General Electric sure doesn't shy away from a crazy goal. Working with a team of academic and business partners and supported by the U.S. Department of Energy, GE wants to reduce home energy use by 70 percent in several test cities out West. Yes, 70 percent.
I'm of the mind that the right kind of smart technology could make a huge difference in the home, especially when paired with common sense retrofits, like better insulation and weatherproofing. Still, a lot of the home energy monitoring systems are new, untested, and can't read every electricity hog in the house yet.
GE is hoping to get cracking on that. The project will outfit newly constructed and older homes in Sacramento, Phoenix, and San Diego with energy-efficient appliances, solar panels, and LED lights. In addition, homes will also get a GE home electricity management system, essentially an application for computers and mobile devices that shows the house's energy usage in real-time as well as its past usage in detail. The company thinks that when homeowners see exactly what's costing them the most money, they'll make behavioral changes.
New smart grid, smart meter and smart energy use programs usually have significant up-front costs. Fortunately, GE's budget for the program is limited to $5 million, which is actually a drop in the bucket for a multi-state project involving energy efficiency and technology. However, CNET's Martin LaMonica points out that companies involved in the three-year project are paying between 20 and 30 percent of the costs.
If the project can reduce usage by 70 percent, the returns for cash-strapped homeowners will be sizable. According to the DOE, a typical American household coughs up $1,240 annually on electric bills. GE thinks it can shave that down to $390, which is a mere $32.50 a month in case you didn't want to do the math.
Before I get blinded by fancy LED lightbulbs and carried away in a whirlwind of energy usage apps, I have to point out that nobody is saying exactly how many homes will be in the project. So the true cost to implement it could be a lot after all. Plus, as much as I love solar tech and think that there have been a lot of impressive improvements in it lately, the actual cost-benefit ratio here remains unclear. Lightbulbs, smart appliances, solar panels -- it all adds up.
If we can get closer to a $32.50 electric bill with inexpensive tech that nudges us to hit the power strip button or finally do some caulking, that might be the most sane way to go.
Photo Credit: Ed Bierman.
Tags: Electricity, Energy, Energy Efficiency, Green Building, Green Tech,
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