When we launched SmartHub, we knew it would be a convenient tool for our members. Most users already know that you can pay your bill online through SmartHub. It’s a secure, online payment option that allows you to take care of your bill quickly. Many of our members also take advantage of the mobile app to have access to the tool at their fingertips.

But there’s another feature of SmartHub that may be overlooked—the ability to monitor and manage your energy use. Having access to this information could allow you to make real-life changes to the way you use electricity and ultimately what you pay each month.

The My Usage section of SmartHub provides several tools to help you analyze your past and current usage, as well as plan for the future.

Average Usage

Have you ever wondered when you typically use the most energy? Is it on Saturdays when the whole family is home? Or does your electricity usage spike when the kids get home from school? The average usage tool allows you to see what your typical electricity use is for a specific time period. You can view your average usage by month, day of the week, or time of day to discover when you use the most electricity.

Usage Explorer

The usage explorer tool gives you a detailed look at your past and current usage, all in one place. You can look at your electricity use by month, day and even the hour.

Usage Comparison

The usage comparison tool lets you compare two bills worth of electricity usage history side by side. For example, you could compare the difference in your electricity use year over year, month over month, or any other combination.

See how electricity use changes with the weather.

One of the best features of SmartHub is the weather overlay, which shows how your electricity use changes with the temperature. Electricity use typically follows weather patterns closely. When the temperature is high or low, you’ll probably see the amount of electricity you use go up as well.

Because our billing cycle run about a month and a half behind, it’s easy to forget about the winter cold snap in February when you get the bill in nice April weather. The temperature overlay makes it easy to go back and look at weather patterns that affected your bill. This overlay is available on the Usage Explorer, Usage Comparison and Average Usage charts.

Planning

With the usage planning tool you can mark specific points in time to help you keep track of the difference in your energy bill. For example, you could mark when you installed a new hot water heater or air conditioner to see how your electricity usage changes going forward. This is a great way to track savings from any energy efficiency improvements you make to your home.

Budget Gauge

The budget gauge tool allows you to set and track a monthly target to help you avoid an unexpected electricity bill. By setting your usage budge, you can track how your trending toward that goal and make adjustments to your electricity use throughout the month to ensure you stay on budget.