Forward Energy Solutions

Carbon has become a word that is used most often to denote global warming and pollution. The word carbon has become a vulgar word in modern society, often being portrayed in a negative light. The goal of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has been to put a stop to Carbon, and its other gaseous Greenhouse friends, for the past 40 years. Many different methods and practices have been put in place to slow down or stop the emission of carbon dioxide, the by-product of burning fossil fuels. From the implementation of Renewable Energy Standards to the discussion of taxes or fines on carbon; everything has been considered. One method commonly used to reduce Carbon from entering the atmosphere is called Carbon Capture Sequestration or Storage abbreviated CCS.

CCS takes the carbon that would have entered into the atmosphere and redirects it to other sources, such as underground caverns or bacteria filled ponds. CCS does not result in less Carbon being produced; it merely results in less carbon entering the atmosphere. Unfortunately, negative side effects still exist in the form of polluted aquifers, soil and water. The EPA has decided to further restrict Carbon, even the carbon sequestered by CCS practices. Those participating in CCS now must account for all the carbon emitted and store and must assure the water surrounding them is safe from contamination often associated with CCS. Until completely renewable technology is available and viable for businesses something needs to be done to lessen the burden on those responsible for accounting all the carbon within the CCS process.

Continuous Energy Management and Optimization (CEMO) grants users the ability to monitor and manage anything that can be metered all on a comprehensive easy to read web-based dashboard. The information the CEMO system monitors will be stored on an external database that can be accessed from anywhere at any time making carbon accounting as easy as a few clicks of the mouse. The CEMO system has the ability to be customized according to the user’s needs. Anything that can be metered, can be monitored and measure, if you cannot measure it you cannot control it. With the CEMO system monitoring and controlling your CCS no longer needs to occupy all of your time.

It’s that time of year again. The holiday season is upon us. With Thanksgiving approaching at the end of this week many people either have already or will soon set up their Christmas decorations. Decorations are a great way to get into the season and spread cheer but they can also be a great way to increase your electric bills. As Christmas trees and decorative lighting get plugged in electric bills go up. The exact amount the bills will increase depends on the lighting you choose and how you plan to use the lighting. Being aware of this extra use can help prevent a budget busting bill in a season that is already known for breaking the budget. How do you plan to manage your electricity this Christmas season?

In an attempt to keep electric bills low many users will substitute a lamp or a light for a Christmas tree. While the lighting may not be as bright the mood is definitely more seasonal. The question then becomes how does my Christmas tree compare to a regular lamp? How much extra am I paying? The answer to that question varies on multiple items. Are the bulbs on your Christmas tree standard or LED? How many strands of lights does your tree have? Another item coming into play in terms of electricity bills are fireplaces. Acquiring firewood is not the only expense accompanied with a fireplace; an opened flue can equal the same amount of heat loss as an open window. Having a fire in the fireplace, with the Christmas tree lit up and Christmas music playing may create a great mood now, but what type of mood will it create when the bill arrives? It may leave you feeling more like Scrooge than Saint Nick.

Changing your Christmas lights to LED, making sure the flue is closed after each fire and only playing Christmas tunes when someone is around to listen, and not just as background music 24/7, may greatly reduce your electric bill. Another item to consider is Christmas light rationing. Some lights get left on 24/7, having them on a switch or in an area that can be turned off easily can make a huge difference. Becoming aware of how much energy your Christmas decorations are using can supply the extra incentive to make sure the lights are turned off, the music is not always playing and the flue gets shut.

The home energy monitor allows users to see exactly how much energy they are currently using in their homes. This helps prevent Scrooge from arriving when the electric bill comes in the mail. If your Christmas tree is using an excessive amount of electricity consider lessening the amount of bulbs, or if you haven’t already, switch to LED. If you plan to substitute the tree for a lamp you can use the home energy monitor to make sure this is a fair trade. It is possible that your tree is using more than the lamp and not even supplying close to the amount of light! Being able to see exactly how much money the lights are costing you will offer the incentives needed to cut back or turn off.

