Very Low Cost Energy Monitoring using Blynk, ESP8266 and the ACS712 from Allegro MicroSystems with local OTA update facility. Under $5 if you shop around for components.

Remember WORKING WITH MAINS ELECTRICITY CAN BE VERY DANGEROUS. Hopefully the screenshot below explains what the Smartphone app does but if you have any questions take a look at the references on Blynk's Community site. Obtain the best available iOT app builder from Blynk for your Smartphone:

Android and iOS.

Top up the 2000 FREE energy units to 3000 (costs less than a dollar) as this project requires 2600 units.

Manually install the Blynk libraries for the Arduino IDE

Pick up a plug and play ESP8266 with 3.2V+ ADC:

Sparkfun's Blynk Board WeMos NodeMCU

The ESP8266 has a 1.0V ADC but the plug and play development boards above are adapted to accept 3.2 / 3.3V. As the ACS712 is a 5V module requiring at least 4.5V input voltage you can power it from the 5V outlet on these development boards but only to 60% of the rated current. To use the full current rating you need an additional 180K Ohm resistor between the data out of the ACS712 and the ESP's analogue port.

Select a 5A, 20A or 30A ACS712 current sensor. We use the 30A module but we suspect you will get better accuracy from the lower rated modules if you are monitoring low current devices. For a detailed explanation of how the ACS712 interfaces with an Arduino / ESP8266 take a look at Sparkfun's guide for their breakout board.

Flash your ESP8266 with ESPecoMon.ino but don't forget to enter your credentials (Blynk token, SSID and PWD) before flashing.

Use the QR code below to load the project on to your Smartphone and away you go.

Arduino IDE Screenshot of Serial Monitor

TODO:

1. Add Webhook widget for interfacing with well known API's
2. Log energy usage over time and add SuperGraph widget

If you want a more accurate Energy Monitoring system take a look at ESPproMon© or contact us at the PeaceFairApp site

Inital README.md created with StackEdit