With about 50 Smart Meters left to install in the city, Thunder Bay Hydro is still fielding questions about the pending time-of-use rates.
“The biggest concern you hear from people is ‘am I going to have to get up at 5 a.m. to make breakfast or am I going to have to do my laundry at 11 at night?” said Tim Wilson, vice-president of customer service and conservation.
Wilson said customers shouldn’t be worried about when to do regular household tasks, but instead look for where they can reduce phantom loads – electronic devices that use power when in a stand-by mode like a video game consoles, televisions and microwaves.
“Let’s educate people on going through their home, taking a look at what they have plugged in, understanding where their energy use is going,” he said, adding phantom loads make up about 10 per cent of a person’s hydro bill.
“The average home probably has 40 plus devices plugged in that are drawing power all the time,” Wilson said. “You’ve got stuff plugged in and off, but it’s not really off…you can look at easy stuff and decide what you really need to have on all the time.”
Thunder Bay Hydro will be giving tips to the public on how to make a home more energy efficient before the time-of-use rates begin in summer of 2011.
Wilson spoke about the Smart Meters and the technology behind them at the 49th Annual Engineering and Technology Conference at the Valhalla Inn Friday. Hosted by the Lakehead chapter of the Professional Engineers Ontario, the one-day conference had presentations by Ontario Power Generation, the Thunder Bay Regional Research Institute and Olympic transportation planners from Vancouver.
Wilson said it’s always fun to share the technology they’ve done at the company and see technologies developed by other companies.
“It’s an opportunity to showcase what was, for Thunder Bay (Hydro) up to this day, our largest capital spend,” he said, adding the conference is also a great way to network.
“The biggest concern you hear from people is ‘am I going to have to get up at 5 a.m. to make breakfast or am I going to have to do my laundry at 11 at night?” said Tim Wilson, vice-president of customer service and conservation.
Wilson said customers shouldn’t be worried about when to do regular household tasks, but instead look for where they can reduce phantom loads – electronic devices that use power when in a stand-by mode like a video game consoles, televisions and microwaves.
“Let’s educate people on going through their home, taking a look at what they have plugged in, understanding where their energy use is going,” he said, adding phantom loads make up about 10 per cent of a person’s hydro bill.
“The average home probably has 40 plus devices plugged in that are drawing power all the time,” Wilson said. “You’ve got stuff plugged in and off, but it’s not really off…you can look at easy stuff and decide what you really need to have on all the time.”
Thunder Bay Hydro will be giving tips to the public on how to make a home more energy efficient before the time-of-use rates begin in summer of 2011.
Wilson spoke about the Smart Meters and the technology behind them at the 49th Annual Engineering and Technology Conference at the Valhalla Inn Friday. Hosted by the Lakehead chapter of the Professional Engineers Ontario, the one-day conference had presentations by Ontario Power Generation, the Thunder Bay Regional Research Institute and Olympic transportation planners from Vancouver.
Wilson said it’s always fun to share the technology they’ve done at the company and see technologies developed by other companies.
“It’s an opportunity to showcase what was, for Thunder Bay (Hydro) up to this day, our largest capital spend,” he said, adding the conference is also a great way to network.
