The Future of Smart Home Energy: 7 Insights and Trends

Energy management is a key aspect of smart homes, as these homes are designed to enhance residents’ convenience, comfort, security, and energy efficiency.

Smart home energy refers to using advanced technologies to achieve energy efficiency by optimising the generation, distribution, and consumption of energy within a household. 

Smart home energy technology is rapidly evolving and creating solutions that increase energy efficiency, reduce energy consumption, lower costs, and minimise environmental impact. 

This article discusses the trends in the smart home energy sector, which promises to shape its future, and they include:

1. Integration of renewable energy sources

Integrating renewable energy sources into the smart home ecosystem enables energy management, as it prioritises more affordable renewable energy over grid-supplied electricity.

Solar power is the most popular renewable energy source in used smart home setups. These homes include solar panels to harness renewable solar energy. While solar energy has been a feature of smart homes for some time, it’s increasingly becoming more affordable and accessible. 

Solar energy as a smart home energy promises to be even more affordable and accessible in the future.

Wind energy promises to be another prominent feature of smart home energy solutions of the future. In areas with suitable wind conditions, wind turbines can be used to generate clean electricity for smart home energy systems.

2. Energy storage solutions

The goal for smart homes is energy sustainability, which requires not only generating their own power but also storing generated power to tap into when needed.

For this reason, home energy systems incorporate battery storage solutions to store excess energy generated from renewable sources like solar. This stored battery power can be used during periods of high demand or when renewable sources are not generating.

We’ve witnessed significant advancements in battery technology in recent years, leading to improved efficiency with higher energy densities and longer lifespans.

The future promises more efficient batteries with higher energy conversion rates, improved charge/ discharge rates, and increased affordability.

As we become more efficient at storing energy, expect more homes to have their own electric vehicle charging station, meaning more ownership of electric vehicles.

3. Energy monitoring and management

Smart home technology enables the remote monitoring and management of various appliances, systems, and features within a home. For this reason, the smart meter is a fundamental device in smart home systems.

Smart meters allow homeowners to monitor their energy usage in real-time and make informed decisions to reduce consumption. 

These meters are called “smart” because not only do they measure usage and provide consumers with valuable information that can help them reduce usage, but they can also communicate energy usage data to utility companies in real-time (or near real-time), enabling more efficient resource management. 

Utility companies can also send commands to smart meters, enabling tasks such as remote disconnects/ reconnects, firmware updates, and load control during peak demand periods.

As technology advances, expect the following from smart meters:

Increased connectivity

Expect smart meters of the future to have increased connectivity, allowing for seamless connections with more smart devices in the home.

Artificial intelligence

Another thing to expect is AI incorporated into smart meters to make them more intelligent and efficient. With AI, smart meters could interact with users about the best ways to adjust their energy usage to reduce energy bills. 

Don’t miss out on the opportunity for a seamless energy monitoring solution. 

Contact Eliq today to implement cutting-edge energy insights functionality, empowering your users to take control of their home energy management.

Predictive maintenance

Future smart meters could also offer predictive maintenance, allowing them to detect potential issues before they occur or become major problems. 

4. Artificial Intelligence (AI)

AI is changing the world in many areas. Its ability to sift through large amounts of data and discover patterns and anomalies makes it invaluable in enhancing our understanding of things and detecting faults. 

This ability makes artificial intelligence a crucial element of smart home energy systems.

Expect AI to be an integral part of future smart home energy systems. In addition to predictive analytics, anticipate future smart home energy systems boosted with AI to offer renewable energy forecasting, demand response management, and more.

Renewable energy forecasting

AI can analyse weather forecasts, real-time conditions, and historical generation data to predict how much renewable energy will be available, allowing users to balance supply and demand better.

Demand response management

AI can analyse signals from grid operators and energy providers and adjust consumers’ energy usage, helping to balance supply and demand.

Energy storage

AI optimises the storage and distribution of power from renewable sources. It considers factors like grid conditions, demand, supply, and price to determine the best times to store energy in batteries, the best time to release energy, how much to distribute, etc.

5. Smart appliances

A smart appliance is a household device you connect to your smartphone or tablet, allowing it to be monitored and controlled remotely. 

There are several types of smart appliances that contribute to enhancing energy efficiency and reducing overall energy consumption in homes.

Smart appliances for energy-efficient homes include:

Smart thermostats

Smart thermostats can learn user behaviour and adjust heating and cooling settings to optimise energy usage. Users can also control them remotely, ensuring heating or cooling is turned off when no one is home.

Smart lighting systems

Smart lighting includes motion sensors to detect activity in a room and turn lights on and off, preventing unnecessary energy use. 

Smart washers, dryers, and dishwashers

Users can schedule these appliances to run during off-peak hours when electricity rates are lower, saving money and reducing strain on the grid. 

