The Energy Detective

Circuit Detective - Which Breaker Controls that Plug?

Find your Power Zones with Circuit Detective

As we strive for more knowledge of how we use energy in our home, at some point we begin to wonder how different zones of power are organized in our home. I encountered this issue when I worked on installing my TED 5000 Power Monitor into … continue reading

List of Energy monitoring tools : devices, software and home automation

Home Energy Monitors

With all the buzz from the announcement Google made regarding their partnership with Energy, Inc. and the TED 5000 I decided now would be a good time to provide a summary of all the companies in the residential energy monitoring space. This list was compiled with the help … continue reading

Attacking Standby (Vampire or Phantom) Loads

I want to suck your Watts!

Standby power refers to the electrical power an appliance draws just by being plugged into the outlet. This is also referred to as “vampire” or “phantom” load because the appliance is just sucking power from your wall (and money from your wallet).

Just about all … continue reading

TED 5000: It’s coming in early June!

TED 5000

***Update 10/6/09 – Google has announced they are working with the TED 5000 as a device partner for their Google Power Meter software. Follow the link above to learn about it and to update your firmware. This is pretty big news and will no doubt send sales of the TED 5000 … continue reading

Kill-A-Watt Meter

Prelude:

I first ventured down the path of energy monitoring in the Winter of 2006. I was living in a 2 bedroom apartment with a friend and our electricity bills were outrageous! For instance, the kWh usage from 12/06-2/07 compared to the same months in ’08-09 in my new and bigger town-home … continue reading