Hey everyone! I wanted to share my journey and approach to detailed energy management in Home Assistant. It all started about three years ago when I first began measuring my home’s energy usage. Initially, it was just about setting things up and seeing the total usage, but I quickly realized I wanted more granular details to identify problem areas and opportunities for improvement.
About 18 months ago, I invested in two Emporia Gen2 Vue devices, which I outfitted across 32 circuits in my electrical panels. This setup allows me to monitor both total power usage and detailed circuit-specific data, providing a comprehensive view of my energy consumption.
For a while, I relied on a custom_component integration that accessed Emporia’s cloud services. While it worked well, it was limited to 1-minute reporting intervals. I always felt there was more potential to unlock from these devices. Last week, I stumbled upon a fantastic project where the Vue devices were reverse-engineered and flashed with ESPHome, enabling real-time data with updates every few seconds. This was a game-changer for me!
With ESPHome, I now have the ability to see real-time power usage and make more informed decisions. I’ve integrated this data into my Home Assistant setup, creating detailed dashboards that provide both granular and group-level insights. I’ve also set up automations to track energy costs and monitor usage patterns over time.
One of the key aspects of my approach is organizing my sensors and entities in a way that makes it easy to group and analyze data. I’ve created virtual circuits to represent known loads on each circuit, allowing me to subtract these from the total power to avoid double-counting. This method provides a clear and accurate picture of my energy usage.
I’d love to hear from others who are diving deep into energy management. What tools, integrations, or techniques have you found most helpful? Let’s continue to share knowledge and improve our energy efficiency together!