The Ultimate Green Home
When most people talk about green technology, they immediately point to the new wave of hybrid vehicles as the future of green technology, and it makes sense, as many of us spend hours in our cars every week. However, there is one thing that we use more than our cars on a daily basis, and it is our homes. And when it comes to eco-friendly smart technology, the home is at the forefront of innovation. There is a lot of potential for an eco-friendly home that largely goes unrealized as many people simply don’t realize how easy and available it is. Let’s take a look at what the ultimate green home might look like; perhaps in the future you might be able to add some or all of these features to your own home.
Solar Power
The ultimate green home is one that not only embraces renewable energy but can generate its own. Solar power was once seen as expensive and unreliable. However, there have been great strides in solar energy in recent years, and solar power is more available and affordable than ever before. Some solar companies, such as Vivint, Solar City, and more,will install the solar panels for you and sell you the energy that you make for a lower price than you are currently paying for energy. What is more, they will hook up a monitor that will tell you how much energy your house is making, and when solar energy is not available, it will automatically feed your house with other energy. Wind power is also another option for a green home.
Smart Appliances
The biggest green innovation in recent years is through green appliances. These include things such as energy efficient washers, dryers, and even refrigerators. Samsung has developed a smart fridge that hooks up to your wi-fi and allows you to save paper and gas, by creating a digital shopping list that you can refer to at the store. General Electric has also started a green initiative that encourages energy efficient alternatives. You can look up a list of smart appliances on energystar.org.
Smart Temperature Control
Hundreds of dollars worth of energy is wasted on heating and cooling in households across the nation every year. This makes it something that is not only harmful to the environment, but also harmful to your wallet. It can also be easily avoided by installing a smart thermostat. The ultimate green home would probably have one of these, for example the Nest, which allows the owner to program their habits into it, and it adjusts itself automatically thus avoiding heating or air conditioning an empty house. With Google’s recent acquisition of Nest, there is no doubt about the potential of this industry.
Full Automation
The ultimate green home would probably go one step further than this and automate every utility in the house. With full automation, you can control your heating and cooling, but also your lighting, being able to turn your lights on and off from anywhere that you have your phone. This avoids any problems that come with lights being left on accidentally when you leave your home.
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