If you can measure it you can control it, and that is also true of your energy consumption.

Two energy-monitoring devices have recently been brought to my attention that are not only easy to use, but also to install. The first one is the OWL, and consists of a wireless clip you put around your house’s main electricity cable. Data is then transmitted to a portable LCD device. I suppose it works by measuring the magnetic fields induced by the current.

The other one is the Wattson. It works along similar principles, but is maybe just a bit more stylish.

I welcome the introduction of such devices on the market. I’ve heard that when consumption meters were introduced in cars, their owners started paying attention to it and adjusted their driving accordingly. Some do it for genuine economic reasons, but others do it simply for the fun of it. These sort of toys are simply irresistible to us grown-up children.

Perhaps the only, small gripe I could have against the OWL or the Wattson is their lack of granularity. You measure the total energy consumption of the house, and cannot measure the consumption by appliance (fridge, oven, etc) or by kind (lighting, heating, etc). And I don’t suppose there’s any way to record historical data from them. But never mind, they’re cool nevertheless.