Improve Home Energy Management With Smart Technologies

Learn how automation and smart technology help you save energy and reduce your carbon footprint

You may have heard how smart tech and automation can make your home more accessible, comfortable and convenient — but did you know smart technology can also make your home more energy-efficient? Smart technology systems like automated window treatments, lighting control, and climate control help you take a proactive approach to home energy management. Along the way, you’ll lower your carbon footprint and save money on utility bills. 

Keep reading to learn how to use smart technology to optimize energy efficiency in your Minnetonka, MN home. 

SEE ALSO: 3 Reasons Why Smart Window Treatments Are Worth the Investment

Automated Window Treatments

Motorized window treatments are a stylish and convenient way to harness the power of natural light to illuminate your home and conserve energy.

• Heat control. According to the EPA, approximately 76% of sunlight that falls on windows enters the home to become heat. When heat gain occurs, your HVAC system must expend a lot of electricity to cool your home back down. Schedule your motorized shades to close during the hottest times of the day to reduce heat gain and lower your cooling bill. 
• Insulation. During the summer and winter, sealed shades trap cool or warm air inside and prevent it from escaping out the windows. With better insulation, your home’s HVAC system doesn’t have to work as hard to regulate the indoor climate. 
• Lighting integration. Integrate your shades with a lighting control system to raise the shades and dim or turn off the lights on bright, sunny days. Adding natural light to the mix reduces your use of artificial lighting when it’s not necessary.

Home Lighting Control

How much lighting waste does your home generate? A lighting control system can help you eliminate waste and only use your lights when you need them.

• Schedules. Schedules can help make sure lights aren’t on when they don’t need to be. For example, you can schedule all interior lights to turn off every morning at 7:15 a.m. — 15 minutes after you leave the house for work.
• Dimmers. Not every task requires 100% brightness from your lighting fixtures. With smart, dimmable bulbs, you can adjust the brightness to a comfortable level for specific activities like reading, cooking, watching TV, or working in the home office. Dimming conserves energy and expands the lifespan of your bulbs. 
• Occupancy sensors. At some point, we’ve all been that person who leaves a room and forgets to turn the light off behind them. Occupancy sensors can automatically turn off lights in unoccupied rooms and reduce your home’s lighting waste.

Smart Climate Control

A smart climate control system that adapts to your daily routines and preferences ensures that your home is always at comfortable temperature and humidity level. Climate control helps your home’s HVAC system operate more efficiently.

• Temperature regulation. A smart thermostat monitors your home environment and makes automatic adjustments to regulate indoor temperatures and humidity levels based on the outdoor temperature and your personal preferences. 
• Energy-saving mode. When you leave home, your thermostat can power down into energy-saving mode. That way, you’re not wasting energy running the HVAC system at full blast in an empty house. 
• Shading integration. Integrate your shading and climate control systems to lower the shades if the house is too hot and raise them if it’s too cold. A little help from your motorized shades takes some of the heating/cooling burden off your overworked HVAC system.

Let’s make your Minnetonka, MN home a cleaner, greener place to live! If you’re interested in learning more about energy management technologies for your smart home, give us a call or fill out an online contact form to speak with our experts. We look forward to hearing from you soon.