Would you like to minimize the amount of power that your home or small business is using?

First off, you can compare and shop for Texas Electricity Companies to make sure you pay reasonable rates and don’t overspend. Then, consider reducing the costs while sticking to the services you are already using.

It is no secret that the process of cutting back on the monthly electricity expenses starts by monitoring them. Then comes the analyzing part where you see how the energy is consumed around your home, compare monthly fees, notice what you pay for the most, and understand why you overpay. As a result, you are aware and able to reduce the costs without making drastic changes.

Surely, you could use the manual technique of pen and paper, or Excel spreadsheets, and write everything down, bit by bit. This method is comprehensive and practical. Nevertheless, it is energy-consuming, and can easily lead to overlooking some details.

To save yourself time and trouble, try going digital. You can make your life much easier by testing out some applications, websites, and programmes that are specially designed to help you monitor the energy consumption in your house. Most of them allow you to do so from the comfort of your smartphone. 

Here is a list of four apps that will help you make your house more energy-efficient.

Energy Cost Calculator

The highlight of this app is its simplicity. Energy Cost Calculator counts the costs and energy usage of electronic devices placed in your home or office. It is based on several simple equations.

The app is available both for Android and iOs systems. It is very user-friendly and super easy to navigate. All you need to do is enter the amount of energy used daily, and the hours of using it per day. Energy Cost Calculator will show you precisely what you are paying. The app can calculate the costs per pay, week, month and year.

A side perk of Energy Cost Calculator is that it also shows you the carbon emission per year. As such, not only can you reduce energy consumption, but also the harmful CO2 production.

Green Outlet

The app was primarily designed to help users understand which home appliances are using the most energy. It provides a list of some of the most common devices and the average energy consumption for each device per month.

Using Green Outlet will help you establish which of your appliances are the most energy-consuming, and estimate the costs. Knowledge is vital to the monthly bills reduction process. Once you know what causes you to spend so much money, you can start optimizing the energy flow among various home devices and try to limit it wherever it is possible.

This app will take your carbon emission awareness to another level. If you start producing air pollution that is higher than recommended, you will be notified.

Before you start using it, keep in mind that the app will require some of your data to work.

Nest Mobile

This app is dedicated only to the Nest thermostat owners. If you happen to be one, Nest Mobile is a must on your phone. It allows you to regulate the home’s temperature level, anywhere and anytime. This means you can cool the house while you are far away on vacation and heat it right before your arrival.

Moreover, Nest Mobile keeps a record of the consumer’s energy usage history. You can compare days and months. Based on the facts and preferences, you get to decide what temperatures should be maintained, at what times of the day. That is thermo-optimization at its finest!

MeterPlug

MeterPlug will only work once you have purchased a dedicated MeterPlug plug before. The socket connects and synchronizes the app with your home appliances. It has to be placed between the device and the power outlet to transmit the data to your smartphone correctly.

MeterPlug shows how much energy does a single appliance use and what are the estimated energy costs based on the time of the day.

It has a built-in memory that is easy to download and review, making it extremely helpful in the monitor process.

Conclusion

Minimizing energy consumption should be a mutual goal for all of the house residents. Remember that you can always take it a step further, and besides controlling your energy consumption, take some conscious effort to reduce it. That could be done by using the energy-efficient devices, renewable energy sources, and overall proactive attitude. Not only will this save you some money on monthly bills, but also be beneficial to the environment.