We received a report from our electric company about the fact that we were using too much energy for the size of our house. I say we pay the bill, I don't want to hear it. And it's not good to have your house too closed up. We sleep with a window open in our bedroom every night. If it's really cold, we still crack it.

This thermal imaging drive by stuff is pretty creepy to me.

Just one more example of "big brother".

This is great! Makes it easier to be more responsible with heating! The impact of the things we do doesn't stop when we pay for them. Just to be aware of the problem (poor insulation, for example) is a first step to solving it and getting better control of the temperature in the house.
If you're concerned about privacy, just close the blinds, it's thermal imaging, not 'x-ray vision' :)

You are correct that you are paying your electric bill and you can feel free to waste as much energy as you want (they're not forcing you to do anything - just giving you information). And that's why we're driving our selfish selves off the climate cliff. http://thinkprogress.org/climate/2012/12/14/1333951/over-10000-americans-tell-congress-to-stop-pushing-us-over-the-climate-cliff/?mobile=nc

Shouldn't this be voluntary? It's less creepy and more private if the utility company comes to your door and offers you this service in advance as a favor to you. That's much better than having them do it while you're sleeping and then nannying you into doing the right thing.

I kind of want a thermal imagine photo of my home! I suspect the front door is a big culprit. . .

This should be voluntary and not something that is just done without your knowledge until you get the report. And it can't possibly see the whole house, right?

When I read the post, I thought wow, great idea but also a money maker for whoever is doing this.. Regardless, I do think it's a good idea.
Agree, it's a photo, not x-rays. Chill people.
And I was shocked to read the 1st post saying that since they pay their bill, it's okay? Do you have any idea how electricity is generated if not by wind mills? They burn coal and coal pollutes the air...so being careful with your usage is not only saving you potential big bucks but the air as well. Jeezzz...

@tarainsevenvalleys
Do you have one of those "smart meters"? It would behoove you to google them then. The information you'll find out about the harm they do, including emitting a HUGE EMF field, will curl your hair and hopefully you'll make the electric co. replace it. Those meters are literally poison. Good luck!!!!!

I'm more worried about all the commercial vehicles, trucks, buses, etc. and the crap they belch out up and down the street every day than the pollution the power company, who is highly regulated, generates. Those type vehicles you can smell and see the smoke long after they've driven by.

I live rural and smell all kinds of things I wonder about. That's all hanging in the air obviously if I can smell it. What is all that doing to the environment?

And DUH, it's not and x-ray, but creepy nonetheless. I think the street views on Google maps is kind of creepy, too. I am entitled to my opinion. And I guess you are entitled to judge it.

Can't robbers do this as well and see if someone is on vacation (heat is off)?

No, I don't. Just a regular meter. They did the report from our readings and sent it in the mail separate from the bill. We pay online. But last year my mother's entire apartment complex was made to switch to what sounds like that type of meter. It keeps track of when you use the most electricity and powers down the air conditioning at certain peak times in the summer. Sounded pretty invasive when she told me about it. And from what I just read they do sound pretty scary!

next you will get a visit from the police to see if you are growing anything.

I would find this creepy if it exposed any private information. Looks like the most classified information you'll find here is that your front door is drafty. I'm all for this, if it helps people make their home more energy efficient.

Speaking of efficiency, I bet it's less costly and wasteful for these companies to simply take photos of the neighborhood in one fell swoop, rather than going out on excursions on an as requested basis.

I know, right? I read an article when I lived in Baltimore about the police using those thermal imaging things to scan basements for excessive heat to catch exactly that!

Window open at night, all night, in the winter? Really? Get a heat exchanger, it warms the cold incoming air with the warm stale outgoing air. So you can help avoid climate change.

I rent and my husband is like sleeping with a furnace.

GregPGH, you took the words out of my mouth. It isn't a service to show you that you're using too much energy for your house, it's to see if the level out heat output indicates a grow room inside. It's called FLIR.

As gotard says, that's why we are driving our selfish selves off the climate cliff.
We are incredibly irresponsible and the environment is paying the price. One thing in itself may seem like a small thing, but if you them all up you will get a pretty scary picture.
Just think, the next time your car is idling for 10 minute in a drive-through, of ALL the cars that are idling (because their owners are too lazy to haul their butts out of the cars) all over North America.

I would love to get a thermal image of my house. I have added a ton of insulation into the attic last year and my house underwent the energy evaluation so hopefully the results would not be too bad.

To all the people that feel this is not bad, some thoughts. We already know how inefficient homes are, with old buildings, cost to build efficiently, no code mandating ( I know big brother, but hay they are already photographing MY house) new construction meet higher efficiency. How about this, only sell efficient things, that way the efficient is designed in, (and easily recycled) not after the fact. So unless I am getting a grant to move or make my home efficient do not photograph it.
What is the comparison of residential vs commercial?
Also, as someone said, they are photographing one side of the house, that is not an energy audit, it is look what I can do. Arguably the most wasteful of all.

follow up...
per "End-Use Energy Share by Sector" based on EIA.gov values for 2008.
Transportation uses 31%
Industrial uses 12%
Commercial uses 29%
Residential uses 28%

So, although any gain is a gain, you have some other bigger and easier to catch fish to fry.

Thank you, GregPGH!!!

The technology is used to locate dwellings used for cultivating cannabis - you would have to be producing industrial quantities to be spotted, though.

My friend works for a company that monitors energy consumption by household (not with this, just with the meter), creates metrics comparing you to similar sized houses and the weather, and mails them out to customers. The power companies pay them to do this because it makes a big difference in energy consumption and saves the power companies money (power is a complex thing, selling more energy doesn't necessarily lead to more profits. They have to balance it with production, peak use times, and possible outages). People do adjust their behavior to keep in line with those around them.

Power isn't "yours"; it's a public utility subsidized by the government. Don't begin to think that what you pay covers the cost. If you go off the grid and produce your own power, use as much as you like. Until then, the power companies and government have the right to persuade you to be more efficient. Our infrastructure has its limits (I'd talk about roads and bridges, but that's another story) and it's way better than rolling brown-outs in the summer.