Everything You Need to Know About Energy Monitors
As inflation continues to hit record highs, the idea of using less electricity is increasingly attractive. Along with the financial savings, using less electricity is also good for the environment.
There are many ways to achieve electricity savings, and one example is to install an energy monitor. These devices keep track of your electricity usage and allow you to find places where it’s possible to easily make reductions.
So what is an energy monitor, and should you have one installed?
What Is an Energy Monitor?
Energy monitors are devices that illustrate how much electricity you use and for what purposes. They typically consist of hardware that connects to your electrical circuit and a smartphone app that provides real-time information. you’re able to, however, also purchase smaller energy monitors that only measure individual appliances.
While exact functionality varies, many energy monitors allow you to measure your usage on a per-device level. By allowing you to determine exactly where your electricity is being used every month, it provides the insight necessary to reduce it. As a result, many people who purchase energy monitors can reduce their consumption by over 10 percent.
Household vs. Individual Energy Monitors
There are two types of energy monitors, namely, household and individual.
Household Monitors
Household monitors plug directly into your electrical circuit. They track electrical usage throughout your home and provide real-time information to your smartphone. This is typically achieved with sensors that clamp onto your electrical circuit and determine what the current is doing.
Some energy monitors also use machine learning to understand the signatures associated with individual appliances. This type of energy monitor can then tell you exactly how much electricity each appliance uses.
Individual Monitors
Individual monitors, or smart plugs, plug into your sockets. Rather than measuring the entire home’s electrical usage, they are designed to monitor individual appliances. Somesmart plugsalso allow you to turn individual appliances off remotely.
This type of monitor is useful if you want to understand how a particular appliance behaves. For example, you might want to understand how much electricity your television uses while on standby.
While household monitors can be used for the same purpose, they aren’t always able to differentiate between appliances with similar power signatures.
What Features to Look For in an Energy Monitor?
Energy monitors are designed to provide much more information than what is available on your energy bill. Here are a few features to look for.
Real-Time Tracking
Many energy monitors allow you to measure electricity usage in real-time and in different ways. For example, it might display your energy usage in dollars per second or CO2 emissions. This is useful because it demonstrates the effect of turning a specific appliance on and off.
Individual Appliance Tracking
Many energy monitors allow you to measure the electricity usage of individual appliances. This is typically achieved using machine learning, which is an important feature because it highlights which appliances are the least energy efficient and where you can potentially make savings.
App Notifications
The apps available with energy monitors vary widely in terms of sophistication. Ideally, you should look for a product with an easy-to-use app that provides useful information. Some apps can be set to send you an alert when you’ve used a specific amount of electricity or when specific appliances are turned on or off.
Solar Panel Compatibility
Some energy monitors are compatible with solar panels. This type of monitor can track both how much energy your panels are generating and how much of it you are using.
Why You Should Buy an Energy Monitor
Energy monitors are increasingly popular and should be considered if you want to achieve any of the following tasks.
You Want to Use Less Electricity
An energy monitor provides a much better understanding of how much electricity you use on individual devices. This allows you to figure out whereyou can use less powerwithout interfering with your lifestyle.
You Want to Pay Less For Electricity
If you live in an area where you are charged different electricity rates depending on the time of the day, it’s possible to save money by simply switching your usage patterns. Many energy monitors allow you to enter the time-adjusted rates that apply to your area. They then explain how much you can save by using your appliances at different times.
You Want to Track Solar Panels
Energy monitors are particularly attractive to people with solar panels. Some energy monitors can be connected to solar panels like theEcoFlow 400WorZendure 400Wand illustrate both how much electricity the panels are generating and how much you are using. This information can then be used to adjust your habits so that you only use power from the grid during the cheapest times of the day.
Why You Shouldn’t Buy an Energy Monitor
Energy monitors do not reduce electricity usage automatically. An energy monitor only provides information, and if that information isn’t accompanied by using your appliances less, you’re not going to save money.
If you want to purchase something that automatically cuts your electricity usage, you should consider investing in more energy-efficient appliances. Solar panels are also ideal for this purpose.
Can You Install Energy Monitors Yourself?
Individual energy monitors are easy to install, but whole-house monitors typically require the assistance of an electrician. While it’s possible to install a whole house monitor yourself, doing so involves physically clamping the sensors onto your electrical circuit. Unless you are experienced with electrical circuits, attempting to do it yourself, therefore, poses a shock hazard.
Energy Monitors Are Useful If Used Properly
Energy monitors are increasingly popular, and many people who buy one can cut their electricity bills. If you’d like to use less electricity but aren’t sure how best to do so, an energy monitor should provide the information necessary to adopt more energy-efficient habits.
At the same time, it’s important to understand that energy monitors don’t reduce energy usage automatically. If you buy one and don’t act on its advice, you won’t use less electricity.
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