, and most certainly.

> No doubt it must do something.  

It'll heat the room. Contrary to what they say, thermodynamics is
alive and well.

> 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.

Residential customers are *not* charged for PF, at least in the US.  
The only claim they could weasel around is the heating of your
internal home wiring due to reactive current.

> 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.

Lies in a commercial, what a concept!

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

Don't forget the pilot light, telling you that it's on the job,
saving you *thousands*.  ...and for "only" $300...

--
  Keith


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