I’m in an area where it gets really cold and much of my energy usage is heating. I wanted to split it out from the rest of my energy. However, I didn’t want to go through the effort of getting a CT clamp or adding wires to my circuit breaker, so I set up an estimation system. Here’s how it works:
- There’s an input boolean called “heater on”
- When the thermostat claims it’s below the minimum temperature, the input boolean turns on. When the thermostat claims it’s above the minimum temperature or the boolean has been on for a few hours, the boolean turns off.
- There’s a template sensor called “HVAC Power” that outputs the whole house power use minus 2.5 kW (normal high) if the heater is on, and 0 otherwise
- There’s an integral sensor (with left side sum and 1 minute maximum) called “HVAC Energy” that lets me add the data to the energy dashboard
I only set this up yesterday but it’s working alright. If you think there’s a way to get more accurate estimations let me know. I haven’t found any prior work or alternative methods yet though.