Unknown Heat Device with Unique Power Signature

I have an unknown heat device that turns on through the night and during the day, and I am not sure what it is. Sense says it uses 0.6kWh total (I’ve had it known on Sense since May 15) and suggests the names:
Floor Heater 28%
Light 13%
Slow Cooker 13%
Dishwasher 7%
Rice Cooker 5%
Space heater 5%
I don’t have many things that should be turning on at 2 AM, so my best guess is something in our fridge? We have a new LG fridge, that should use 608kWh a year, but I am not sure what the Power Signature of this device matches. Any information to solve this would be greatly appreciated!


How often does it turn on & how long does it run?
Can you zoom in on it a bit more?

It just depends on the day on how many times it turns on. Looks like it runs anywhere from a few minutes to 30.



Thank you for the zoomed in picture. An idea to rule out the fridge would be to connect your fridge through an energy monitoring smart plug such as TP-Link EP25. If your mystery device is on while the smart plug reports zero, then its not your fridge.

1 Like

Does your new fridge happen to have a linear inverter compressor?

Yes, it actually does!

Only looking at Monday I’d guess it was the compressor, but Tues & Wed 1-2 cycles per day make it seem like the defrost cycle.

The best way to be sure it’s the fridge would be with a Kasa energy monitoring plug ($10). If the signature (partially) matches up you’ll know. Then you can leave the plug there or move it to something else.

Other option would be to pay close attention to the fridge. You could try turning down the temp a bit or, leave the door open for a few min. close it and see if the the mystery device comes on. If it does it’s your compressor’s cooling cycle.

1 Like

I’ve got the recommended smart plug on order. I noticed the day that it turned on and off a lot, it is all within a minute of each other over 30 mins or so. I wonder if it was the defrost just cycling on/off for whatever reason within the typical run cycle. I’m not so sure it runs enough to be the compressor. As of today, it hasn’t turned on again for 17 hours.

This topic was automatically closed 365 days after the last reply. New replies are no longer allowed.