5 Smart Power Planning Tips for Modern Homes
Smart power planning is no longer optional but a necessity. With energy costs out of control, you need to take back control to help keep budgets and sanity at reasonable levels. However, your home habits and even the house itself can prevent you from making the most of what you have, often reducing efficiency while increasing costs. So what can you do? From using smart lighting solutions and power strips to installing power monitors, here are some suggestions.
Plan for Renewable Energy Systems
Renewable energy sources like solar panels, geothermal systems, and wind turbines are amazingly versatile for getting free and clean power that helps with efficiency and saves money. According to SolarTech's research into the future of residential energy 66% of people surveyed agree that renewables feel like taking back control of their power. With systems like solar panels, you will save money if they are installed correctly, and you always have backup power.
Use Smart Lighting and Power Strips
Smart lighting is usually the entry point into smart systems that most people start with. However, more than a novel convenience, smart lighting can play a critical role in taking back control of your home's power usage. Smart lighting can be controlled remotely, set to timers, and programmed to dimming levels. This means the impact of lighting on energy bills can be reduced significantly. However, you can also use smart power strips to control larger appliances.
Thermostats Help with Smart Power Planning
It is believed that up to 70% of energy can be wasted during the winter. Perhaps your insulation needs replacing, and it's likely that an old heating system is silently sabotaging your energy budget and costing much more than it should. However, even with new installations, your home's energy budget can still be obliterated without proper power planning. One of the best ways to maximize efficiency is to program your home's thermostat for your needs.
Install a Power Monitor and Meter
You can't really take control of your home's energy system without understanding how much you use. With energy meters and monitors, you can access accurate data that can help you make better decisions for how you approach home energy. You can access real-time data to see exactly how much a specific appliance uses, and even access historical data. With this data, you can plan your approach to power by using specific appliances at specific times of the day.
Future-Proof with Conduits for Neutral Wiring
There are many useful upgrades you can consider when renovating a home. Sometimes, the opportunity to modernize a specific home feature comes up during a project. One of the key considerations for energy is neutral wiring. Installing conduits with neutral wiring can help future-proof the home for later on if you plan on installing smart systems for energy efficiency, because many of the best systems, such as smart switches, rely on neutral wiring.
Summary
Preparing for the installation of renewable energy systems such as solar panels is a good first step to smart power planning for your home. Thermostats are an overlooked but powerful tool for energy control, and you can future-proof the house with neutral wiring conduits for switches.