Appliances Strain College Electric Systems

Listen to the sounds of college dormitory rooms today: Buzzing from hair dryers and the drone of electric razors. Beeping microwaves. Whirring computer disc drives. Even swooshing from fancy coffee machines.

The latest electric appliances are putting a strain on colleges’ aging electrical systems.

Adding electrical outlets, circuits and capacity in residence halls is a costly component of the estimated $26 billion in deferred maintenance on America’s campuses, the Assn. of Higher Education Facilities Officers reports.

Because of the expense, many colleges have put off rewiring.

Patricia McGuire, president of Trinity College in Washington, says electrical power upgrades help drive up tuition costs. She informally surveyed 20 students one day at lunch. They had an average of 10 1/2 plug-in appliances.

There were common items like computers and televisions. There also were espresso machines, toasters, Christmas lights, plug-in air fresheners, humidifiers, dehumidifiers, rechargeable mini vacuums, rechargeable batteries and electric pencil sharpeners.

“Assuming two students in a room, the college is expected to support no fewer than 20 electrical items per student room--often in dormitories constructed in a different era when so much ‘stuff’ would have been banned as frivolous,” McGuire said.

Along with the Led Zeppelin “Stairway to Heaven” poster, stuffed animals and books, 18-year-old Payton Richard and her roommate have 25 plug-in items in their Georgetown University dorm room.

There are two irons, two hair dryers, an electric pencil sharpener, a stereo, an answering machine, two laptop computers, two electric hair-roller sets, a refrigerator, two printers, eight lights and three clock radios.

“It’s hard to get up,” Richard explained.

Ken LeTourneau, 20, a computer engineering student at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University in Blacksburg, Va., and his roommate have two dozen appliances.

They include: Two computers, two monitors, a printer, two desk lights, one stand-up lamp, three clip-on lights and a string of decorative bulbs. There is a microwave, a stereo, two refrigerators, a television, fan and a charging unit for a razor.

“I don’t think that’s obsessively high. They’re never all on at one time,” said LeTourneau, who is considering a lava lamp--a 1970s decoration making a comeback.

Students want the convenience of microwaves and other cooking appliances in their rooms, said David Shaughnessy, manager of utility assessments at the University of Maryland. Add that to rising numbers of personal computers and laser printers--he calls them “electrical pigs”--and demand can exceed capacity.

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At the University of Notre Dame, high-wattage electric heaters and toaster ovens are taboo and students are encouraged to use common cooking areas instead of trying to set up a mini kitchen in their dorm room, said Paul Kempf, an electrical engineer. Electric consumption in residence halls rose from 10.177 million kilowatt hours in fiscal 1986 to 12 million kilowatt hours in fiscal 1996.

At the University of Arizona, school officials do periodic inspections to make sure students are using safe extension cords, said Jim Van Arsdel, director of residence life.