Updated, new limited-time $25 bonus. OhmConnect works with consumers and their local utilities to lower energy costs and save money together. Before reading any further, it appears that cash payments are only for customers of PG&E, SDG&E or Southern California Edison in California. Here’s how it works:
- Get notified: The utility lets us know that a time of intense demand is coming up and we notify you about it via an email or SMS. This is usually one hour a week between 5-9 pm when solar energy is not available.
- Reduce: OhmConnect community members reduce our energy usage by turning off lights, giving our thermostats a break and not using electronics. (The easiest way to do this is by having your thermostat connected and smart plugs attached to your home’s biggest energy hogs.)
- Get rewarded: The utility saves money by avoiding having to turn on their dirty and expensive “peaker plants”. The utility pays OhmConnect, which in turn passes on 80% to you.
Rewards include cash via PayPal, Amazon gift cards, and/or Target gift cards. Supposedly, you can earn $100 to $300 a year. If you connect any smart home devices like a Nest thermostat or an electric vehicle, you can earn extra bonuses and also automate your participation. OhmConnect participation is free and does not affect your existing utility service.
If you are a California resident and customer of PG&E, SDG&E or Southern California Edison, sign up for OhmConnect here and link your account and get a $25 bonus. This is a limited-time offer during April 2021 (Earth Month), as their usual bonus is only $10. You will also be able to then refer others for a $50 bonus if they open a new account and link a utility. That is my referral link, thanks if you use it.
Seems like a reasonably win-win-win arrangement if you reduce pollution while you’re at it. I wrote about this first back in 2017, but just got the e-mail about the limited-time Earth Month bonus boost. Please feel free to share your experiences with OhmConnect if you’ve used them for a while.
The Best Credit Card Bonus Offers – November 2024
Big List of Free Stocks from Brokerage Apps
Best Interest Rates on Cash - November 2024
Free Credit Scores x 3 + Free Credit Monitoring
Best No Fee 0% APR Balance Transfer Offers
Little-Known Cellular Data Plans That Can Save Big Money
How To Haggle Your Cable or Direct TV Bill
Big List of Free Consumer Data Reports (Credit, Rent, Work)
I have been using for OhmConnect for about a year. It’s pretty great, and easy to use. They’ve also been increasing their payouts lately so I get around $1/OhmHour. These occur a few times a week and usually increase a lot during the Summer. So it does earn you some money but the real reason to do it is to help fight climate change by avoiding dirty energy.
If you want to use my referral link it’s: https://ohm.co/48180ec
How does this startup actually measure reduction in usage? So when they send a txt do I need to turn off something? What if all my appliances are already off and there is nothing to be turned off further. I’m current enrolled in PGE Smart rate which charges a lower rate “non-peak” and a higher rate during “peak” hours. Sadly I can only chose one and hence I am wondering how Ohm measures reduction in usage?
I believe that when you link your utility account, you give OhmConnect permission to see a real-time feed of your power meter data. Most people have “smart meters” now that track your usage continuously.
I have the same question as John – if I’m already at the low use point at the moment (e.g. not at home, appliances off, etc) and they declare OhmHour, I get nothing?
Also here’s my experience, I signed up after I read this article. Got an approval email from utility. Yet a week later OhmConnect is still “waiting” for the approval. I pinged them via intercome, 14 hours later no response at all.
We’ve been using OhmConnect for close to a year, and I’m pretty much sold on its benefits. They have changed the award structure to benefit consumers who regularly use less energy than they normally do during an OhmHour. My family has made a game of shutting off the lights and unplugging everything during Ohm Hour, and according to YNAB I’ve cashed out $270 so far this year. Two days ago, the grid was particularly stressed from 5-8pm and we were paid close to $50 for those three hours alone. So, yeah, we’re believers…and it’s a good tool to teach people how to conserve energy. And you can get $20 with this referral https://ohm.co/dd61450
Only for Cali, is there a program for Oregon?
Not that I am aware of, but there are other similar programs out there. Here is one from Ameren Illinois called Peak Time Rewards.
I signed up for Ohm about a year ago. At first it was fine–the $10 bonus, plus another $20 or so for reducing my energy usage in the first month or two. But they kept lowering the amount of energy I could use if I wanted to receive any points towards a bonus. Pretty soon it was impossible for me to receive any points at all. When I called them to ask what I should do, after reviewing my account, their only suggestion was to unplug my refrigerator. Really???? I gave up on them.