If someone needs a thing on the wall to tell them how much power they're using, something is wrong. Not that hard to see what lights are on, no?
I get where you're coming from, but you know... I seriously wonder if it would make a difference to my kids' slovenly attitude to leaving lights on everywhere, cranking thermostats, (etc.) if they could see - I mean, really *see* - the dollars going out the door.
Even taking them outside and showing them the current meter making like a circular saw doesn't quite connect to dollars.
From a strategic point of view... TOU billing doesn't make me that grumpy. I don't mind being incented to use existing generating capacity in off hours before we go and invest in new capacity. Now, at the moment, my thermostats allow the house to cool during the day and run when we're home. I wonder whether I will be nudged toward insulating well, heating in the afternoon, and coasting on that for a while during peak hours. Hmmm. Or just go back to gas/forced air.