Going Green Home by Home in Britain

[missmanors]

Taking small steps can make a huge difference in going green. "Smart meters" allow homeowners to immediately see how much electricity is being used each time a light, computer, or the oven is turned on. This monitoring of the electric usage, has helped those people to cut back on the electric being used, and has the British government actually debating on putting these meters in all homes.

When Jeffrey Marchant and his wife, Brenda, power up their computer, turn on a light or put the kettle on to boil, they can just about watch their electric bill rise.

By ELISABETH ROSENTHAL


I'm sure that having a meter in my home, would change the way we use electricity. We don't seem to think about flipping switches for lights, or turning the computer on, or the tv. These things are just automatic, but with a monitoring system in place, it would make me think about what I am doing. Having one that would actually tell me the cost of flipping those switches would be a big red flag that would make me turn off appliances and lights.

Going Green Home by Home in Britain

[homealone]

This is a great system. I would love to have this in my home. I understand that it is important to turn everything off if its not needed.
Now my finace on the other hand is just the opposite. Many time's I have tried to explain to him that, turning fans, computer,tv, and lights off if you are not in the room, will save us alot on the electric bill. His answer to this is...."I pay the bill".
If we had this system, maybe he would see it and maybe it would sink in that, if he shuts stuff off then our bill would be alot lower than it is.
Our coffee pot has a clock on it as well as our stove. I cant do much about our stove but the coffee pot gets unplugged. I do my best to keep our bills to a minimum, now if I could just train him to do the same.