Hilo resident Tyler Mercier has unplugged more than two dozen electrical devices in a quest to lower his electricity bill. On O'ahu, retiree Alan Lloyd sought out the most efficient air conditioner he could find for his townhouse.

Across the state, residents are shaving kilowatt hours off their utility bills as electricity costs surge. In the past 12 months, electric bills have risen as fast or faster than gasoline prices in many parts of the state. O'ahu has been hit the worst with a 51 percent increase in residential electricity prices.

The average Honolulu home's utility bill in June was $57 higher than a year earlier and costs are continuing to rise. The average home — using 600 kilowatt hours a month — is paying about $2,038 per year now.

Petroleum-fired generators supply more than 75 percent of the state's electricity, and the run up in crude oil prices has hit the state hard as $144-a-barrel prices filter through to utility customers. Hawai'i residents already pay the highest electricity costs in the nation at more than twice the national average.

Mercier went into the energy miser mode after moving to Hilo from the San Francisco Bay Area late last year. His first bill from Hawaiian Electric Light Co. was for $350.

"I was shocked at the bill," said Mercier, who paid about $100 a month when he and his wife lived in an apartment in Cupertino, Calif. "I had heard power was expensive, but it kind of took my breath away."

Mercier, 51, has been able to work that down to about $200 a month through a number of measures, including the now well-known step of replacing incandescent light bulbs with compact fluorescent lights.

He has also discovered there was a wall switch in his rented home for his water heater, which he now shuts off when it isn't needed.

His research also turned up the issue of "ghost" or "phantom" loads, or electricity that is drawn by devices that are plugged into sockets but not in use.

Hawaiian Electric Co. figures show a color inkjet printer may use 0.01 kilowatt hours when used 15 minutes a day. But it will continue to draw a phantom load the rest of the day amounting to 0.12 kilowatt hours.

Mercier paid $50 on the Internet for a "Kill A Watt" meter that allows him to see how much his electronics are drawing when on or off. An older Sony Vaio laptop drew 25 to 30 watts when not in use, while a coffee pot with a light and clock drew 10 watts.

Other culprits were cell phone chargers, a printer, an exercise bike with a screen, handheld vacuum, CD players and a paper shredder. He has unplugged 28 devices or plugged them into power strips that he now flips off when not in use.

"It seems like anything that has a screen or light on it has a ghost load," said Mercier, a sculptor who writes a blog named Hilo Living.

Kailua resident Lloyd knows all about phantom loads after having retired from HECO as executive staff engineer. He doesn't plug in his laptop computer when not in use, though notes that some electronics may be designed to remain plugged in so moisture and mildew won't ruin them.

Lloyd said he looks for ways to operate efficiently to save money. He has switched to CFL bulbs in frequently used lamps and waits until his dishwasher is full before turning it on.

"It still takes the same amount of water and electricity no matter how full it is," said Lloyd, who also bought pipe insulation and installed it around his hot water lines. That helps reduce heat loss.

"I'm pretty sure I got my 99 cents back in a month or so."

LOWERING COSTS

Like Lloyd, Kauai Island Utility Cooperative's Ray Mierta preaches doing what makes sense. He was taken aback last week by a call from a woman who told him she had unplugged her water heater, lowering her electricity bill to $47 a month from $100.

Mierta instead advocates seeking the lowest possible cost to getting the job done rather than doing without.

Water heaters are typically a Hawai'i home's biggest single energy draw, with a heater typically being responsible for 40 percent of a family of four's electricity use, according to HECO. It's one reason HECO and other utilities in the state encourage solar water heating.

Mierta said people need to take a look at how they use electricity and educate themselves on what the costs are. Among his recommendations are cutting hot water use by washing clothes in cold water or switching from running a bath to taking a shower.

He also recommends people with multiple refrigerators get a single, energy-efficient one that can accommodate the same amount of items, or that people switch from using their electric dryer to using a clothesline. It's common for Kaua'i residents to knock $100 a month off their electricity bills by hanging their clothes outside, Mierta said.

"We're finding education is key," said Mierta, who notes some people may be sticklers for turning off lights but don't pay the same attention to hot water use.

"Individuals can make little changes that can reduce their electric bill."

DEMAND STILL STEADY

With all the concern about rising electricity bills and some people trying to cut back on how they use electricity, it might be reasonable to assume utilities are seeing less demand for their generation. That's not necessarily the case, however.

Maui Electric Co. reported residential consumption is down slightly on Maui and Lana'i, but up on Moloka'i.

Curtis Beck, manager of HELCO's energy services department, said it is difficult to say whether use is going down because there are so many factors that come into play.

He said he suspects people are using electricity more wisely, but this comes at a time when gasoline prices have risen. People may be staying home more as a result.

"You cocoon a little more," Beck said. "That could tend to use more electricity."

Still, Beck believes his own electricity bill is down by about $20 a month because he bought a more energy-efficient refrigerator.

"If you pay attention to your energy usage, you can make a dent."