Reducing "other"

[deputypaulatl]

I think it would be safe to say a majority of my “other” is probably

1. TV entertainment - dvr, tv,dvd, sat box, apple tv box
2. Office - Computer, router, modem, printer

So I’m seriously looking into a smart plug for those. From what I have read, the [TP-Link Kasa KP-115] would be a good choice.

However, not as straight forward

TV devices all plug into a Panamax power conditioner
Office items plug into a cyber power UPS

Assuming I would plug both devices into the smart plug. I could tag one as TV the other as Office

Would that work?

[kevin1]

Seems like a sensible approach. I have my two entertainment clusters and my home gateway cluster (modem, router, main switch, plus a couple of bridge devices) on HS300s that have 6 separate plugs, but haven’t really gotten much marginal value from separating all of them. The gateway cluster HS300 is fed by a UPS. The downstairs entertainment cluster was occasionally sucking enough power through the HS300, that I had to put the Yamaha receiver on a separate HS110.(KP115 / KP125 equivalent). I also have a laptop / monitor / hard drives cluster that is connected to a UPS plugged into an HS110.

If I had to do it over, I would have avoided the HS300s, and just measured combined usage for each cluster.

[deputypaulatl]

Thanks,

For me I think a single smart plug would work (not strip). Reason being the UPS / power monitor only plug into a single outlet.

Any good places to get the TP’s. Love to get one local - would best buy etc carry them?

[kevin1]

BestBuy has KP115s for 12.99 right now. Whether they are in stock locally would depend on your local store.

kp115 - Best Buy

[deputypaulatl]

Thanks,

But when I click on that link it is for the KP-125 - is that still compatible with Nest?

[deputypaulatl]

I should have looked first… Here is a list of compatible Smartplugs for Sense - KP125 is on the list.

I’m totally running out to grab a few of them

[andy]

That’s similar to what I have running, and it’s quite reliable/accurate.

[andy]

I definitely do recommend you do that, NOT an HS300. When I researched that, the extra detail of knowing what some 20-30 watt devices were drawing provided no value in my home energy management (wasn’t going to be shutting off things like my modem regardless) and the extra cost for little value simply made no “sense”.

[kevin1]

Same as my conclusion after having the HS300s for a while, @andy. But at least I had a little fun with the data:

Some Data Science of “On", “Off” and “Idle”

Numerous visitors to this forum question “why it is so hard for Sense to see" an on or off pattern for a device in the Power Meter that is clearly visible to them. Or why does Sense have trouble figuring out when a smartplug device is in and “Off” state, vs. an “Idle” state vs. an “On/Active”. The gist of issue is that detecting patterns in the midst of noise and other patterns is a hard problem and the human brain and vision system are a very sophisticated piece of biologic hardware built for…

[brian.chatagnier]

Your plan is a good one, and that’s almost exactly what I do.

I like combining the single smart plug with a “master switched” power strip. These power strips automatically turn off accessories like computer monitors and speakers when the computer turns off. This helps cut down your “always on” usage.

[deputypaulatl]

OK… 2 configured (took FOREVER as their instructions SUCKED). Now that I know how to do it easier, rest will go quick.

Question: Since these are smart plugs, how long do you think it will take for Sense to detect the smart plugs.

[kevin1]

I’m assuming you mean that you have configured the plugs via the Kasa app to be attached to your network and visible in the Kasa app ?

You’ll next need to make sure the TP Link integration is turned on under Settings > My Home > Connected Devices

Once that happens the plugs should show up as devices in a few minutes.

A few more pointers:

• The Sense monitor typically has to be on the same subnet as the plugs. They talk via broadcasts on the subnet.
• Various folks with various types of networks have noticed that the Kasa devices can sometimes experience dropout, when the Kasa plug stops talking to the Sense monitor for some period of time. We haven’t resolved what’s happening, but it seems more related to networking/plug interactions vs Sense.

[deputypaulatl]

Thanks, that is what I was looking for.
When I enabled that in sense, it stated it should start to see the plugs in 5-10 mins.
Note: 6 of the 8 are active (2 are configured but not plugged in yet)

[deputypaulatl]

Sweet, they are already showing in my devices tase

Biggest draw is my TV (tv dvd dvr sat box etc) and Office computer.

Yet my always on and other did not drop since these additions - ODD

[deputypaulatl]

Hmmm … Other may have dropped entirely now. Always on is still high.

Wait, will typing this, other popped on for a second then dropped off.

I will be watching this

[kevin1]

Pointer #3 - the Other bubble should drop in size by the amount the new plugs are detecting since it’s a simple subtraction.:

Other = Total Usage - sum(all detected usage)

Always On is a very different bird since it is a statistical calculation using data collected over the past 48 hours. After your plugs have been going for 24 hours or so, Sense will give you Always On values for each plug so you can reduce the size of the unknown component of you house-level Always On.