In an age where smart technologies are among the trendiest of trends, it might be easy to overlook how they could benefit homeowners. However, automation and smart technology in the home can help you live a significantly more energy-efficient lifestyle without affecting your comfort. We frequently recommend several key smart technologies to our customers who wish to be more energy efficient.
Climate Control
When it comes to economizing energy consumption, no aspect of your home life offers the return on investment that comes from improving your HVAC. Climate control in a typical American household accounts for between 40% and 50% of overall energy consumption. Gas and electric inputs for HVAC are getting more expensive seemingly every year, too. Fortunately, you can make them more efficient with smart home automation.
Thermostat
The easiest and fastest way to make your home more energy efficient is by adding a smart thermostat. Adding even a simple programmable thermostat to your home is likely to save about 10% to 15% on your heating bill. Likewise, you should save between 15% and 20% on your cooling bill. Even better, the expected payback time for a smart thermostat tends to be between six months and three years.
High-end smart thermostats offer multiple ways to save. Programmability allows you to target maximum heating and cooling at only those times when you are home. Some of the best systems can connect to utility companies’ servers that provide rate information, allowing the smart thermostat to focus on using electricity when it is the most cost-effective. Occupancy sensors can determine when the crowd in a home might require additional heating or cooling, too.
Smart thermostats can also track run cycles and maintenance schedules. They can inform you when the HVAC seems to be having trouble, such as short cycling. Likewise, they can tell you when the system is due for filter replacements and scheduled checkups. Not only does this attention keep your system running more efficiently, but it can extend the lifespan of your HVAC by several years.
Zoned HVAC Smart Integration
Developing HVAC zones in your home is another way to be more efficient. Zonal HVAC accounts for common household heating and cooling issues. For example, most homes have one side that gets more sun than the other. Setting up a zone that provides more cooling on the sunward side during the summer leads to more efficient use of electricity.
You also can set up zoned HVAC for each floor of your home or even specific rooms. You might have a guest bedroom that rarely is in use. Setting it aside as a zone allows you to supply less heating and cooling most of the time. Whenever you have a guest, you can then bump its performance to keep the guest bedroom comfortable.
Smart thermostats readily integrate with most zoning systems. A typical zoned setup includes fans and dampers that control the airflow into the distinct zones. Sensors then feed data to the thermostat so that it can automatically control the zone. Some of the top systems will even learn your habits and adjust accordingly to maintain maximum comfort while keeping bills down.
Lighting
Another good target for improving energy efficiency is your home’s lighting setup. The most common smart lighting technology in homes is occupancy sensing. Photo, infrared, ultrasonic, and microwave sensors offer several good ways to verify if anyone is in a room. If not, the system can turn the lights off. The best versions even detect ambient lighting to determine if turning artificial lighting on is necessary.
Geofencing is another great efficiency option for lighting. You might have your lights connect to the GPS data from your phone, for example, to determine when you’re near. This is a great way to make sure the light for your garage comes on as you get back from work, for example. Once you get in the house, the geofence will also detect that you’re out of range so that it can turn off the light. You get a convenient system that always remembers to turn the light off.
Smart Plumbing
Water Heaters
A less discussed solution is smart technologies for water heaters. Smart water heaters track usage, helping you keep tabs on when and how the system is in use. Likewise, programmable settings allow homeowners to set low-consumption modes when they’re at work. If you go on vacation, you can use a phone app to tell the water heater to take it easy, too. A smart water heater will also provide notifications about potential leaks, helping you to schedule service sooner.
Smart Valves
Connecting motorized valves to plumbing lines is a superb way to economize your home. Sensors and actuators can control when the water is on. In addition to automatic availability, these systems can detect leaks and automatically shut off lines.
Appliances, Devices and Phantom Loads
Smart technologies are available for outlets and even circuits. This is a great way to manage high-demand appliances in your home. You can track energy consumption, potentially telling you when it might be time to replace an aging appliance.
Likewise, a smart circuit breaker can shut off the entire circuit on a schedule. This prevents phantom power drain because systems draw a little bit of power even when they’re not on. You could set an entire home theater up with smart technologies that save you money. Similarly, you might plug a wall-mounted air conditioner into a smart outlet to limit its draw when it’s not in use.
Another way to limit phantom loads is a smart power strip. If you have a lot of devices in one room, such as a home office, you can configure a power strip with a schedule that matches your hours. Rather than drawing energy while you sleep, the whole system will have a scheduled shutdown.
Integration
Modern smart technologies are capable of a high degree of integration. Smart homes can connect security, lighting, HVAC, entertainment, and many other features. Integration connects your system securely to your phone, tablet, voice assistant, and stereo system. Some solutions even connect to the onboard assistant in your car.
The great thing about integration is that it makes checking things easy. If you’re unsure whether you forgot to turn off the patio light following a summer dinner outdoors, you can just check the app. Even if you’re lying in bed, switching the light off is as simple as tapping the screen. Better yet, the app can tell you that you might have forgotten to turn the light off. Quick reminders ensure that your household will be more efficient.
Potts Electric offers a host of electrical services to customers in the St. Louis, MO area, including smart home automation installation and integration. We perform work for residential and commercial customers. Our electricians deal with smart homes, generators, surge protection, wiring, and more. We are also fully licensed, bonded, and insured. We even offer after-hours emergency service.
If you’re exploring how smart home automation solutions can make your St. Louis residence more energy efficient, contact Potts Electric today.