As Deregulation grows closer in the PECO market some things may remain unclear when it comes to judging prices. The first question is how much am I currently paying? PECO offers a “price to compare” which gives customers a price to use for comparison between the current prices and an alternate supplier. In addition to offering their current price they also list the future price at the beginning of next year, when deregulation officially kicks in. As with most utility bill pricing there can be some confusion. The current rate is calculated from two charges, generation and transmission, and is 9.94 cents per kWh, the rate at the beginning of the year will be 9.92 cents per kWh for three combined charges. At first glance this appears to be a great price decrease! Don’t get excited just yet, things will change in the future.

To begin a new charge will be added to your PECO bill. This charge is being labeled as an Alternative Energy Portfolio Standard (AEPS) fee which will remain consistent at .12 cents per kWh. The three fees now combined to make your total charge are the AEPS, Generation and transmission fees. The other distribution related fees will remain consistent regardless of the supplier. The price to compare is the combined total of the three fees. The rates will change regularly, depending on the season. The estimated rates for April 1 - June 30 are 10.16 for below 500 kWh used and 11.40 for above 500 kWh used. For the same time period last year the rate was 6.92 for under 500 kWh consumed, that equals an estimated increase of 31.9%! This is even larger than the close to 30% increase PPL customers saw a year earlier.

What does this mean for the average consumer? It means that momentarily your electric rates may get slightly lower, even with the addition of a new fee, which at first seems great. But be weary of the impending summer. Electric rates will generally fluctuate as heating season ends and air conditioning begins, this year looks to be a real shocker.

Thanks to the new deregulated system you do not have to stand for the drastic increase. You have the ability to pick your electric supplier. One example for PECO customers is Viridian Energy. Viridian prides itself in saving consumers money over the course of the year. They currently boast $35.56 a month in savings for customers in the United Illuminating district. The ability of PECO customers to sign up for Viridian started November 22. The sign up is hassle free and only requires an account number from your current utility bill. There are no contracts or sign up fees. The only thing you stand to lose is your money in the form of higher electric bills.

The term green can mean something completely different depending on who you ask. Some will describe green as recycling or conservation, some will speak of the environment and others will talk about construction and building materials. Each company seems to carry a different standard in terms of being green. While changing all of your lighting to high-efficiency bulbs may be considered green many companies seek a certification saying it is before they make the claim. This only multiplies the mass confusion by adding dozens of sustainability indexes and certifications. One thing remains constant between corporate guidelines, sustainability indexes or government regulation; a certain amount of measurement or verification must take place.

There are multiple government guidelines including Energy Star and the U.S. Green Building Council’s LEED program which each require multiple efficient or environmentally friendly upgrades. Adding to the guidelines are the many popular sustainability indexes, many of which rely on the measurements and verifications used in the Global Reporting Initiative (GRI). There are even indexes focusing only on major corporations, such as the Dow Jones Sustainability Index. In addition to these indexes and guidelines many companies are also forming their own Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) goals or indexes with a focus on sustainability or being green. It doesn’t stop here; utility companies that offer incentives often use the International Performance Measurement and Verification Protocol for their measurements. With the barrage of multiple guidelines, measurements and regulations how do you find a tool that allows you to keep track of, and benchmark against, the exact regulations and codes you wish to use?

The Continuous Energy Management and Optimization (CEMO) allows you to benchmark against the exact building standards, sustainability index or guidelines that you wish. It has the ability to track your efforts towards meeting a CSR goal, green certification or other initiative. Each CEMO system is programmed specifically to meet your needs. This can even include budgets or historic usage as a baseline. Whatever figure you wish to measure yourself against the CEMO system has the capability to use. With so many different guidelines and standards it is easy to get lost in mountains of paperwork. CEMO takes the hassle out of measuring your efforts by providing quick and simple web-based dashboards that update your results in real-time. The faster you can see your exact measurements and results the sooner you can make changes to accrue success quicker and less expensively.

