Ann Arbor-based YouKnowWatt is working on technology that helps bring real-time information to home energy audits and eventually make more houses energy efficient.
"We know that energy efficiency is something the U.S. can do now to improve our energy infrastructure and lessen our dependance on fossil fuels," says Steven Sherman, co-founder of
YouKnowWatt.
The 6-month-old company is creating a digital portal that allows the people giving home energy audits more information so they can better engage and educate the homeowners. The portal will provide real-time energy consumption data, prior energy usage, and break down the numbers so homeowners can see where there energy dollars are going.
"It gives people more insight," Sherman says.
He also hopes it will enable them to make more informed decisions about what are the best options to making a building more energy efficient. It could potentially lay out a battle plan to retrofit a structure with better energy efficient features, such as when to install insulation or add alternative energy sources or simply replace an incandescent lightbulb with a CFL.
"It's a way to show how a home is performing and how a home audit can help it," Sherman says.
YouKnowWatt's team of four people (two full-time and two part-time) is preparing to launch a private beta with local contractors later this fall.
Source: Steven Sherman, co-founder of YouKnowWatt
Writer: Jon Zemke
Read more about Metro Detroit's growing entrepreneurial ecosystem at SEMichiganStartup.com.
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