Energy Savings
Reducing Energy Costs is more important than ever. We need to reduce the spiralling costs, and protect the environment. Ontario Residents are now converting to so-called Smart Electrical Meters. The Ontario Energy Board (OEB) is installing smart meters on all households in Ontario. Almost 3 million such meters, out of a total of 4 million, have been installed to date. All 4 million households will equipped by 2010. The smart meters measure the time of day electricity is consumed, and applies electrical charges on the basis of which time period the electricity was used. This is called Time of Use (ToU) billing, expected to be implemented in early 2010. The table that follows shows the rate Ontario residents will pay, according to the time-of-day usage. Note that only “raw” electricity rates are shown. Ontario residents also pay delivery charges and debt retirement charges on top of the current “raw” rate of 5.6 cents/KWhr, resulting in a typical rate of 11 cents/KWhr. This means that once time-of-use billing is in place, Ontarians’ electrical bill will greatly increase. The only way to reduce the bill will be to reduce overall consumption, or shifting consumption from the costly on-peak periods to lower-cost off-peak periods.
The good news is that TriVista’s automation solutions are already equipped to account for time-of-use billing. They can be programmed to automatically reduce energy use during peak periods, therefore reducing overall energy consumption and cost. TriVista has developed a model to calculate the payback period for home automation, which shows payback in approximately six years. A home automation system helps to reduce the overall electricity consumption in the following three ways:
- Reducing Wastage - Auto-shutoff of un-needed lights, heating/cooling, based on exit/entry or room occupancy, or other factors. Lights that are not needed are simply not used.
- Using Reduced Lighting - Lights are dimmed (reduced brightness) when full brightness is not needed, for instance, when illuminating a room for simulated occupancy, lighting a hallway at night when someone arises, etc. Operating a light at reduced brightness means less energy consumption.
- Consumption shifting - A home automation system can help to schedule more electrical consumption to off-peak periods, when rates are cheaper. This will apply once the Ontario Regulated Price Plan (Appendix 3) takes effect.
How much can you help the environment with a Control4 system?Control4 uses dimmers, timers and occupancy sensors to reduce energy waste. A typical 3-bedroom home with a Control4 system will eliminate over 850 pounds of CO2 emissions each year. That’s like not driving a car for a month! Control4 also lets you control the amount of wattage used by light bulbs, which not only saves electricity and reduces energy bills but extends the life of bulbs as well. |
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Typical "Green" Energy Conservation System
Ontario Smart Meter Program
Time of Use (TOU) Pricing
Below is a chart outlining the current TOU prices and the three periods:
How a Smart Home Reduces Energy Costs
Demand-Response Solutions for Smart Homes
