Smart heating controls, also known as smart thermostats, is a technology that connects your heating system to the internet. This allows you to change the temperature, switch on and off, schedule heating, and control other aspects of your home’s heating from your phone, laptop or tablet.
This doesn’t just sound slick; there are some really great aspects of smart heating controls that you may not have heard about.
1) Zoned heating
Smart heating controls allow you to manage the temperature of different zones (rooms in your home). Whether you have one or multiple thermostats in your home, you can schedule and manage individual rooms’ heating from your device. On your journey home you can warm up your living room and bedroom without wasting heating on areas you’re not likely to use.
2) Connect to other smart devices
A really cool feature of smart heating controls is their ability to connect to other smart devices. This means that you can ask Siri or Alexa to change the temperature of zones, turn heating on or off, increase or decrease your home’s temperature or even give a report on what heat your home is sitting at.
This also moonlights as an effective parenting tool. Suppose you’re battling to peel your teenagers away from their computer and come downstairs to engage in some good old-fashioned face to face communication. Why not ask Siri to turn their room temperature down to a cool –10 degrees Celsius!
Alternatively, if you and your partner are always battling with the thermostat you could sneakily change the temperature without them knowing until it’s too late (smile with teeth emoji)
3) Geofencing
Smart devices are learning machines designed to optimise the performance of various technology. Smart heating controls don’t only provide you with greater control; they also pick up some slack.
Geofencing is a sensor system that detects when movement occurs in and around the house. This means that you don’t have to worry about always remembering to turn off the heating when you leave home as the smart system will detect your absence and do it for you.
4) Money saving
Curiously there is online debate as to whether smart heating controls are energy and money savers. The answer is inexplicably YES. Just the combination of zoning, geofencing and draught detection means that there is an extra pair of hands in your home solely dedicated to conserving energy.
Consider this stat from a money-saving report and energy-saving trust – you can save £75 and 320kg of carbon dioxide a year by installing and correctly using a programmer, room thermostat and thermostatic radiator valves. You can also save £60 and 310kg of carbon dioxide a year by turning the room thermostat down by one degree. If the variant of a single degree can make such an impact, imagine your fuel and energy savings by never slipping up on your energy-saving etiquette. Moreover, smart heating systems can provide you with detailed reports on your heating patterns, allowing you to optimise your energy conservancy through data power further!
If you’re as convinced as we are, Avid Heating can help you navigate the selection and installation of all your smart heating needs.