Blue Line and PlotWatt Partnership changes the game for Home Energy Monitoring

Aug. 29, 2011 - PRLog -- The partnership significantly advances the residential customer experience by seamlessly combining Blue Line’s hardware with PlotWatt’s cloud-based software. The solution enables homeowners to see both their real-time whole-home energy use and appliance level spending - no additional hardware or “smart plugs” required.  PlotWatt receives live data feeds every 32 seconds from the PowerCost Monitor™ WiFi Gateway which is broadly available at Lowes, Amazon and other select retailers.  The partnered solution is live today.

Peter Porteous, CEO Blue Line Innovations noted, “this is a real game changer for homeowners.  It has already been proven that displaying real-time energy data can help users achieve five to fifteen percent energy reductions.  With no extra hardware cost or subscription fee, PlotWatt users can now see exactly how much key appliances are using, and perhaps more importantly, users can see customized energy saving recommendations that can push savings even higher.  We have been test driving the PlotWatt dashboard for nine months and this is the real deal – It’s impressive but the results are even more impressive.”

PlotWatt was a recent winner of the GE Ecomagination Challenge, one of five winners selected from over eight hundred submissions.  How does it work?  PlotWatt’s cloud-based algorithms analyze the real-time electricity data and identify unique appliance data signatures.  These can be used to report energy usage in kWhs or dollars for major appliance groups in the home – heating, AC, refrigeration, clothes dryer, pumps and, of course, always-on waste.  The PlotWatt real-time web dashboard also provides the homeowner with helpful feedback and tailored recommendations unique to each home’s energy usage.  Mobile and tablet apps are expected by the end of the year.

PlotWatt CEO Luke Fishback sees great things ahead. “It’s been an exciting time and we’re delighted to be partnered with Blue Line,” he said.  “We started working on PlotWatt in 2008 armed with a Power Cost Monitor and a webcam.  We set up our webcam to take a picture of a Power Cost monitor every 30 seconds.  We digitized the readouts from those pictures and got to work on algorithms that would someday capitalize on the wealth of data such devices deliver. Today we’re making the results of that hard work available for free to Blue Line users everywhere. We like the Blue Line solution; they are the proven leader with lots of customers and a simple, accurate and easy to install technology. Together with Blue Line we can really help people to take a chunk out of their electricity bill.”  

The PowerCost Monitor features a universal optical sensor that slips over the outside of virtually any electricity meter and then feeds that energy data in real time up through a WiFi Gateway to the PlotWatt dashboard.  It’s a simple, step-by-step installation with no electricians required.

The partnership comes on the heels of recent announcements by both Microsoft Hohm and Google PowerMeter that they are withdrawing their services over the next 6-12 months.  Users of those services can quickly and easily move their energy data to PlotWatt before the term expires.  Says Porteous, “We’re thankful to have worked with impressive brands such as Google and Microsoft but PlotWatt and the deep visibility into a home’s electricity usage is a real game changer.  PlotWatt really pushes customer engagement and results to a new level.”

About PlotWatt:
Headquartered in Durham, North Carolina, PlotWatt is the most cost-effective and technologically advanced way for consumers and multi-location businesses to reduce their energy bill. PlotWatt's cloud-based algorithms analyze meter data and provide insight, feedback and recommendations on ways to save on energy. For more information, or to join the Beta, visit www.PlotWatt.com

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About Blue Line Innovations
Blue Line Innovations Inc. developed and markets the PowerCost Monitor™, a line of wireless, portable, real-time energy reporting devices for the home. Blue Line Innovations has been active in the business of real time energy feedback for 6 years with over 150,000 PowerCost Monitors™ in the market since 2004. Easy to install, the PowerCost Monitor™, communicates wirelessly to the meter and now through a WiFi Gateway to the internet and mobile devices. Independent research has confirmed that homes using the PowerCost Monitor™ can save up to 18% on their monthly electricity bill. For more information and the retailer in your area see, www.bluelineinnovations.com