Home energy display trials

22-08-2013

Context

In 2009 the UK Department for Energy and Climate Change introduced their intention to roll out a plan for Smart Meters in all UK households by 2020. They stated that “Smart meters are a key part of giving us all more control over how we use energy at home and at work, helping us to cut out waste and save money” The 50 million meters have been estimated to give a net benefit to the nation of £7.3 billion over the next twenty years.

Providing occupants with the means to view and comprehend their own energy consumption is seen as a crucial step to facilitate possible behaviour change within the household. The Ewgeco home energy monitor provides real time energy information to do just that.

During six months from 2010 to 2011 (our harshest winter for generations) Ewgeco, together with the Scottish Energy Centre, (part of Edinburgh Napier University’s Institute for Sustainable Construction), conducted a trial encompassing social housing residents in 3 streets in different counties in Scotland. Each property used the Ewgeco home energy monitor for a predetermined time period to record the household’s energy consumption. During the trial period Scottish Energy Centre staff conducted resident surveys to identify occupants’ attitudes to their energy consumption, how they utilised the monitor and how they translated the data in their day-to-day lifestyle. The Technology Strategy Board (TSB) funded the study and this paper examines the key findings.

Objectives

Consumption: Evaluate the impact of Ewgeco on gas and electricity consumption.
Using Ewgeco: Analyse how occupants perceive and use the device.
Behaviour: See how the occupants evaluated the information provided by the energy display device and changed their behaviour accordingly

Methodology

The trial consisted of 65 properties, 30 had the Ewgeco electricity & gas energy display devices on display and 22 had the monitor installed but hidden. 13 properties had no display installed but took part in energy surveys. The Ewgeco system recorded the household’s hourly energy consumption over six months. Interviews and questionnaires were conducted with the bill-payer on two occasions during the trial period. Gas and electricity readings were collected as data validation.

Findings

Consumption
Across all the 52 properties in the trial, those with a Ewgeco energy monitor on display experienced:

• 20% average reduction in gas consumption.
• 7% average reduction in electricity consumption.

The graph below shows the results based on number of occupants.

Using Ewgeco

• In the beginning of the study 77% of the households said they liked to know how much energy they use, and even more, 89%, wanted to know how much money they spend.
• During the first interview 91% of the households stated that the Ewgeco monitor was easy to use.

Many of the participants who used the patented Ewgeco system said they engaged instantly with the unique coloured traffic lights on the display. The fact this calibrates to each home’s usage allowed them to easily see their energy in an easy and interpretable way encouraging the whole household to monitor effectively, thus saving energy. Many also found the Pound & Pence per hour setting the most useful figure to help them budget. Also features such as the alarm and individual appliance monitoring were very helpful.

Over the course of the trial, a second questionnaire noted that the level of interaction with the monitor had evolved. Ewgeco had become a part of the participant’s everyday lifestyle, and they could receive the information they needed at a quick glance. Importantly many said although they knew they were reducing their usage of their utilities they did not feel any major impact in their day to day lives, often the feedback said they felt empowered and in control of their energy in a way they had not done before.

Behaviour

• Around 94% of the participants said that the energy display device helped them to be more aware of the energy they were using.
• 84% said they minimised the energy use in order to save money.
• 80% said the Ewgeco monitor made them aware of how much money they were spending.
• 73% said Ewgeco made them use less energy.
• 53% said they wanted to save energy because it is good for the environment.

“The coloured bars are very attractive, it was the first thing that ever attempted to explain energy to us. At first it was only the coloured bars, but now I am far more interested to see how much we have spent, you can see the financial impact just by the increase of one green bar.”
Single Male occupant 38 years old, lives in a mid-floor flat

“The monitor has helped me to prove to the rest of the family that we need to stop wasting electricity. In our last house I was forever chasing after everyone turning off lights, I got that from my mother, she would scream and shout when I used to leave lights and stuff on. It's helped me to convince everyone, I'm not wasting my breath anymore.”
58 year old woman living with her daughter, son-in-law and 3 year old granddaughter, in a lower flat of a town house.

“I guess I have always been extremely conscious with the electricity we use, it's all over the TV and radio, turn this off, turn that off, the monitor simply now reminds us when something electrical has accidentally been left on.”
Single Male occupant 62 years old, lives in a Top-floor flat

Conclusions

By allowing all occupants of the household to see and quickly understand how electricity and gas is being consumed Ewgeco became the dominant strategy to facilitate increased levels of awareness of energy waste.

With the UK Department for Energy and Climate Change’s Smart Meter goal in place, Ewgeco has a crucial role to play. Ewgeco provides real time information about the level of energy being consumed in order to help occupants to reduce levels of consumption.

Findings from the trial demonstrate that the Ewgeco monitor generates an enhanced level of awareness of electricity and gas usage, which allows users to reinforce existing energy efficient behaviour whilst also providing them with instantaneous cost information relating to their actions.

The majority of participants that had a Ewgeco on display used the monitor in some capacity. Primarily the coloured traffic light display appeared to be the preferred medium by which many of the users chose to engage with the monitor.

Several of the participants described the device as a learning tool, as it had assisted them in identifying which habits and appliances were costing them the most money. This enabled informed decision-making and the actions required to reduce energy waste. This form of interaction with the monitor makes energy consumption increasingly relevant to everyday lifestyles.

“Our findings demonstrate that in-house utility displays can offer a tangible means of energy reduction by enabling behavioural change.”
John Currie,
Director of the Scottish
Energy Centre at Edinburgh Napier University.

“This study indicates that the Ewgeco monitors have been helping our tenants to become more aware of their energy usage which has helped them to save energy and reduce their utility bills.”
Susan Napier,
Dunedin Canmore Housing
Association’s Business
Development Director.