I've spent alot of time in my basement as a youth, mostly tinkering with electronics and mechanical devices.

I vaugely recall the day they came to install it. The men from the power company came around and mounted it to the side of our heater. Mom said it would save money on the electric and gas bills. So for the past 10+ years there sat a small grey box with 5 small LED lights on it and a large warning about not tampering with power company equipment. Sealed within was simply a mystery to me that seldom crossed my mind. I assumed it was just a small computer that told the heater when to cut back.

But low and behold after years of sitting attached to our heater and having never been so much as gazed upon by an employee of the power company I decided it was time to see what was to behold in the confines of this small plastic box.

So tonight, armed with a pair of pliers I gently pried the thin metal wire out of the anti-tamper tag careful not to damage it, and removed the single screw holding it shut. I opened the hatch and began to glance over the circuit board trying to gather ideas as to it's function. As my eyes swept across the simplistic circuit board something caught my eye.

Poised at the top of the board was a loop of wire about 9 inches in length purposefully folded and protruding from the circuit board. Under it a series of crystals, loops, and tuning capacitors. Low and behold attached to my furnace was a radio receiver allowing the power company to remotely operate and control our furnace. Maybe a sign of a slightly smaller big brother controlling aspects of our lives through secretly guarded load management devices but fascinating none the less. I believe this will require further research.

ehhh... you got pics of this thing?

This thread is useless without pics.