23 march 2016
Home Automation: the future of Energy Management
Smart homes are becoming more and more popular these last few years. The reasons for their popularity are varied- such as the proliferation of the technology behind them but many still consider them to be a luxury, or of little practical value. This couldn’t be further from the truth. While it is convenient to have all the electronics in your house synced and controllable from your smartphone, it is also efficient. Energy management is one of the lesser known advantages of home automation, and a factor that’s increasing in importance as fossil fuels become scarcer.
Energy management is one of the reasons governments and city planners are favoring smart cities and towns that are part of the Internet of Things. On a large-scale, it is incredibly efficient to have an entire city/town linked to each other. Much less energy is wasted as wireless communication takes precedence over other methods.
Moreover, automation seems to be the basis of the future. Replacing petrol and diesel cars and petrol stations with electric cars and charging ports may seem impractical as of now but it is an alternative we will have to consider in order to preserve precious fuel reserves.
But that’s all on a large scale. How can you manage energy on a smaller scale? How does home automation fit into this? Read on to find out!
Home energy management systems (HEMS) in the past focused more on integrating themselves with your smart home’s existing network. In other words, they worked with vendors instead of selling directly to consumers. But now, consumers are tech-savvy and they want to make their own decisions about the layout of their smart homes. So the makers of HEMS have now branched out, and work with both vendors and consumers to cut costs and reduce inefficiencies.
They do this in a number of ways. Automated Central heating/conditioning and thermostats can be controlled from your smartphone, which means they can be turned on and off at will. Moreover, smart devices will save your preferences and make sure that the temperature is never more/less than you require. Due to the less running time of electronic appliances (and the costs associated with switching the conditioning on/off), even maintenance costs are reduced.
Motion sensors turn off heating and lighting in unoccupied areas automatically. Plus, you can set times when everything will be switched off. For example, when you are at work, or during your time at the gym. This automated control of electricity saves so much energy.
Some HEMS include voltage reduction controllers that are fitted to lighting circuits to reduce running current.
Motorized shades and blinds are great for controlling the temperature of your home.
What’s more: they can be set to respond to real-time events so if it is a particularly sunny day they’ll dim and if it’s raining they will open. Another great feature about motorized shades/blinds is security: you can set them to dim when you leave the home.
Smart power outlet modules can actually monitor the energy usage of your devices. This information goes to your smartphone so you can see which devices are using way too much power. Also, if you’ve accidentally left something plugged in, you can turn it off with a tap on your smartphone. This saves your money and Energy.
Many smart homes have even begun integrating solar energy. Whether you want to take that step is up to you, but you can save much more money with solar panels (even if they are expensive at first).
At Silvan, we understand the importance and functionality of HEMS. We make sure your home is outfitted with all the necessary requirements to conserve and manage energy. You can control your AC, lights, and blinds all from your smartphone. We even make sure you control your shower settings. Setting times for your geysers means that you won’t be wasting energy or time on heating/waiting to heat water.
At Silvan we believe home automation is the future of Energy Management. Why do we believe that? Because we know home owners will do their best to conserve energy and we provide opportunities for you to do so.