Wattvision (YC W09): The Tale of the Mystery Load

http://blog.wattvision.com/the-tale-of-the-mystery-load-what-happens-aft

by savrajsingh • 16 years ago

47 18 16 years ago

blog.wattvision.com

zakhomuth• 16 years ago

Very cool product!

natch• 16 years ago

Why is the Wattvision system $249? What are the big pieces that make the cost so high? I'm wondering if it can be done cheaper.

acgourley• 16 years ago

Who else can you buy this from?

ig1• 16 years ago

http://www.alertme.com/

waivej2• 16 years ago

Www.Theenergydetective.com is another option. I think I paid $135 and found $50/month savings right away.

joelhaasnoot3• 16 years ago

It can be done relatively cheap by reverse engineering a $15 power meter you get at home depot and combining with $10 worth of electronic parts and a $20 Arduino. Was a college project, and we blew up 5 meters before it worked. Working with 220V (or 110V) right next to 5V can be dangerous and not an easy "electronics problem".

brianwhitman• 16 years ago

it is my understanding that Wattvision taps the entire electrical system via the meter, not just a single outlet like a $15 "kill-a-watt" style power meter will.

sliverstorm• 16 years ago

As a sidenote, are people actually saving money with it? The energy bill for my apartment is around $30/mo. At $9/mo for WattVision service, and $249 for the hardware, I can't find any potential cost savings in there.

Mz• 16 years ago

My last electric bill was $266 (also in an apartment). I don't think your costs are necessarily typical (and I know mine are not -- mine tend to be high due to medical-related expenses).

hinathan• 16 years ago

Will Wattvision someday be able to tap into the (GE) SmartMeter data that already exists? I'm in a multi-unit condo and my wifi closet is a few hundred feet from our meter stack. Is there any way to interrogate the meter via the onboard mesh radio?

savrajsingh2• 16 years ago

Yes, definitely something on our radar.

joeguilmette• 16 years ago

I immediately wanted to purchase this for our business. My enthusiasm was greeted by a server error msg on the mobile site, with no way of viewing the full site...

savrajsingh2• 16 years ago

Thanks for catching this. We've fixed it -- please contact us at info@wattvision.com with any other questions or issues. We look forward to having you as a customer!

nopassrecover• 16 years ago

Are digital electricity meters (which I gather Wattvision requires) common in the US? Most homes I know in Australia still use an analog/physical device counter.

joelhaasnoot3• 16 years ago

Here in the Netherlands it definately was a hot issue in regards to privacy. But likely the new meters will come: they could bring savings to the power companies by way of better knowledge of usages.

Wattvision (YC W09): The Tale of the Mystery Load

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