Smart HVAC systems

Heating, ventilation, and air conditioning systems can be zoned, allowing users to heat or cool specific areas of the house as needed rather than the entire home. 

For example, electric radiators and underfloor heating allow users to control their home’s temperature remotely to keep each room at its optimum temperature without wasting energy.

Smart blinds and shades

Smart blinds can adjust based on the amount of sunlight and outdoor temperature, helping to regulate indoor temperatures naturally and reducing the need for air conditioning or heating.

With smart home technologies advancing by the day, you can expect more traditional home appliances to become “smart.” We may see things like smart door locks, smart refrigerators, and more that conserve energy. 

Also, though the current generation of smart appliances and systems are more energy-efficient than the ones they replaced, they are still energy gobblers. 

Lowering the energy footprint needed to power appliances is the main goal of smart technology. So, expect the smart home of the future to have more energy-efficient appliances.

6. Grid flexibility

Grid flexibility refers to the ability of an electrical grid to adapt and respond to changing conditions, demands, and sources of energy generation. 

A flexible grid can efficiently balance supply and demand, integrate with renewable energy sources, and optimise energy use in real-time.

Current trends in the smart home energy sector include flexible electric grids with the following features: 

Integration with renewable energy sources

Flexible grids allow the integration of renewable energy generation into an existing power system. This helps the grid balance generation fluctuations, ensuring a stable energy supply without over-relying on traditional power plants.

Demand response programs

Flexible grids enable demand response programs, incentivising consumers to reduce electricity usage during peak demand periods. This reduces strain on the grid and prevents the need for additional, often less efficient, power generation. 

Grid-interactive homes

Homes have become more grid-interactive, capable of both consuming and supplying energy back to the grid, promoting a more flexible and resilient energy infrastructure.

With renewable energy generation expected to double in the next 15 years, the smart home system of the future will feature even more flexible grids. 

Expect more incentives for reducing grid electricity usage during peak periods or supplying energy back to the grid.

7. Collaboration and interoperability

A recent trend in the smart home energy sector is increased industry collaboration to create interoperable systems.

Interoperability is the ability of different devices or systems to work together seamlessly, regardless of their brand or manufacturer. A lack of interoperability is a big challenge in the smart home energy sector, creating various issues, especially for customers.

A common issue it creates is vendor lock-in, where users have to buy from one vendor because devices from different manufacturers do not work well together. 

Another common issue is a fragmented user experience, where customers need to use multiple apps or platforms to control different devices.

To prevent these issues, companies in the smart home energy sector have increasingly been collaborating to create interoperable systems that work seamlessly together. 

Different open standards are being developed and adopted to promote the compatibility of smart home devices. 

This trend is expected to continue into the near future. thus, anticipate increased interoperability between devices of future smart home energy setups.

FAQs

Some of the most frequently asked questions about smart home energy are:

What are the challenges of energy-smart homes?

There are a few challenges plaguing smart home energy setups. The most prominent ones are problems with network connectivity, a lack of interoperability of devices from different manufacturers, and devices draining their batteries too fast.

What are the major elements of a smart home?

A smart home is equipped with various devices that are interconnected and can be controlled remotely or automated to enhance the overall living experience. 

Smart homes include elements like smart lighting, thermostats, security cameras, entertainment systems, and more.

What is the key difference between smart homes and smart buildings?

The key points of difference between smart homes and smart buildings are scale, focus, and management.

They can be summarised as follows: 

• While smart homes are small in scale, smart buildings are larger and more complex structures. 
• While smart homes focus on enhancing the living experience and convenience of individual residents, smart buildings focus on optimising the entire building’s operations, maintenance, and occupant experience. 
• While individual homeowners manage smart homes, smart buildings often have centralised management systems that manage and control various building functions.

Takeaway: Embrace smart home energy solutions for a more energy-efficient and sustainable living

Smart home energy solutions optimise the generation and consumption of energy and reduce the overall carbon footprint, thereby offering energy efficiency and providing a pathway to a more sustainable future. 

Smart home energy technology is evolving rapidly. The future of smart home energy will include more affordable and accessible renewable energy, more efficient energy storage solutions, better energy monitoring, incorporation of AI in smart homes, more energy-efficient appliances, a more flexible power grid, and better appliance interoperability. 

Taking advantage of these trends can help users become more energy-efficient and reduce their energy costs. This is where Eliq comes in!

We offer digital solutions to energy providers. With Eliq, you can provide your customers with insightful data analytics that help them control how energy is used and distributed in their homes, thereby fostering better energy management and increased customer satisfaction. 

Ready to become the world’s most trusted and competitive energy provider? Book a demo with us today and see how Eliq can help you!