The modern building is a sophisticated and complex structure. Even though they may look the same on the outside each is completely different on the inside. A facility, just like a person, has many complex interwoven parts. Ducts and HVAC systems make up the respiratory system, insulation is can be compared to muscle or fat keeping the body warm and water piping can be compared to the circulatory system. Although each building has the same parts no two buildings are exactly the same; correspondingly no two people are exactly the same as well. As soon as a building is occupied things begin to change at an unpredictable rate. Each tenant may occupy the space differently; some may abuse the structure, and not maintain it. The ecosystem where a building is located plays a substantial role as the different elements create wear and tear. A healthy building needs to be constantly maintained, just like a healthy person needs to regularly visit a doctor.

Larger buildings will generally have facility specialists, the doctors of the facility world; these specialists are responsible for the upkeep and maintenance of the building. Just like a doctor these facility specialists will have an area of concentration they prefer the most. Some will focus on water, some on natural gas and others on electricity. The facility specialist’s focus is generally dependent on their own personal interest or the geographical area they are in. A facility specialist in southern Texas may not focus much attention on heating, just like an athletic doctor may not focus much attention on making sure his patients are getting enough exercise.

Regardless of the specialty there are many tools in a doctor’s arsenal that will work regardless of the medical concentration. Stitches work for external, internal, dental and even cosmetic purposes to allow the body to heal. A similar system is available to the facility specialist in the form of the Continuous Energy Management and Optimization (CEMO) system. The CEMO system ties all the pieces together onto one easy to read web-based platform. It allows you to find and stop the energy or water that is bleeding from the facility. On the same platform you have the ability to view water, gas, electric and even renewable energy sources. Anything that can be metered can be monitored by the CEMO system. When dealing with something as complex as a facility you must have a tool that can combine everything into one easy to use platform. Using the CEMO system to stitch the holes in your system will result in more than saved energy; it will produce financial savings as well.

With the current state of the economy many individuals are looking for ways to reduce their bills. As money begins to grow tight a higher concentration of people are beginning to look in new areas of their budgets to find extra cash. Utility bills have a tendency of being written off as something necessary that cannot be changed, but that is no longer the case. Energy audits, home energy monitoring and other resources are available to reduce energy bills substantially. If you have already exhausted every opportunity to lower your energy bill there may be further hope in the form deregulation.

The deregulation of electricity allows for multiple suppliers to compete for the lowest price, creating a free market system. In select deregulated states users now have the ability to shop for their electricity provider. Many users have already shopped around for the best and cheapest rates on car insurance, cable, internet service providers, cell phone coverage and groceries; deregulation allows you to shop for your lowest electric provider as well. If you have already exhausted all other options in your budget it may be time to consider investigating deregulation, many states on the East coast and Texas are deregulated, and the numbers are growing.

As 2010 winds down and 2011 approaches many changes are being ushered in with the dawning of a new year. One of the changes may be your local utility becoming deregulated. One thing to watch out for is higher rates. Deregulation carries with it the removal of government caps on prices; some supplier raised their rates by up to 30% when they became deregulated. One company to consider is one that prides itself in offering lower rates and providing green energy. Viridian energy, available on the East Coast, offers 20-100 percent green energy and adjusts its rate to be lower than the competition. If your utility has deregulated or is about to become deregulated you do not have to accept and pay the higher rates, you can now switch to a new provider. The same principle applies for cell phones, cables, insurance and more, why not for your electricity as well?

Every manager is faced with the daunting task of making sure employees stay motivated. Many factors come into play since no two people are exactly alike. What motivates one person may mean absolutely nothing to another. Motivated employees are the most productive. With all the various factors of money, time, vacations and other perks there is only one factor that is true for all employees; the only person that can motivate your employees are themselves.

Change is something that can have huge impacts on employee motivation. With everyone embarking on new energy systems and energy conservation guidelines there is plenty of potential of lowered motivation. Since the only person that has the ability to motivate your employees is themselves you must find ways for employees to want to save energy. In order to have success you must align the company’s goals with the employees’ goals. Focusing on a single area may work for some, but not for others. For instance, if you advertise that saving energy will make you “green” you may be appealing to some workers but others may be negatively affected. Since each person has a different motivation you are faced with the challenge of finding each individual unique driving force.

