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Smart Thermostats: Energy Efficient Heating

How to use smart thermostats for a more energy efficient home

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Reducing our energy usage and having an energy efficient home is very important to us. Not only does it save us a load of money every year it also means we are doing our bit for the planet.

A few years ago we made the big decision to downsize our home. It was the best thing we’ve ever done and we managed to cut our household bills by over a half. This move definitely increased my interest in the concept of simple living.

After this achievement, I wanted to do more so we installed energy monitors in our home and took part in an energy-saving challenge. This helped us to see what we were wasting money on and where we could make further savings. The results were fascinating.

The next thing that we are looking into for our home is having smart thermostats installed. We feel they would be perfect for us as we are away at lot at the weekends. Below is some information about how they work and why they make your home more energy efficient.

Smart Thermostats

How to use smart thermostats to control your heating at home Smart thermostats are forecast to dominate the home tech market, and it’s not hard to see why. The increasing need for energy efficient devices sits against a backdrop of rising energy prices, and these factors have propelled the demand for eco-friendly smart home technology in Europe and North America. Designed with both the environment and your bank balance in mind, smart thermostats offer themselves as innovative solutions that promise a whole new level of heating control.

Smart thermostats use cutting edge technology to find ways to reduce a home’s energy consumption and can save homeowners up to 20% on their annual heating bill. Unlike a conventional thermostat, smart thermostats connect to the Wi-Fi in your home and allow you to remotely control your heating from your smartphone, tablet or desktop.

This way, you can change the temperature, check your energy history and optimise your usage on an instant real-time basis. The best smart thermostats can even learn your heating habits over a period of a week and create an ‘Auto-Schedule’ for you – setting your preferred temperatures at particular times of the day without you having to lift a finger.

With a range of eco-functions, weather compensation features and auto-away modes, smart thermostats are designed to heat your home in a more energy efficient way. This allows you to stay warm and save money at the same time. Now that’s what we call smart!

Control your heating from your phone

Self-programming technology

Thermostats use self-programming algorithms to learn as you heat. They learn your heating habits over a period of a week and calculate what times of the day you prefer it to be warmer or cooler. By creating an Auto-Schedule for your home, digital thermostats adjust your home’s temperature before you do. This is handy for homeowners who often forget to turn the heating down throughout the day!

Smart technology

Premium digital thermostats have handy auto-away features for the forgetful homeowner. They use built-in motion sensors to detect whether or not someone is at home and turn down the heating when you are away. The Vaillant vSmart and Nest Learning Thermostat will also use the internet to check the weather forecast. By using weather data, it will tell your boiler how hard it has to work to get your home to your required temperature. This prevents overheating on warmer days and takes into account weather conditions such as humidity.

Energy saving features

The more you know, the more you can save. This is why smart thermostats provide you with a history report of your energy usage to help you to optimise your heating habits. Models such as Nest will even encourage you to choose temperatures a little lower than you are used to, and rewards you with a green ‘Leaf’ icon when you do. By lowering the temperature by just 1 degree, you can save up to 10% on your yearly heating bill.

control your heating form your phone

Multiple Control Options

One of the most effective ways to reduce your heating carbon footprint is to zone your heating system. The Honeywell evoHome smart thermostat allows you to heat up to 12 different rooms in your house or commercial property at different temperatures. Use the sleek LCD screen thermostat or your smart device to gain control of exactly where and when the property should be heated, and you can limit the amount of energy you use to heat vacant rooms.

Remote Control

Most importantly, smart thermostats enable you to control your heating via your smartphone, tablet or desktop. This is especially perfect for maximising parental control. Do you suspect your children are cranking up the heating whilst you are away at work? Simply use the smart thermostat app to check the temperature and turn it down if need be. No one wants a huge heating bill!

Smart thermostats offer a variety of energy saving features so you can protect both your savings and the environment. Reducing your carbon footprint has never been so easy.

Gina Caro

*Collaborative Post

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3 thoughts on “Smart Thermostats: Energy Efficient Heating”

  1. I’m also interested in installing smart thermostats so we can be smarter with which rooms we heat, for example if I work from home I only need to heat one room. The only way to do that at the moment is to do an electric fan heater or to turn off all the other radiators manually, which I haven’t done because there are a lot of radiators.

    1. Hi Kate,
      They are such a great idea. I also work from home so only really need to heat one room which I can’t do at the moment. It’s all or nothing with our current heating system. These smart thermostats definitely make it more manageable.

  2. The insulation present in a filled cavity reduces this heat loss, making the house warmer or reducing the amount of fuel required to maintain a comfortable temperature.

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