MNN - Mother Nature Network

Energy Circle is one of my newfound favorite how-to websites for the green homeowner, offering instructional videos on everything from installing low-flow water fixtures to installing recessed LED ceiling lights.

 

They also have some pretty serious geeks on staff who figured out a way to integrate TED, a whole home energy monitoring system (The Energy Detective) with Twitter. It is similar to Tweet-a-Watt but instead of working off an individual plug, it works off the home's main electrical box so it gives you an instant picture of your home's entire energy usage.

 

Energy Circle co-founders Peter and Lisa have been tracking their home's energy consumption using TED since Earth Day and have seen remarkable changes in their family's energy usage -- 16 percent the first month and declining. Part of the trick was paying their kids half the amount of their energy savings reported by TED ... pretty ingenious. 

 

TED, a small countertop unit, is very affordable (you can buy it on the website for $120). But if you want TED to tweet for you, you will also need to buy a router and do some Linux hacking (instructions).

 

You can see all of Energy Circle's tweets @EnergyCircleKW. Here is the Energy Circle demonstrating how to install TED: