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Anybody using a whole-home energy monitor yet (Sense, CURB, etc)?
Posted on 1/25/21 at 1:22 pm
Posted on 1/25/21 at 1:22 pm
I remember Neurio was one of the first a few years back, and it was discussed here. It is now defunct, which is yet another example of how much disarray the smart home market is in and why it sucks that we usually have to rely on "the cloud" or some company to continue existing and supporting a product.
I just ran across IoTaWatt, which is an open platform that doesn't rely on any particular company or cloud service to operate. It logs data locally, so you can just use it standalone if you like. Looks like it can also send data to arbitrary time series database systems, local or cloud-based. It also has 14 channels, so you can monitor the mains and individual circuits, and it'll work with just about any off the shelf CT.
There's no machine learning, no cloud required (though you can set it up), nothing fancy. Just per-circuit usage data that you can do with as you want. I guess I would just want to set up a notification if my AC or fridge is doing anything abnormal, and then glance at a report every couple of weeks to see if anything crazy is happening with my non-AC power use. If I think of other things to automate down the road based on the data, I'd just add as I go. And not worry about yet another tech company going under and bricking it.
I just ran across IoTaWatt, which is an open platform that doesn't rely on any particular company or cloud service to operate. It logs data locally, so you can just use it standalone if you like. Looks like it can also send data to arbitrary time series database systems, local or cloud-based. It also has 14 channels, so you can monitor the mains and individual circuits, and it'll work with just about any off the shelf CT.
There's no machine learning, no cloud required (though you can set it up), nothing fancy. Just per-circuit usage data that you can do with as you want. I guess I would just want to set up a notification if my AC or fridge is doing anything abnormal, and then glance at a report every couple of weeks to see if anything crazy is happening with my non-AC power use. If I think of other things to automate down the road based on the data, I'd just add as I go. And not worry about yet another tech company going under and bricking it.
Posted on 1/27/21 at 7:05 am to Korkstand
I've been seriously been considering building one from scratch for years now, there are a few projects out there to do it.
They are pretty much based on the same microcontrollers as that one, using an $3 ESP8266 or ESP32 as the brain and communications link.
But $130 for the base unit already built and setup, that looks like a great option. Looks like the project is all based on FOSS, so the code should be available for inspection and modification as needed.
They are pretty much based on the same microcontrollers as that one, using an $3 ESP8266 or ESP32 as the brain and communications link.
But $130 for the base unit already built and setup, that looks like a great option. Looks like the project is all based on FOSS, so the code should be available for inspection and modification as needed.
Posted on 1/27/21 at 6:11 pm to Korkstand
I've had Sense for several years. Nice as a broad picture overview, but lacking at individual load detection.
Posted on 1/27/21 at 7:57 pm to mctiger1985
quote:I've read a bit about Sense, seems device detection hasn't gotten much better. I think it's just a very hard problem, trying to detect mostly random signals among a bunch of noise.
I've had Sense for several years. Nice as a broad picture overview, but lacking at individual load detection.
The only way to come close is to monitor each circuit individually. Ideally one day every outlet, fixture, and appliance in the house will be smart and can monitor its own load and feed the data to a unified system, but until then circuit level is the best we're going to get (not to mention much cheaper).
And again it's not like we need to know every little thing, but I think it would be nice to track the power consumption of large appliances over the years. I believe this data would serve as an early warning system for impending failure.
Posted on 1/27/21 at 8:08 pm to Korkstand
quote:
I think it's just a very hard problem, trying to detect mostly random signals among a bunch of noise.
It's not that hard. Most just use a clamp on your lines to measure amperage. Your big applicianes and a/c will cause a current spike when they start. After they have started the measuring device knows the average current change from before it started. When that current drops off, it knows that appliance has stopped.
It's the small appliances and light bulbs that get mixed in with noise and don't have enough of a startup/on amp draw.
Posted on 1/27/21 at 9:52 pm to mchias1
quote:Maybe Sense should hire you
It's not that hard.
quote:Yeah I know how they work (I built one before). Has your Sense system detected your a/c, fridge, dryer, microwave, or anything?
Most just use a clamp on your lines to measure amperage. Your big applicianes and a/c will cause a current spike when they start. After they have started the measuring device knows the average current change from before it started. When that current drops off, it knows that appliance has stopped.
Posted on 1/28/21 at 6:01 am to Korkstand
I don't have one. Have just read up on devices like that when they first came out.
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