The need to save and create a green economy has seen the transformation of the home setup into an energy-efficient hub. Beyond the long-term goal of reducing the carbon footprint, and saving the environment, there is the immediate benefit of low energy bills.
At home, besides the necessary practices to save energy, smart gadgets are proving the go-to solution. They have a convenience and efficiency factor that other measures cannot offer.
Here is a look at the gadgets, which will help you cut your expenditure on energy.
Energy Monitors
The first step in lowering your energy consumption and ultimately bills is to know how much of it you are using. An energy monitor informs you about your monthly power consumption. It also indicates where in the house you spend most energy and the devices that drain most power.
With this knowledge, you can take the necessary steps to reduce your consumption. You can also use monitors to evaluate the efficiency of your new gadgets. There are many variations in the market, offering details such as past consumption, real-time updates, and temperature readings
Heating and Cooling
Heating and cooling the house is one of the biggest energy consumers in the house. According to the Department of Energy, heating, and cooling account for 48 % of the energy consumption of an average American home. It makes sense that one should start here when seeking to save on energy expenditure.
1. Smart thermostat
One of the setbacks to energy conservation is the loss of heat and air conditioning to the outside. These leaks result in the use of more power to keep the room temperatures at the required levels. With a leak detector, you can track down the avenues and cover them. A leak detector works by first picking the desired room temperature.
Then as you move around it will identify the leaks using the respective indicator for cold and warm spots. To account for approximations, you can set the detector’s tolerance to cover a range anywhere from 0-10 degrees.
2. Thermal leak detector
One of the setbacks to energy conservation is the loss of heat and air conditioning to the outside. These leaks result in the use of more power to keep the room temperatures at the required levels. With a leak detector, you can track down the avenues and cover them. A leak detector works by first picking the desired room temperature.
Then as you move around it will identify the leaks using the respective indicator for cold and warm spots. To account for approximations, you can set the detector’s tolerance to cover a range anywhere from 0-10 degrees.
3. Smart blinds
With smart blinds, you can considerably cut down your cooling costs during summer when you are in the house. The US Energy Department credits them with being able to cut down the energy expenditure by 45 percent when fully closed in sunny days.
Smart blinds allow you to lock, open, and tilt the screens as you want. There is also a sun-tracking feature, which enables you to change the preferences as sun movement, and weather patterns change.
4. Smart window air conditioner
If you use a window air conditioner, then you will not gain much help from a thermostat. In such a situation, it is preferable to get a smart window air conditioner.
The gadget allows you to set a 24-hour schedule, and you can control it remotely using an app on your phone. Most of these units come with other features like air ionizers and an antibacterial filter to purify the air, adding to their utility.
5. Smart windows
Smart windows are designed to work all year round thanks to an integrated thermochromic filter. The filter is activated when the window’s exterior gets to a transition point. Once activated, it blocks the solar heat, cuts out the glaze, and relieves the load on the mechanical devices for conditioning.
During colder weather, once the solar gain is attained, the filter stays clear, allowing needed warm sun rays to come through.
6. An automatic Radiator Bleeder
Built-up air in the heating system can significantly hamper the efficiency of the unit and drive up energy consumption. Manually bleeding the radiator can be inconveniencing, and you will be prone to forget to do it regularly. With an automatic radiator bleeder, there is no risk of the air building up and costing you more energy while giving out less heat.
Smart Home Upgrades in Bathroom Gadgets
The bathroom area also offers several opportunities to cut on your energy bills. It is a surprise that the area you spend little time in can consume considerable power.
1. Smart shower head
An intelligent shower head like the Evolve Showerhead makes it easy to save water and energy. First, it is designed to increase the water pressure, which makes you use less water to get clean.
It also alerts you when the water is heated and saves it from being wasted by reducing the flow to a trickle. You can get full flow resumed by pulling a cord.
2. Non-electric washers
ADoing laundry using the machines eats up plenty of electricity, and then there is the water used to do the work. Several non-electric washers in the market allow you to save on the water and energy spent by using a hand or foot cranking mechanism.
The Laundry Pod, for instance, uses only 1.5 gallons of water to clean ten garments and even has a spin-cycle to remove any excess water from the clothes. It only takes a short while and little effort. Better yet. It is portable and occupies small space.
3. Waterpebble
The water pebble serves as a monitor for the amount of water used in the bathroom. It is placed near the drain in the shower where it can get a fair measurement.
