Getting bills to suck, there are no two ways about it. But what makes them double-ly suck is when they are way higher than you’d budgeted or expected.
I was lucky enough to have a burst water pipe in my last place. My garden looked great due to the new levels of hydration it was getting (and not used to), which should have been my first tip-off. I finally found out when South East water hit me up for nearly $2,000.00. No thanks.
That got me thinking. There is pretty much ‘smart’ everything these days, so there must be devices and apps to help you keep on top of energy, water, and gas consumption. Had I not been right, I’d be trying to sell this idea, but unfortunately, a few others also had a similar idea.
I’m by no means an expert, so please don’t send hate mail, but I’ve checked out a few, but here are a few you might find interesting:
Sense – These cats are mainly targeted toward energy consumption. A monitor is attached to your mains and is accessible via an app—one-time cost and free to update after that.
Smappee – A more comprehensive monitoring platform that can link with battery systems & intelligent devices but also can track gas and water. More comprehensive usually means more expensive, and while this attracts a higher price point, it’s pretty rad.
Wattcost – Always shout out to our friends in Australian Tech; this app live tracks your solar use and electricity rates to ensure maximum taking advantage of rates and usage.
All are worth checking out, and with electricity costs going north, probably good advice to have a system in place to keep an eye on things.
