Smart-home devices do more than help you control the lights, doors, and curtains at home. They also control your energy use and help you save and earn money. If every home in America were to use smart thermostats, it would prevent 13 billion pounds (about 5,896,696,000 kg) of annual greenhouse gas emissions and save energy costs up to $740 million annually. And, if your utility has a demand response program, they can actually earn you money! Don’t know where to start? Here are the tips to help you set up smart home devices:
Smart thermostats can regulate the temperature of your home. With sensors to detect temperature and humidity, they monitor the heat in your home and automatically adjust heating and cooling to keep your temperature the way you want it. Some smart devices even have built-in smart speakers (or can be connected with smart speakers in your home), so you can simply ask them to make a temperature change. You can control them remotely using Wi-Fi from your mobile phone or other devices.
Apart from temperature control, many smart thermostats can also track energy use, detect problems with HVAC (heating, ventilation, and air conditioning) units, and set maintenance reminders.
Using smart thermostats is a beautiful way to save energy and money. You can save as much as 10% a year on your heating and cooling bills by simply turning your thermostat back 10% to 15% for 8 hours. They can also help you control your temperature when utilities pay people to cut back, earning you real money!
Like smart thermostats, smart lighting can also help you save energy and make your life more comfortable by mobile control, scheduling, and automation.
The simplest solution is swapping your current light bulbs for smart bulbs. This improves how you control energy use in your house. If, for example, you go out and accidentally leave your lights on, you can easily turn them off via an app on your mobile phone. You can also make sure they are off when your utility asks. Those with location-based controls (geo-fencing) can even turn on/off their lights by themselves based on their smartphone's location. When you are watching a movie, enjoying dinner, or hosting friends at home, smart bulbs can also help you adjust the lighting accordingly.
These applications can extend the lifespan of the bulbs (saving money for you) and save your energy bills (saving more money!) Meanwhile, you can always enjoy the comfortable lighting atmosphere at home. To make your life even easier, you can set up your smart bulbs to follow a time-based schedule to turn lights on and off and use your voice to control them via a smart speaker.
The average household spends around 11% of its energy budget on lighting. So, using smart lighting technologies can reduce lighting energy use in your home by 50% to 75%.
Apart from temperature controls and light bulbs, appliances such as smart refrigerators, washers and dryers, and coffee makers offer energy-saving solutions.
Smart appliances are equipped with sensors, artificial intelligence, and advanced algorithms, allowing them to communicate with other connected devices and systems in your home. For example, a smart fridge could alert your mobile phone if you leave the refrigerator door open. You can schedule your laundry or dishwasher to operate when your electricity rates are lowest. After washing your clothes, the smart dryer can adjust cycle time automatically with incorporated sensors to help you reduce your dryer’s energy use. This feature ensures that your dryer will automatically shut off when clothes are dry.
With new levels of connectivity inside the home, new functions of smart appliances contribute to convenience and energy-saving that we would hardly think about before. We can look inside the refrigerator without opening the door--- open doors account for 7% of the refrigerator's total energy use. We can use an energy-efficient smart microwave that saves up to 80% more energy and prevents your milk from boiling and spattering all over. We can also trust in a smart oven that will automatically turn off before we burn whatever we’re cooking.
By optimizing the power of technology, smart appliances are revolutionizing how we live and interact with our homes.
Further Readings:
https://www.nytimes.com/wirecutter/blog/smart-home-devices-save-money-energy/
https://www.thisoldhouse.com/smart-homes/21097136/everything-to-know-about-smart-thermostats
