http://chrisbergeron.com My projects, rants and general info Thu, 17 May 2012 07:30:02 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3.1 http://chrisbergeron.com/2009/09/security-system-update-1/ http://chrisbergeron.com/2009/09/security-system-update-1/#comments Sat, 26 Sep 2009 21:07:53 +0000 Chris http://chrisbergeron.com/?p=417 I’m adding a circuit breaker interrupter to my home security system. The purpose of it is to completely turn off some breakers in the home when the alarm is in ‘AWAY DAY’ mode. The goal is to conserve energy by completely disabling certain circuits in the house. I have a lot of electrical vampires, things that consume electricity even when turned off, in my home. One example is our DVR. It draws about 50 watts even when it’s powered off. I don’t have any scheduled recordings, so it makes sense to disable it when it’s not being used. This is only one example, but one of many devices that consume power when I don’t need them to. As a result, I’m building a circuit that breaks the electrical circuit when we’re not home. If the resultant savings are a few hundred watts (that would otherwise run 24/7) it will be a worthwhile endeavor; particularly considering the introduction of solar power. Here’s a picture of the interruptor circuit:

]]> http://chrisbergeron.com/2009/09/security-system-update-1/feed/ 0 http://chrisbergeron.com/2009/07/homemade-home-security-system/ http://chrisbergeron.com/2009/07/homemade-home-security-system/#comments Wed, 15 Jul 2009 05:49:18 +0000 Chris http://chrisbergeron.com/?p=57 I’m building a custom security system for my home. It’s going to be internet connected and it will integrate with my iPhone. I’ve built the interface board and I’m in the process of programming the software. Our home was pre-wired for security sensors, so it will be trivial to attach and integrate them.

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