Software developed by the Alaska Housing Finance Corporation allows building owners and managers to track everything from real-time energy use to indoor temperatures and water consumption, and the system is being offered to anyone for free.

AHFC Building Monitoring is an application originally developed to find ways to reduce energy use and improve building maintenance, the agency's website says. And because it was created with public funds, its developers decided to offer it for free to anyone who wants it.

Software is available in two versions, "mini-monitor" for small buildings, such as a small multifamily, and "bmon" for larger facilities, according to Scott Waterman, the AHFC's energy project manager. The two applications use different hardware, but the display software is the same.

It's not a plug-and-play system that's complete when you install it, Waterman explained, but an interface that's configured to meet the particular needs of a building owner. It would take a person who's "somewhat geeky" to configure the system by himself, but not necessarily a computer programmer.

It can be used to monitor just about any condition — air or water temperature, soil temperature, water levels, fuel flow, and motion-sensors — and it will accept inputs from online data sources, such as a local weather station.

"If you can put in a sensor, it can be plugged into the system," Waterman said by telephone.

Although primarily designed for buildings bigger than single-family homes, Building Monitor is completely at home in a small building, providing the homeowner doesn't mind tinkering with downloading and configuring its inputs. "It's a little less practical when you get down to single-family homes," Waterman said.

Source: www.greenbuildingadvisor.com