ee
energy efficiency
home Systems
Keep Track of Energy Use
By SCOTTE ELLIOTT
Scotte Elliott (selliott@
greentechconsultants.com)
is an electrical engineer and
principal of Green Tech Con-
sultants LLC in Columbus,
Ohio. He also serves as chair
Anumber of studies make it clear that when people know how much power they’re using, they’re more likely to conserve. The problem is that most people
don’t know how much energy they use. Your car tells you
how fast it’s going, which is a rough index of the power it
uses, but your home appliances don’t come with speedometers. however, there are now several easy ways for
homeowners to gain better insight into their energy use.
of the Renewable Fuels and
Sustainable Transportation
Division of the American
Solar Energy Society.
In-home displays
designed to wirelessly
interface with utility
smart meters:
Plug Smart, Home Energy
Management System
( plugsmart.com/products/
home-energy-management)
EnergyHub ( energyhub.net)
Energy Aware Power Tab
In-Home Display (energy-
aware.com/our-products/ihd)
LS Research Smart Energy
In-Home Display ( lsr.com/
products/smartenergy)
Aztech In-Home Display
( aztechmeter.com/cms)
Online Energy-Tracking Tools
The easiest and least expensive way to gain an understanding of home energy use is to use an online energy-tracking tool. Cost and usage data from utility bills are manually entered into the system, and the application shows
historical energy consumption from month to month and
year to year. This establishes a baseline of energy consumption prior to implementing energy-efficiency improvements. after the improvements have been completed, data
from subsequent utility bills can be entered, allowing the
homeowner to better quantify the impact of the improvements by comparing energy use before and after. here are
two free online energy-tracking tools:
GreenQuest ( mygreenquest.com/greentechconsul
tants) analyzes energy use and cost over a period of years,
compares energy use to similar buildings, evaluates energy-saving projects, tracks carbon footprint and shows results
of energy conservation efforts on easy-to-read charts and
graphs. GreenQuest also uses weather data (in the form of
heating and cooling degree days) so that accurate comparisons can be made from year to year.
Microsoft Hohm ( microsoft-hohm.com) asks you to
enter information about your home (year built, square
footage, heating, cooling, water heater, etc.). If your utility
provider is a hohm partner, it can send hohm automated
data feeds; otherwise, the user must manually enter utility
data. The hohm website offers many energy-saving tips.
Tendril Vision In-Home
Display ( tendrilinc.com/prod-
ucts/vision)
Device Monitoring
a plug-based meter allows you to measure the power
use of a single device (such as a television, toaster or win-
dow air conditioner). This is especially helpful in finding
vampire loads — devices that continue to consume energy
even when turned off. many older televisions, VCrs and
stereo systems are notorious for having large vampire loads,
so they can operate a digital clock or be ready to respond
to a remote control. The solution: Put them on a switch-
able power strip. Plug-based meters won’t work for large
hard-wired or 240-volt loads like central air conditioning,
furnace fans, attic fans, electric dryers and water heaters.
The following are device-monitoring products:
Kill-A-Watt ( p3international.com/products/consum
er/) is available as an individual plug device ($35) or power
strip ($75), both with a display showing real-time power and
accumulated energy use.
Plug Smart ( plugsmart.com) is a wall-socket monitor
displaying real-time energy consumption, carbon footprint
and projected annual cost. The company also makes “smart”
surge protectors, which eliminate vampire power consumption and include timers to automatically shut off charging
devices, such as cell phones.
Whole-Home Monitoring
the energy DeteCtIve
Sophisticated and comprehensive whole-home sys-
tems measure power at the meter or service panel. Data is
recorded in real time, and a display in the kitchen or another
central location shows the instantaneous power used and
accumulated energy consumed over time. The following
products include sensors
that enable them to be used
by virtually all homeowners
regardless of the utility sup-
plier or electric meter type:
The Energy Detective
TED 5000 Home Energy
Management System
( theenergydetective.com)
shows energy use on a wire-
less display or on the inter-
net via Google Power meter
( google.com/powermeter/
about). The system can coor-
dinate with a net-metering
device, so, in addition to con-
sumption, you can monitor
the output of a photovoltaic system. Price: $239.
PowerCost Monitor ( bluelineinnovations.com) also
uses a wireless display to show energy use in kilowatt-
hours and dollars and cents. It predicts electric usage for
the month based on current usage and shows peak energy
cost within the last 24 hours. Price: $119.
as they adopt smart meters, some utility companies
may offer in-home displays or web-based portal sites. Other
utilities may rely on third-party products to provide these
capabilities. See sidebar for some of them. GS
TED monitors home energy
use, allowing residents
to see in real time what
they’re consuming in kilowatt-hours as well
as dollars.
