The new TED 5000 with Google PowerMeter (that's TED The Energy Detective) provides a wide array of display options for viewing your electricity data: visualization on your computer screen using the TED Footprints software, live streaming to iGoogle with Google PowerMeter (which may be viewed on your computer or hand-held); or data presented on the TED display monitor itself. Each visual representation has advantages. The key to getting the most out of your monitoring experience is to choose the visualization method that will become a seamless part of your routine.
The effectiveness of TED, or any electricity monitor, depends upon homeowners viewing data and responding to it, so seeing that data regularly is central to TED's functionality. The analogy is "The Prius Effect," in which the hybrid vehicle's dashboard provides drivers with real time data on everything from miles per gallon to shifts between fuel and battery power. Early on, drivers learn that shifts in driving habits can increase MPG. Because the dashboard is by design in driver's faces - people make those shifts constantly while behind the wheel, and over time, their driving patterns change.
It has been our experience with electricity monitoring that there is no substitute for this moment-by-moment process of adjusting behavior based on data. Our Energy Circle KW project, displaying our home's electricity usage in real time here on Energy Circle, was motivated in part by my belief that a visual display that included the ability to see patterns of usage over time would help us attain significant reductions in our energy usage. It has. Now, with the benefit of the new TED's and the constantly improving Google PowerMeter, there are options for how to visualize your energy data.
The key question for a purchaser of TED 5000, which offers a variety of displays and purchasing packages, becomes: what presentation of data is going to be your version of a hybrid dashboard? Here are some thoughts to consider as you make your decision.
Filter each through your personal habits. In my case, I am bound to my computer all day - and keeping iGoogle as an open-tab to check Google PowerMeter periodically from wherever I am is reflexive for me. If I lived alone, that would probably be sufficient. Because I share my house (and power usage) with three other mindful consumers, the wireless TED 5000-C display sits in the kitchen, where Lisa and kids inspect it regularly, (and Lisa annotates our energy consumption for display in our @EnergyCircleKW twitter stream.)
Though our house is rife with computers, my opinion is there is no substitute for locating the display in a well-trafficked location in your house where a quick glance will tell you where your current draw is. Very quickly you develop an innate sense of what Lisa calls the standing heart rate of your house. You come to know your baseload intimately, and when TED says 1500 watts, its your cue that something's been left on. The savings we've achieved since we began to monitor last April are largely the result of this basic awareness.
Comments
Have you been able to quantify your savings?
Posted by Daniel on Dec 2, 2009 1:09pmSo what's with the 33.611 kW that TED says you used at 2:20 AM? I have a friend with a TED 5000 who had to get his transmitting unit replaced after it kept showing screwy readings like that.
I still think Google PowerMeter needs better time resolution so you can identify individual appliances and diagnose their behavior in detail. Just today, I was comparing the energy traces of my two furnaces when I noticed that the blower on one uses 600 watts while the blower on the other uses only 325 watts. They're both made by the same manufacturer and are of the same vintage. One is a little larger, but that's the one that uses less power. What's with that?
I wish I could paste a pdf here of the energy trace I was looking at.
Posted by davidfay on Dec 2, 2009 1:46pmYes. I'm intending to publish our month over month actuals shortly and will let you know. The kids, who get 50% of our savings, claim we owe them $148.26 since April. We're awaiting verification from Price Waterhouse..... ;-)
Posted by Peter Troast on Dec 2, 2009 2:20pmDavid--we've also had the occasional data blip, but the TED firmware upgrades seem to be dealing with these. Like you, mysteries remain. I've Kill-a-Watt'd almost everything in our baseload (thanks to your nudge awhile ago) and still can't account for what all our devices say is under the curve.
We're also installing the new Powerhouse Dynamics eMonitor soon. Circuit by circuit approach. Excited to see how that goes.
Email me your trace if you'd like. I'd be interested to see.
PT
Posted by Peter Troast on Dec 2, 2009 2:25pmTED & Google Power Meter are nice basic, entry-level options, but more sophisticated products like EcoDog's FIDO Home Energy Watchdog provide a number of more advanced features including real-time cost and KWHr consumption on a circuit-by-circuit basis for those who are interested in more detailed views and analytical tools.
Posted by sconnell on Dec 2, 2009 2:35pmPeter,
I've emailed you my trace.
Tracking down baseload is fun but also frustrating. You're not the first person I've heard of who has had trouble pinning it down. But barring a malfunctioning TED, it's there to be discovered.
Ooh, an eMonitor -- I'm envious. I can't wait to see your results.
David
Posted by davidfay on Dec 2, 2009 5:01pmMulticircuit electricity monitoring is clearly the wave of the future. And EcoDog's Watchdog product has an impressive list of features. But also some odd gaps. No web interface? No high resolution screenshots so we can see what it does? No spec for the time resolution (TED is 1 second)? No Mac/Linux support? Not even a hint about the price?
I'm intrigued but there are many fish in that sea.
Posted by davidfay on Dec 2, 2009 5:38pm