Could Home Automation Save You Money?

Posted on Aug 29 2014 - 7:47am by Malcolm Stewart

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Home automation is one of the fastest growing markets with industry experts predicting that by the end of 2014 17% of US homes and 11% of UK homes will be ‘smart’. The home automation trend is booming due to an increasing awareness of the benefits of smart home technology combined with decreasing installation costs.

How does home automation save you money?

Home automation systems will start saving you money on your utilities as soon as they’re installed. These savings come from various aspects of a smart home, including heating and cooling, lighting control, and home insurance costs.

Thermostats

Heating and cooling accounts for 56% of your energy bill, and inefficient systems can waste a large amount of energy and money heating and cooling unoccupied rooms. Installing a programmable thermostat, one that you can control remotely, or a zone-based thermostat saves both money and energy.

You can set your thermostat to a lower setting or even to turn off completely when you’re away from home, and set it to cut in for when you return home. Zone-based thermostats are also useful as they can be heat or cool certain ‘zones’ or rooms in the home. Newer models, like Google’s Nest, will learn the routines of the occupants and programme themselves to heat or cool the house accordingly.

Lighting

Home automation reduces energy consumption and cuts costs by dimming or turning the lights off when you’re away. A single bulb can last 20 times longer than usual when dimmed by 50%. Occupancy sensors can be installed and will automatically turn on the lights when someone enters a room and switch them off when someone leaves the room. This eliminates any problems with accidentally leaving the lights on when you leave the house or go to bed. Your lighting control system can even use natural daylight to create light and warmth inside your home when working in tandem with a window shading control system.

Security

Installing a good automated home security system does not only benefit your home and family’s safety but also means you pay less for your home insurance. On average, people with home automation save 20% on their home insurance, which can total a sizeable annual saving.

An automated security system means that you can lock and unlock your doors remotely, set your lights to turn on if an intruder approaches at an unexpected hour, and even play your sound system as an alarm. Even better, you can have peace of mind knowing that your phone will automatically call the police in an emergency and play a pre-recorded message to alert them to a security breach.

How much money could an automated home save you?

All of those home automation savings will pay for your smart home system within three years. Figures show that a smart home could save you approximately £804 per year when you take into account energy savings and insurance savings. Looks like upgrading to a smart home is a smart move.

About the Author

Malcolm Stewart is owner and founder of Kensington AV, a high-end home automation installation and consultancy. Kensington AV create bespoke homes that work for you.