Phantom Load
The small amount of electricity devices draw continuously even when switched off or idle.
Phantom load, also called standby or vampire power, is the energy electronics consume while doing nothing useful - chargers left plugged in, monitors on standby, and a PC's idle draw all contribute. For a home miner the most relevant version is the rig's idle consumption, often 60-100W on a desktop just sitting at the operating system. Those watts earn no MLRT, so during non-mining hours they are pure waste. Identifying phantom and idle load with a metering smart plug reveals how much a full shutdown or deep-sleep schedule between mining sessions would save, frequently more than people expect over a month.