Edison Experiment Will Display Electrical Consumption on TVs

A few families in Southern California will soon be able to see on their home television screens just how much electricity their toasters, water heaters and other appliances are using, under an experiment expected to be announced today by Southern California Edison Co.

In February, 25 Palm Springs-area Edison customers will be hooked up through computers at the utility and at their homes, with sensors attached to five common appliances. Later this spring, 25 customers in Orange County will be added.

The system, which could become a new customer-service business for Edison, would eventually allow the utility to detect power outages and read meters electronically from a central facility.

Such a system--operated through phone lines, cable TV lines or wireless systems--could allow households to see a breakdown of their power consumption. They could also control how they use it by setting water heaters at the most efficient temperature or delaying the use of a dishwasher until the middle of the night, when electricity is cheapest.

Depending on the final form of deregulation the state’s electric utility industry takes, customers could one day also choose which company they buy power from.