Ever since computers were first used by mainstream consumers, there have been a lot of random facts floating around about general best practices. Most Mac or PC owners have probably heard all sorts of conflicting information about how to protect their devices from viruses and what they should use – be it a cloud computing service or external hard drive – to back up their files.

Now, at least one small subject of contention has been cleared up by the Rick Broida, the PC Tip expert at PCWorld.

If you're on and off your computer constantly, you may sometimes wonder about how much energy you're using (and the money you may be wasting).

You've probably heard at some point that leaving your computer running at night is more energy-efficient than shutting it down. Some experts say that the rebooting process even contributes to wear and tear than can send you to a local computer repair service prematurely. You may have been skeptical of this advice because it doesn't seem that logical, but the source confirms that this technology myth is true.

Drawing from a study from Iolo Labs – a part of software company Iolo dedicated to PC performance research – Brioda explains that there are two benefits to choosing sleep mode over turning your device on and off. According to Iolo's calculations, putting your computer in sleep mode overnight can save you $2 a month in electricity costs. And, it can actually save you roughly 25 minutes in time because you won't have to sit through the whole shut down/start up process.

But, even if you do opt for this more energy-efficient option, you'll probably still need to have your device checked out at some point. And, if you're searching for a quick and local resource for your technology needs, look no further than Geeks On-site for Maryland, Virginia and Washington, D.C. computer repair.