Thinking Green

[nathan]

Just wondering, does anyone monitor their energy usage?

 

I've been looking into openenergymonitor.com at the possibility of installing a device to monitor the amount of electricity we consume, the hope is to raise awareness of how much electricity the schools use and hope to hold a trust wide energy saving week to further raise awareness and hope to save the usage by x%.

 

It's not just about saving pennies, but saving the planet.... i blame watching Blue Planet 2.

 

Does anyone actively monitor their usage and if so what hardware/software do you use? Also any examples of how it's helped your school?

[jthompson]

I use openenergymonitor at home, but I think you'd have your work cut out scaling it up to include lots (dozens?) of sensors. There's also the issue of whether things are 3-phase or single phase. Having sensors spread across a large site would also be a problem, I think.

 

The BM/site team have done some work here on monitoring and reducing energy usage, but I've not been involved and so don't know if there's any monitoring of smart meters going on. They've had surveys done, and have been changing the lighting to LED, etc. in accordance with a grand plan that's rooted in finances. I've been asked a few times if the network cabs can be shut down over summer, but people do occasionally come in and need network and phones, so they stay on.

 

We're graphing the power usage of some of our physical servers using Check_MK and a custom plugin, but the graphs doesn't move much. I keep meaning to get an inline power meter and take reading for what some of the switches are using, to model the running costs of the network infrastructure.

 

In terms of openenergymonitor at home, it's most useful for us day-to-day for monitoring room temperatures and humidities (with a view to getting the perfect night's sleep). The power usage monitoring is good, but after the initial drive to discover the main offenders, and replacing lighbulbs, etc. there's not a lot that it's all that informative about. Once you know that leaving something on/off is the way to go, and that your 24/7 background power usage is sipping along at 100-200W, then that's just how things are.

[mavhc]

Some poe switches have time settings to power off devices at night.

 

Impero has an energy calculator iirc

 

Mostly I just set computers to standby after 10 mins

[sparkeh]

We use netsupport DNA to monitor energy use and shut down machines at the end of the day. The stats are used to demonstrate how much energy wasted/saved

[nathan]

I use openenergymonitor at home, but I think you'd have your work cut out scaling it up to include lots (dozens?) of sensors. There's also the issue of whether things are 3-phase or single phase. Having sensors spread across a large site would also be a problem, I think.

 

The BM/site team have done some work here on monitoring and reducing energy usage, but I've not been involved and so don't know if there's any monitoring of smart meters going on. They've had surveys done, and have been changing the lighting to LED, etc. in accordance with a grand plan that's rooted in finances. I've been asked a few times if the network cabs can be shut down over summer, but people do occasionally come in and need network and phones, so they stay on.

 

We're graphing the power usage of some of our physical servers using Check_MK and a custom plugin, but the graphs doesn't move much. I keep meaning to get an inline power meter and take reading for what some of the switches are using, to model the running costs of the network infrastructure.

 

In terms of openenergymonitor at home, it's most useful for us day-to-day for monitoring room temperatures and humidities (with a view to getting the perfect night's sleep). The power usage monitoring is good, but after the initial drive to discover the main offenders, and replacing lighbulbs, etc. there's not a lot that it's all that informative about. Once you know that leaving something on/off is the way to go, and that your 24/7 background power usage is sipping along at 100-200W, then that's just how things are.

 

It would just be the sensors to measure usage in a single school and we would replicate it in others. I would imagine all schools are 3 phase. I'm currently sat in a school that was opened last last year, just visited the plant room and electricity feed is all enclosed so i'm sure i can get away with using this technology to mearsure - will investigate in other schools.

 

Thanks for your reply

[nathan]

We use netsupport DNA to monitor energy use and shut down machines at the end of the day. The stats are used to demonstrate how much energy wasted/saved

 

 

Unfortunately, that will only measure a certain amount, i'd like to measure all usage.

[jthompson]

It would just be the sensors to measure usage in a single school and we would replicate it in others. I would imagine all schools are 3 phase. I'm currently sat in a school that was opened last last year, just visited the plant room and electricity feed is all enclosed so i'm sure i can get away with using this technology to mearsure - will investigate in other schools.

 

I'd certainly be interested in seeing your results if you're able get things up and running.

[mbeach]

Our printers monitor green energy using software and that helps alot, paper wastage, toner wastage etc.

[AlanD]

We were surprised how much energy was wasted on lighting...which could often be turned off without anyone noticing - especially in classrooms with tall windows (which was partly why they were designed that way). Even fluorescent lighting - which is much better than incandescent lighting uses surprising amounts collectively when left on for hours.

 

And while replacing this lighting with LED lighting can save significance costs - recouping the investment - and the labour to do it - makes it harder to justify.

 

I recommend making a nuisance of yourself and just turn lights of in classroom - and express surprise when they are surprised ...and say something like "well you can manage fine without them on can't you". Its surprising (a) how quickly they come to expect it, (b) start doing it themselves © how much (and it will run to thousands) how much can be saved.

[mavhc]

ceiling tile LED lighting is cheap these days, any time old lighting fails replace it with that.

 

I'd set up light sensors and movement sensors to turn lights down/off as the outside light increases/people leave the room

 

Main energy usage is heating/cooling though, which for heating probably isn't electricity. How many times are radiators turned up to max because people don't know how they work?