To foster employee motivation and involvement in energy reduction you must clearly connect how the employee’s actions affect the entire organization. In a large company of several hundred employees a single person may feel insignificant. Many companies will try to overcome this by placing motivational banners or focusing on individual groups. In terms of energy reduction you may need to take a larger approach. Putting a pithy saying on a banner and placing it where all can see will not foster motivation.

The old saying goes that a picture is worth a thousand words. With the Continuous Energy Management and Optimization (CEMO) system you can display for each employee, in real-time, how they affect the energy use for the entire building. The real-time graphs and charts will show exactly how the energy is being used. The company can place this information on kiosks, lunch room TVs or intranet sites. The CEMO system allows users to input baselines to allow employees to see when they have reached their goals or how far away the goals are. Being able to see the goal, the affects of their actions in real-time and exactly when they reach the goal will motivate employees to achieve success. Once the goals have been met have a celebration. A building by itself does not use energy, energy is used by those that occupy the building, and it is those occupants that can lower the energy reduction and in turn energy costs.

There are multiple programs currently available stressing the importance of energy efficiency and conservation. Many of these programs offer incentives for purchasing efficient equipment, weatherization or renewable energy upgrades. The Western Massachusetts Electric Company (WMECo) decided to take a new approach. They started a program known as the Western Mass Saves program, for now it is still a pilot program. The program offers incentives in the form of discounts on groceries, food, at local stores and on clothing. The utility users are given points for joining the program and for each kWh they save. The more you reduce your consumption the more points you receive and the more money you save. In addition to the point incentives the utility is also encouraging friendly competition between communities. The community that lowers their reduction the most receives a prize in the form of a small solar panel on a community building.

WMECo’s incentive plan comes as a rough winter season approaches for Massachusetts. During the winter months energy bills have the potential to rise considerably. At this point the pilot program is trying to be conservation aiming for a low 3% in savings. Since the program is still in its pilot phase they only plan to offer it to a few of the utility’s customers. If you find yourself in one of the elected communities you may be faced with the desire to lower your electric consumption as much as possible in order to gain points and allow your community to win. A home energy monitor may give you an extra edge in this competition and win you extra points.

The home energy monitor has the ability to help users lower their electric consumption by 6-18%. Simply having the knowledge of your consumption can help you reduce it. Using the energy monitor you can find and stop waste, or use it to reduce wasteful habits that result in added unneeded energy consumption. Since the utility is rewarding you to reduce your consumption the motivation to save is substantial. Not only will you see the savings in the form of a lower electric bill you will also receive points for discounts in other areas. Don’t stop at a mere 3%, aim higher and receive a little help from a home energy monitor.

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) puts a great deal of focus and concern into the area of weatherization. An abundant amount of recovery act funding went towards weatherization and in return the reduction of energy consumption. In an attempt to make the auditing and assessing aspect of weatherization readily available and understood by both experts and consumers alike the DOE has created the Home Energy Scoring Tool.

This tool is available online for free and unlike similar tools, such the Energy Star Yardstick, the Home Energy Scoring Tool does not take your actual bills or consumption into account; instead it takes the information about your home gathered by an assessor and provides you with a rank. The walk-through needed to gather information for the free online tool collects data from 45 different points. Once completed the tool will calculate your score and compare your home to other homes in your area. The tool is designed to measure the home itself, not how the home is used. To substitute for the home’s actual use it makes the assumption that it is occupied by 2 adults and 1 child and that the thermostat is set at a certain level depending on the time of year.

Upgrades and improvements are then generated by the online tool and listed so they can clearly be seen and considered. The potential savings are also generated to show users how much they could affect their costs by making the improvements. The tool calculates a score of 1 to 10 which shows how your home is currently performing; the higher the score the better the performance. After this initial ranking it compares how it currently is performing to how it could perform if all of the potential upgrades were made.

If you plan to invest in home improvements this is a great tool to help you judge which improvements will result in the biggest savings. The upgrades pointed out by the audit will result in significant savings by improving energy efficiency. But, keep in mind that these readings do not take into consideration your actual use. Your home may be completely efficient, but your bills may still be high. If you are scoring high on the Home Energy Scoring Tool but your bills are still higher than you think they should be it may be time to look at how you use energy.