It saves energy by encouraging you to spend lesser time in the shower using the traffic-like light system. With shorter showers, you save both the water and the power spent heating it.
4. Infrared panels
Heating the bathroom tiles and other rooms where you hardly spend much time uses up a considerable amount of energy. If you have to do it, especially during cold weather, then infrared panels are the option to choose.
They need no complicated installation process, and they warm up a room instantly. At the same time, they use 50% less energy, making them more efficient than the other heaters.
5. Solar water heaters
If you want to cut down the expenses spent in the bathroom significantly, then a switch to solar water heating is something to consider. With no reliance on electricity, you can have all the heated water you need at no recurrent cost of electricity bills.
Kitchen Appliances
Kitchen appliances may not be consuming much power individually, but when added up together, it makes for a sizeable portion. Every unit you can save per device will bring the eventual total number down. Here are some gadgets to help you.
1. Solar kettles
Heating water and your favorite hot beverages is an everyday kitchen activity. With a solar-powered device, you can deduct it from the kitchen electric load. Most of the solar kettles come with flask abilities able to keep the temperatures hot over several hours.
2. Instant pots
Instant pots are smart pressure cookers, which allow you to cook food faster, use less energy and waste none. All you do is program them to the kind of cooking you need. They control the temperature while the high pressure reduces the energy required to heat the food.
3. Intelligent oven
Intelligent ovens like the June Intelligent Oven, come with precise thermal abilities which offer plenty of energy-saving advantages. First, there is little preheating needed as in other ovens. The high number of convectional fans also reduces the cooking time, which also saves energy.
House lighting and other power use
Kitchen appliances may not be consuming much power individually, but when added up together, it makes for a sizeable portion. Every unit you can save per device will bring the eventual total number down. Here are some gadgets to help you.
1. Smart light bulbs
Smart light bulbs are the go-to solution when you want to save the power spent on lighting up your home. They can be synced to your phone and programmed to give off the required amount of light and turn on and off when you need them.
Should you forget to switch them off, they will turn off automatically saving you energy. They are equipped with LED bulbs, so they use far less power than conventional bulbs.
2. Occupancy sensors
Occupancy sensors use motion sensors to detect if a room is occupied, and if not, the lighting is automatically switched off. They work well in bedrooms, garages, stairs, and other areas where lights can be on, and no one is using them.
3. Smart power outlets
Smart power outlets allow you to monitor remotely, electronic devices that are plugged in the power outlets. You can remotely turn on and off appliances and even set schedules. More importantly, smart switches ensure plugged devices even when turned off, do not go on draining power from the outlets.
They also keep track of the energy consumed by your electronics so you can tell which one is power demanding and make changes.
Outdoor gadgets
Kitchen appliances may not be consuming much power individually, but when added up together, it makes for a sizeable portion. Every unit you can save per device will bring the eventual total number down. Here are some gadgets to help you.
1. Solar lighting
There is no need for your outdoor lighting to use electricity. Since the lights are off during the day, you can use solar bulbs, which will store the energy in the batteries. The converted energy is then used to power the lights at night.
2. Robotic lawnmowers
Robotic lawn mowers not only make it easier to keep your lawns in excellent condition but also consume far less energy than typical electric or gasoline-powered mowers. They can detect when power is low and head back to the charging dock and can maneuver around obstacles with high efficiency.
3. Smart sprinklers
Once they are set up, smart sprinklers help you save water, energy, and money by knowing exactly when your lawn or garden needs to be sprinkled.
They also work out the amount of water needed, as they can factor in aspects like weather patterns, evaporation rate, and the soils. Only the right amount of water and power will be spent with minimum to no wastage.
4. Powerwall Tesla Battery
The Powerwall Tesla Battery can power your whole house either acting as a backup energy source or in conjunction with your solar power setup. During the day, it stores all the excess solar power generated, and during the night, it powers up your home.
It can wholly remove your reliance on the grid electricity, although you may need a couple of batteries depending on your energy needs.
Conclusion
Working with smart gadgets adds accuracy and reliability to your home. There is no wastage of energy and other resources while you also get the convenience of remote control.
The addition of solar-powered devices and switching to a completely solar-powered system ultimately offers the most significant savings on electric bills. Fortunately, you can always make the change gadget by gadget, as most of them are complementary.