KPLU Local News
(2009-06-29)
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SEATTLE
(KPLU) -
Tracking your energy use is the first step toward reducing your carbon footprint AND saving money on your utility bill. Now, Microsoft is coming out with free software that will let you analyze how your home uses energy.
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Microsoft is calling the new software "Hohm." That's a combination of "home" and "ohm," the unit for measuring electrical resistance.
Seattle City Light and Puget Sound Energy are two of the utilities that have teamed up with Microsoft to make the software more useful.
Scott Thomsen, with Seattle City Light, says, "The more information that you're willing to fill out and share about your home, the more Hohm will be able to customize the recommendations that it provides you for opportunities to save electricity and then to reduce your bills."
The free, web-based program will take the data your utility supplies about your usage - and the information you enter about your appliances, insulation and such - and develop personalized recommendations for saving energy. It might recommend more energy-efficient light bulbs, for instance, or upgrading your windows. Hohm will also calculate how long it would take for the upgrades to pay for themselves.
Google recently came out with a similar application called "PowerMeter", but it's not yet available to utility customers in western Washington.
Microsoft's Hohm sign-up page
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