A home energy monitor provides a glimpse into your real-time daily energy use habits. Using this tool you can narrow in on waste. The average home has over 30 devices that are always using electricity, whether it is a charger that is still plugged in or a device in standby mode. Some devices in standby mode use as much electricity as in the on mode. The first step in changing your habits is to detect these always on “vampire” loads and stop them. A quick glance at the monitor occasionally will assure these loads are still off. Without continuous monitoring these vampires will sneak back slowly but surely, which is why continued monitoring is required. Using the monitor to maintain these devices can result in significant savings. One device by itself does not create a significant vampire load, but 30 or more devices combined can equal a lot.

Join us this Saturday November 13th at the New Hope Energy Expo. Forward Energy Solutions, Inc. will be exhibiting our CEMO and Envi systems there all day at the Nevermore Hotel. If you are in the Pennsylvania/New Jersey region stop by and say hello!

As winter begins to roll around again our thoughts begin to drift towards snow and ice. Many consumers, especially in the northern states, have found a solution for snow and ice in the form of radiant heating. Placing either electric heat coils or hot water filled hydronic pipes under a walkway, sidewalk or driveway ensures ice will not form and snow will not stick. These systems generally have sensors detecting both moisture levels and temperature. If the sensor thinks it is snowing or there is freezing rain it will activate the heat coils. These systems are being used for more than outdoors pursuits; residential users have installed radiant heating in their homes for not only the floors but also rooftops and even towel racks.

Unfortunately, every system that is used frequently will break down at some point. With an outdoor hydronic radiant heating system it may be almost impossible to tell if there are small leaks, since the pipes are concealed under cement or asphalt. In addition to leaks sensors can begin to function incorrectly which could easily result in a heated sidewalk in the middle of July. The very act of creating heat can be an expensive endeavor. You will either need to boil water and pump it through the system or heat the coils with electricity. With these two processes in mind it becomes extremely important to monitor your radiant systems. The biggest question becomes, how can you monitor something that is embedded under concrete or in floor boards?

Energy monitoring allows users to see exactly when their radiant system is kicking in. By monitoring the amount of electricity either used by the boilers or the coils themselves you will know exactly when the system is on. If you notice an increase in the amount of energy needed to heat your system there is either an efficiency issue or a leak in your system. Finding a leak as quickly as possible ensures that you are not wasting any energy and money. Once you know there is a leak call a professional. Many radiant systems will have warranties and because of this it helps to find the issue early before your warranty expires. More advanced monitoring systems, such as the Continuous Energy Management and Optimization (CEMO) system, will allow you to monitor the flow of water itself. For cities with multiple walkways and sidewalks connected to hydronic radiant heating systems it makes sense to monitor and manage the amount of water and the amount of energy being used in order to eliminate waste. Whether you are at home, or a large corporation, monitoring your radiant heating system can save you a great deal of time, energy and money.

Saving energy comes in many shapes and forms. It presents itself in two ways, conservation and efficiency. Conservation is the act of turning off the lights when they aren’t in use or unplugging unused devices. Efficiency comes in many forms, and can include lighting, insulation, appliances and many other options. By itself each of these items has the potential to save some energy, but, used together efficiency and conservation can save an abundance of energy.

Efficiency and conservation alike have slogans that accompany them, pithy sayings such as, “Pull the plug on energy waste, saving is simple.” While it is true that you can save a considerable amount of energy and money by simply turning devices off or unplugging them completely you can save even more by combining this practice with energy efficiency. This offers a one two punch to your electricity. By utilizing the two you will begin using the least amount possible when the device is in use and none at all when it is not.

While it may be true that empty rooms love the dark they may also love CFLs or LEDs just as much. Buying products that have Energy Star labels ensures they are energy efficient, combining these products with the best conservation efforts ensures the most savings. Having an Energy Star rated TV may reduce your bill a little, but ensuring the TV is unplugged when not in use may save a lot. But what is the best way to tie energy efficiency and conservation together?

