Everyone is trying to find ways to conserve power usage, be it for the environment or for our wallets; it’s a good thing either way to conserve energy. Since energy saving is becoming a way of life for many of us, a good way to start is to note how much electricity you use at the moment so targets can be set for lowering it (such as turning off appliances rather than leaving them on standby). Electricity usage monitors have been around for years but they are becoming more popular as people are actively searching for ways to lower their utility bills (1). If you are serious about cutting your electricity bills, fitting a wireless energy monitor should be top of your priority list. Although we have electricity meters in our homes they are no use hidden away in a cupboard only to be read once a year (2). There is a good selection of electricity monitors on the market today to help you understand your energy use and assist you as to where savings could be made. They are gadgets that do not save you energy directly but they are fantastic devices for raising awareness of how much energy different appliances use in the home or workplace. Here are a few examples to help you choose one that suits you.
The CC128 Energy Saving Monitor is the most advanced energy saving monitor in the UK market to date. It is powerful and versatile and is around £40. It lets you know how much electricity you are using in real time. It is simple to install and instantly calculates the amount of electricity your home or office is using. The monitor can be set at different rates at different times of day depending on what you pay for your electricity. The machine is easy to read and understand. At any time you can see how much energy is being used and how much it is costing. It also indicates whether there has been a drop or rise in energy usage which can be useful in indicating the amount of energy your appliances use. Moreover, the monitor displays a graph comparing your usage at different times of the day. This can tell if an appliance that is left on overnight, for example, is consuming too much energy. Energy usage is also provided over the period of a week and 30 days so you can see if changes you are making (for example switching off appliances or using energy efficient light bulbs) are making a difference to your overall energy consumption and energy bills. The time and temperature are also displayed.
The Eco-Eye Elite is another energy monitor costing around £50 that does not just tell you how much electricity you are using and how much it is costing, but how much carbon dioxide emissions are being created. Therefore, it does not just tell you the impact on your wallet but the impact on the environment too. The Eco Eye Elite is wireless monitor and has an electricity detecting device (sensor) clipped onto the mains supply cable where it enters the electricity meter. This is then plugged into a battery powered transmitter which sends data to the battery powered wireless receiver which displays the electricity usage. This monitor is very easy to install (without the need for an electrician) and can be mounted on a wall or carried around (portable) with a range of between 40-70 meters. Energy usage is displayed on a large screen and breaks down your costs by hour, day, week, month and year. It comes in recyclable packaging and encourages you to become more environmentally conscious by telling you how much carbon dioxide you are creating.
Next, the Wattson Energy Monitor which is around £95 also monitors your energy usage in real time in either pounds or wattage and it is portable. However, rather than calculating financial cost on a daily basis like the Eco Eye, the Wattson displays the equivalent cost per year. Furthermore, it has a futuristic, funky design and lights that change from blue to red as consumption increases. Possibly the greatest advantage of the Wattson that makes it different from other energy monitors is that you can download and analyze your consumption through its software. This allows you to spot when certain time dependent electricity hungry devices are incorrectly set. However, the Wattson does not display how much carbon dioxide your home is emitting like the Eco Eye and it takes time to download the software. Also, it does not have an export function with the data so you cannot send it to excel for you to do your own usage analysis (3).
Another leading product on the market is the P4400 Kill A Watt Monitor. This device allows you to plug into the energy use for each electrical appliance and assess their efficiency. It will also calculate your energy usage on a daily, weekly or yearly basis (1). The best aspect of this monitor is that the fact that it monitors voltage and line frequency too. This means that it can test if an outlet is working or evaluate the quality of the electrical power provided by your utility company. It can detect voltage drops around the house and help predict brownout conditions. On the down side, this monitor is quite pricey at around £100 compared to other devices.
The Black and Decker Power Monitor is another reminder of how much juice you are burning per hour, day or month and how much money you are spending on the electricity bill. This device allows you to isolate which appliances are using the most electricity. However, it may be trickier than other monitors to line up with your electricity meter’s optical port and it is also more at around £100 (4).
The Owl CM119 Wireless Energy Monitor is around £30, has an amazing battery life and is very accurate. It not only indicates your energy usage but how much carbon dioxide is being emitted. Working in conjunction with this device the Owl CM120 USB Connect enables you to monitor your electricity consumption on your computer as it receives the same data as your display unit and relays that information on your PC. The USB is around £18 (3).
Next, the Efergy Elite Energy Monitor costs around £40 and has an incredible transmission range, superb accuracy and has dual tariff capability. It is easy to use and has a long battery life. This monitor also can be combined with a USB with the Efergy e2 ESB Wireless Energy Monitor allowing you to analyze all the important figures. This can be purchased for around £50.
The Current Cost Trec Wireless Energy Monitor comes in white or black and is around £25. It offers an entry-level solution for basic day to day monitoring of standard electricity supplies. It is easy to set up and understand showing both watts/kilowatts and cost per day/month (2).
Once you realize just how much some appliances use you will be making sure nothing is on standby and will always be switching off lights once you leave a room. 20% of our electric bills come from items that are left plugged in when they are not in use or on standby. At a time when energy bills are continuing to rise you can use this device to look at ways of saving money by not only switching things off but by buying energy saving light bulbs and energy efficient appliances. Whichever monitor you choose, you will be switching things off! Thus the initial cost of investing in an energy saving monitor becomes insignificant once changes are implemented and savings of £100’s are made each year. Once people start monitoring how much electricity they consume they are more likely to become aware of just how much we waste in all aspects of our lives in terms of food, water and so on. Energy saving monitors is a great way to kick starts an eco-friendly lifestyle (3).
(1) www.galtech.com
(2) www.electricty-monitor.com
(4) www.wired.com
