simple + green

Can Google give us insight into how homes use our energy, allowing us to know when our usage is peaking? They think they can.

The Google PowerMeter was unveiled today, according to Computerworld.com, among others. Designed to show consumers their home energy information in nearly real time, right on their computer, the tool is already being tested by Google employees.

The PowerMeter aims to provide people with detailed information about the electricity they use at home — how much they use at different times of the year, how much their appliances use and what’s wasting the most.

Google is also working with manufacturers and utility companies to create pilot programs for consumers.

Prius owners will recognize this monitor as the meter they have in their cars, allowing them to monitor acceleration, deceleration and the composite affect on mileage and fuel consumption.

To me, this is the key quote from the article:

“In a world where everyone had a detailed understanding of their home energy use, we could find all sorts of ways to save energy and lower electricity bills,” Lu wrote. “In fact, studies show that access to home energy information results in savings between 5% and 15% on monthly electricity bills. It may not sound like much, but if half of America’s households cut their energy demand by 10%, it would be the equivalent of taking 8 million cars off the road.”