The home energy monitor allows users to observe their energy use habits. This allows them to pin-point exactly how to conserve more electricity or how to make the best energy efficiency purchase. Once you have discovered your habits you can begin to dial in on individual devices, this will help you find devices that can be more efficient. Discovering you leave the computer on and turning it off may be a great way to conserve, having the computer set itself to sleep mode is a great way to be efficient, having the computer go to sleep mode throughout the day and turning the computer completely off when it will not be used for eight hours is a great way to save a tremendous amount of energy and money. Combing conservation and efficiency is the best way to lower your energy use, and a home energy monitor can help you discover areas where you can conserve and become more efficient.

Energy efficiency has been something targeted towards home owners; unfortunately, for a third of Americans who rent their homes many of these upgrades are out of reach. Although landlords may not mind if you make energy efficiency improvements the motivation to improve a rental is low, in addition some landlords may not even let their renters paint the walls. There are some improvements that can be made without a hassle, such as changing lights, but other weatherization improvements are out of reach. Some renters are so nervous about their security deposits they will not even hang pictures on the walls. The desire to increase energy efficiency is evident, in fact, according to a survey 86% of renters preferred or were looking for an eco-conscious apartment.

The exact set up of your apartment or rental home may greatly determine which energy efficiency improvements you may pursue. Installing new windows, insulation, HVAC systems, washer and dryers or appliances may be out of the question, but monitoring your electric consumption is still possible. In order to monitor your consumption in an apartment you need to find a system that does not require electric wiring and that is plausible for an apartment.

There are many different home energy monitors on the market, some of which require electrical wiring. If hanging a picture on your wall puts you at risk imagine what splicing wires can accomplish. Other options attach to the actual utility meter; in some apartments the meter may not be accessible, or too far away. The average meter attached monitoring devices only has a 60 foot range, on average you will need to subtract 10 foot for each wall, making this solution nearly impossible for some apartments. Utility companies greatly discourage the use of this type of device, since it attaches to the meter, which is the utilities property. The question becomes, how can a renter measure their electricity consumption without angering the utility company or a landlord?

The answer comes in the form of the Current Transformer or CT. The Envi home energy monitor utilizes the CT to monitor electric consumption without requiring wiring of any type. All that is required for the CT solution is access to an electrical panel, which is very common in an apartment. The system is very simple, the CT clamps over each of the main cables leading into the electrical panel. The most difficult part of the installation will be accessing the cables themselves. Accessing the cables involves unscrewing the electric panel, which can be screwed back in place and will not cause any damage to the apartment. While this is not for everyone, an electrician can be hired to quickly install the system. Why sacrifice saving money, energy efficiency or being green simply because you live in an apartment? Energy monitoring using the Envi is possible and plausible for renters.

One of the best ways to lowering your energy consumption and costs is to eliminate waste and unnecessary use. Using a whole building energy monitoring system allows you to see two things very clearly, your base load and spikes. A base load is the electricity that is always on. There are some devices that may draw electricity 24/7; although these devices may be small their combined affect is significant. One user contributed 33% of his use to his base load. Another item to note is the spikes. Spikes occur when large items cycle or turn on. An example would be a furnace or HVAC unit, machinery, dryer, microwave or other large devices. If you are running a business a common spike will be when employees come into work and turn on their computers or other devices. Using the information from monitoring your energy you can reduce your usage and costs in two ways, attacking the base load and the spikes.

Monitoring will allow you to see your base load in real-time. This gives you the ability to make an informed decision and to see the effects instantly. The best way to manage a base load is to make sure it is as low as possible when a building is not occupied or at night. To do this you need to find the devices that draw energy 24/7. Even simple things like a porch light being left on all day can make a huge difference. Once your consumption base load has been reduced to its bare minimum you can use the energy monitor to assure yourself that it is at this minimum each night before you go to bed or before you leave the building. This especially becomes important for facilities over the weekend when the building is not in use.

The second way to reduce your consumption with energy monitoring is in the area of spikes. For facilities controlling peaks has a lot more application then at home. Commercial buildings are charged peak demand charges, because of this knowing exactly when your electricity peaks and managing those peaks can mean the difference of thousands of dollars. At home, and at a commercial building, it can also be an indication of how those large devices are working. An inefficient device will use far more electricity than an efficient device. If the peaks and spikes are higher than they should be consider repairing or replacing the device.

