New Electric Meter Sucks!

My nameless utility company turned off my power this week so they could install their new electric meter on the outside of my house. Yeah, you heard me right--outside. My wife, Susie, came home for a mid-day break to get some office work done, only to be stymied by an inconvenient truth-- we're always at the mercy of those who control our energy and who control our awareness of our energy. 

TRUE STORY
During the 1970's oil embargo, citizens in a particular suburb of single-family houses in Amsterdam were trying to be more mindful of their electricity consumption. Someone noticed that even though all the houses were built in exactly the same way, a large percentage of the houses were using about 1/3 less electricity. 1/3 LESS! That's huge. Upon closer examination, they discovered that the homes were actually built with one minor difference--some homes had electric meters in the basement and some had electric meters in the foyer by the front door. Can you guess which homes used less electricity? Of course you can, because you know that "out of sight is out of mind". The homes with meters in the foyer were more carefully watched by their owners, who saved more energy. Can you imagine if shopping carts were black boxes and you didn't know how much food you had bought?

As my energy guru John Robbins is fond of saying, "When it comes to energy consumption, a smart person in dumb home always beats a dumb person in a 'smart home'."

WARNING!-- Cover your eyes if you're offended by middle fingers flicking off electric meters. 

I don't usually do this, but I just can't resist this overt display of hostility when the consequences are so global and personal in scope. 

68 kwhr used this week. Is that good? Yes, but it's March-- an easy month on electricity.

I'm a lover not a fighter, I swear. But we live in a system within a system within a system, and whether we're talking about the system of the global economy or the system of Mama Nature, which encompasses it, all systems' stocks (resources) and flows are governed by feedback loops-- timely information and leverage points of intervention. Rather than me blabbering inefficient and impotent messages like, Screw you, utility company--I'm completely addicted to your habit of facilitating mountain top removal, the poisoning of pure water and air, and your counter-productive price structures, it makes more sense to flick 'em the bird and get on with our master plan to get off that dirty grid.

The outdoor meter makes it easier for them to collect consumption data, reducing their expenses, and thus making my electricity cheaper, right? That's a good public relations answer. But it contributes to a system that restricts feedback of information (knowing my consumption) and intervention points (using less energy or timing my energy usage for off-peak hours). Outdoor electric meters make us buy more electricity.

My very best energy audit costumer ever lived in a 1920s homes near the University of Cincinnati. His electric usage was the lowest I've ever seen. He had about 1800 square. feet of living space. He didn't have solar panels. He didn't have a new 95% efficiency furnace. He didn't have LED light bulbs. He didn't have triple pane window or even many double pane windows. He just had a mission to not waste. One of his key allies in this mission was his TED (The Energy Detective). This energy monitoring devise gave him real time awareness of his energy consumption. He's not efficient, but he's damn effective.