Would knowing just how much energy you use in a day change the way you live? The creators of Leafully, Nathan Jhaveri and Tim Edgar seem to think so, and so does the U.S. Department of Energy. The Seattle start up won the federal agency’s “Apps for Energy” contest this week with their app.
The application monitors home energy use by accessing information from a user’s utility provider. The homepage shows a person's estimated carbon footprint (indicated by the number of trees it would take to offset the carbon footprint), where the energy use is coming front and what can be done to lower that usage. Carbon emissions from vehicles are also included in the footprint using national averages, but can be modified according to a person's specific use.
One interesting chart shows the amount of “sleeping energy” a home uses. Sleeping energy is the amount of electricity appliances use when they're plugged in, but not necessarily being used. For example, a printer draws energy from an outlet when it's plugged in, even when it's not printing.
The goal is to provide an incentive for people to change their consumption habits or buy higher efficiency appliances whose initial costs may be higher, but even out after a few years.
Check out the demo video below, and if you think this is a good idea vote for it (or others) at the Apps For Energy website.
via GeekWire
Credit: Leafully