Real-time energy monitoring gives you the information needed to make informed decisions. It also gives you the peace of mind to know that everything is off and that you are saving the most money over the weekends or overnight. Having a device that allows you to view historic data will also help you narrow in on items that are turning on in the middle of the night or excessively cycling when not in use. There are many different benefits from having real-time information. The power of knowledge can never be under estimated.

Every energy consumer has various and different reasons for seeking energy efficiency improvements within their home or business. What motivates one person may not be of any interest to another. The five main concerns that bring awareness to the need to improve are saving money, comfort issues, a health concern, carbon footprint or an incentive program. Knowing what to do next becomes the biggest problem. There are many different programs available, all of which boast success. There are many ways of going about achieving savings and many ways to throw your money away on unneeded improvements if you are not careful. Regardless of the method you choose you should be able to track the success in the amount of savings you receive or through a reduction in your energy consumption.

The prospect of being taken for a trip by a fast talking salesman is always in the back of the average consumers mind. The average electric bill arrives 30-45 days after the fact; a lot can happen in that amount of time. If you are planning on undertaking any energy efficiency, home improvement, home or building performance or energy management project you need to make sure you have a way to measure and verify the results. A simple utility bill will not supply enough information to draw an accurate conclusion. The solution comes in the form of real-time information by utilizing energy monitoring.

An energy monitor has the ability to display real-time energy consumption and costs. Having real-time information allows you to measure and verify results instantly. Real-time energy information can also help you dial in on specific areas that need improvement. Once you have pin-pointed the needed improvements energy monitoring will let you know if it was successful at lowering your consumption instantly, not 30-45 days later.

Before you undertake any major efficiency or improvement project you should begin monitoring your energy consumption. Without real-time energy information trying to improve your energy consumption is similar to attempting to paint a portrait in the dark, you may get something, but it won’t be pretty. Lord Kelvin, who completed important mathematical calculations on electricity said, “If you cannot measure it, you cannot control it.” The best first step in taking control of your energy costs is real-time measurement.

Energy consumers are constantly making sacrifices to avoid large bills. A common sacrifice is lowering the temperature in the winter and raising the temperature in the summer. You may be a little cold or hot but your bills will be more manageable. Unfortunately most of these sacrifices are made blindly. The average utility bill will come 30-45 days after the fact. There is nothing more frustrating than trying to conserve energy and sacrificing comfort only to receive an energy bill that is higher than normal. Once you receive the bill there is no way to know what caused it; when you receive a larger bill it is very easy to quickly discredit your efforts as worthless.

Without a way to directly measure the results of your efforts it is easy to become discouraged. With the continued growth of the internet our society has become one where we expect instant results. At the snap of a finger, thanks to modern streaming technology, you don’t even need to leave the house to watch your favorite movie anymore. At the click of a button you can watch a movie directly from your cable provider or instantly from a subscription movie service. A common example of the speed we are used to today is the U.S postal service. The USPS has been called many things over the years, but a common nickname has become “snail mail”. The average letter reaches its destination in only a few days, yet this is considered snail mail. On average we wait 30-45 days to receive our utility readings. If a few days are considered the rate of a snail what animal could this be compared to?

If you are tired of receiving a monthly utility bill and cringing before you open it because you are wondering what the damage is, or if you want to be able to measure and verify the results of your energy efficiency or conservation efforts as they are happening, then you need something a little faster than the speed of the Guinness record holding slowest animal on earth, the three toed sloth, otherwise known as, your utility bill.

A home energy monitor is a device that reads energy consumption in real-time and displays it for users to see. Some of these monitors can be very complex and expensive, others are simple and easy to install and don’t even require electrical wiring. The difference depends on the application. For the common user something simple and easy to install works fine. The Envi, for example, not only shows real-time information in kWhs it also allows user to enter their exact rates and will calculate the current cost of their bill. The device records not only the kWh and rate it will also record the time of use and the current indoor temperature. This information is all very useful when it comes to seeing your conservation efforts. If you lower the temperature the Envi will record this, it will also record exactly how much it decreased your use and exactly how much it saved you. In a time when a few days is considered slow why wait 30-45 days? Receive the information now, in real-time, while you can still use it.

