This chart from SmartHub shows a customer’s high electrical use activity vs. their baseline use on December 14. The baseline is the standard amount of electricity the home uses at any given time.
Dawson PPD’s online payment portal, SmartHub, is the Swiss Army Knife for customers and electric utilities alike. The data it displays can help troubleshoot high bill concerns and show energy savings in near real time.
The “my usage” tool within SmartHub allows customers to see energy consumption trends by the hour, day, week, month and year. It also has the capability to compare your energy usage to years past and displays the average temperature for your location.
“When customers are looking at this data, it’s important to consider the average temperature and their family’s energy use habits,” said Energy Services Specialist Bobby Johnson. “Most customers will see a spike in use on the chart during the morning and again in the evening.”
Aside from daily use habits, a peak in energy use occurs with extreme temperature differences to maintain indoor comfort.
“Some people like to use a space heater in the winter for supplemental heating,” Johnson said. “What they forget is that any kind of resistance heat draws a lot of power, even small devices like this, and their electric bill will reflect that.”
Johnson recommends that customers log on to their account once a month to monitor their energy use. By checking in regularly, customers can visually see where their “baseline” electrical use is and know sooner rather than later if something is amiss. He encourages customers to consider the weather and if they have been using any additional electrical devices when reviewing data.
If the energy use data still seems alarmingly high, Johnson recommends that customers start looking at the big electrical users in the home. Electric water heaters and heat pumps in auxiliary or emergency heat mode may be devices in distress. If you suspect that your energy use is higher than normal, feel free to call Johnson at 308-324-2386 for assistance.
Besides showing extra energy use in the household, SmartHub’s data can also help you save energy. Once a customer understands their home’s baseline and what electronics they use, they can start making adjustments to reduce their consumption.
January 2018