As Deregulation spreads throughout the market there is one thing that is becoming increasingly prevalent. Many electric providers that previously had capped rates are raising their rates substantially. An example of a recently deregulated supplier in Pennsylvania is PPL. The average residential consumer that did not pick an alternative supplier for their electricity saw a rate increase of almost 30%. PPL remarks that part of their rate increase and deregulation preparation was to make users aware that they could pick their supplier; they mentioned that this effort was undertaken three years in advance. In addition to increasing awareness they also increased energy conservation and efficiency programs.

The concept of being able to pick your electricity supplier is still very foreign to most consumers. In the past if you moved to a new area you didn’t ask for multiple suppliers that sold electricity; you simply signed up for the single utility that sold for your area. A lot of the caps that are currently in place are because most locations only had one utility provider. Deregulation now allows users in select states to choose who provides their electricity, which allows them to look for the provider that meets their needs at the lowest price. For some the price may be the only important aspect, others may want something more, such as green or renewable energy.

Regardless of what you are looking for Viridian Energy meets most requirements and has a hassle free sign up process. For PPL customers Viridian offers a lower rate and has already met the 2020 Renewable Portfolio Standards (RPS) of 20% green energy and can even supply 100% green energy if requested. The Viridian rate is actually 6.3% less than the PPL rate. Most people would expect to pay more for green energy, but with Viridian the average PPL home saves $138.60 a year and helps the environment. Once you have received a lower rate from Viridian consider monitoring and managing your usage with a home energy monitor to decrease your bills even further. A combination of a home energy monitor and Viridian could easily result in savings of 18% or more saving you $400 a year on your electricity bill. In these tough economic times can you afford not to save as much as possible?

You may have noticed the term ‘cloud’ or ‘cloud computing’ circulating around popular media. This has become an increasingly popular term and is used quite frequently by Microsoft in their recent advertising campaign. Although it is a widely used term it is not a widely understood concept. What makes cloud computing unique, or how does it work? Is it just a new term that means the internet or online?

In short cloud computing is defined as using a program online that would have otherwise needed to be installed on your computer. In other words, using a web browser instead of installed software. Many companies have already utilized a type of cloud computing when they install software on a server that allows remote access. Even though the software is not installed on the user’s computer they can still access is using an internet connection. The benefits of cloud computing is that it allows you to access information from anywhere with internet access or even on a smart phone. All essential programs and software are kept on a secure server for easy access from any location at anytime. The idea is not new, and in fact, it has been around since the 1980’s. Thanks to the recent upgrades in internet speeds cloud computing is becoming increasingly popular. It was not possible before because even just 10 years ago downloading a song took an hour instead of just a few seconds over a dial up connection. It is this increased speed that has made cloud computing possible and viable.

With the modern smart phones being able to access the internet from any location at faster speeds than our old computers used to be able to it is becoming clear that cloud computing will become the new norm. Many of us are already using cloud computing in one form or another. A common example of cloud computing are apps, whether on your phone, Facebook or any other system. Fifteen years ago if you wanted to play a game online that saved your information you had to download and install the game first, now you can play games simply by clicking a link. All of the information is stored on a server for the next time that you sign in and is constantly updated. Even apps such as “Farmville” are considered cloud computing.

Cloud computing is a powerful tool that constantly updates your information on a server 24/7 and allows you to access that information from any location in the world with an internet connection. Why leave cloud computing to chickens and cows on Farmville when you can use it to save your company a considerable amount of money? Continuous Energy Management and Optimization (CEMO) uses cloud computing to constantly update information on a database allowing 24/7 access on a web-based platform. The CEMO system display energy consumption and costs, all in real-time and displays historic information on an everyday web-browser. The CEMO system utilizes cloud computing to allow users the flexibility needed to control and manage their energy costs.