Smart Controllers – Are they worth it?

What are the main reasons for getting a smart controller?

There are many reasons you may consider getting a smart controller for your home which may include:

• Saving money
• Increasing efficiency
• Convenient controls
• Becoming more eco-friendly

Let’s take a look at each of these in a bit more detail to see if it's worth you getting a Smart Control for your home.

Do Smart Controllers Save You Money?

The top reason for investing in a smart control, in most cases, is convenience while saving money. Everyone is feeling the pinch at the moment with rising energy bills and the cost-of-living crisis, but will, getting a smart control save you money?

It’s not a straightforward question to answer, unfortunately. Some of the big-name brands have made estimates of how much they think their smart controller can save a household per year, ranging from 20-41% of your current annual heating bill.

In 2021, the average gas and electricity bill for the year was £1339. Due to the energy crisis, the government expect this to rise to around £2500 per year for a typical household so any saving on this will make a big difference.

It’s worth considering the routines of the people in your household as this will affect the saving. If you live alone, then a smart controller that responds to your smartphone leaving and returning home turning the heating on and off could see some good savings. However, if you have multiple people at home, particularly perhaps those working from home, then a smart controller may not have a significant impact on the amount of energy being consumed.

How do Smart Heating Systems Work?

Whilst most heating systems will have the option to manually adjust the temperature, one of the main selling points of a smart controller is the remote control aspect. Whether you’re a gadget lover or not, no one can deny how handy it is to be able to control things like heating and lighting at home from a smartphone whilst you’re out and about.

All smart controller manufacturers provide an app that you can access via your smartphone or tablet. This enables you to not only control and make changes to your heating system but also read performance reports to see where you could start saving energy (and money!).

Some manufacturers also let you connect the system to smart speakers such as Amazon Alexa, Google Home or Apple Homekit devices, meaning you can control your heating with your voice when at home. Imagine sitting on the sofa watching your favourite new series, when you begin to feel a bit on the chilly side, without even needing to move, you adjust the heating by saying “Hey Google, set the temperature to 20 degrees” – How convenient!

It is worth considering how often you are likely to need or want to use this feature. Does this cool and novel concept make it worth the cost of a smart controller? That’s really up to you. If you are someone who cares for someone who is elderly for example then this voice control could be a game changer.

Pros: Having the ability to control your heating from the comfort of your sofa with your voice, or whilst you are out via the app.

Could Smart Controllers with Geo-Fencing Save Me Money On My Energy Bills?

Some Smart Controller systems offer Geo-Fencing. Using just the smart controller and your Smartphone, you can set up these systems to detect when you have left your home (Over a certain distance, not just pottering in the garden) and switch the heating off for you (if you’ve forgotten). The system can also sense when you are on your way home and turn the heating back on for you.

“Which” the consumer champion Says that this function is largely what manufacturers are basing the cost savings on. This is, of course, only true if people are regularly going out and forgetting to turn their heating off. Some people either remember or program their heating controls to come on and go off at certain times to reflect their daily routines. So the assumed cost savings from Geo-Fencing may not be as big as they think. It depends on the system already in place and the person.

Pros: If you’re someone that regularly leaves the house for work with your heating on full blast all day long, then a smart controller with Geo-Fencing could probably save you quite a bit of money.

Cons: If you already have a heating system that’s programmed to come on and go off according to your daily routine (or you remember to turn it off when you leave the house!) then Geo-Fencing on your smart controller might not save you that much energy or money.

Can the System Learning Function on a Smart Controller Help to Save Energy and Money?

Some manufacturers offer system learning as part of their Smart Controller product. This means that you can choose a time and temperature that you would like the house to be at, and the smart controller enables this to happen as efficiently as possible.

What does this mean in real terms? Well, let’s say that you get up at 7 am every day during the week and you would like the house to be at a comfortable 21°c, detected by the smart controller in the hallway. To make sure this is achieved, the smart controller will make sure the heating comes on in good time so that the required temperature is reached at the right time. If it detects that the temperature of 21° was reached earlier than 7 am, then the next day it will turn the heating on a bit later.

Because the smart controller is connected to the internet, it will also “know” if the outside temperature is set to drop dramatically, meaning that it can make sure the boiler comes on sooner so the house is still warm at the specified time.

Financially, is system learning going to be saving you very much over your existing method of just having the boiler fire up at a set time each day? Probably not a huge amount, though it will add up over time, and pennies make pounds.

Pros: This system learning function could mean that you wake up on a cold, frosty morning with a nice warm bedroom. The automatic changing of on-times due to outside temperatures could mean that your heating is on for less time, meaning less energy use and lower bills.

Cons: If your boiler fires up at the same time each day to reach a certain temperature, then financially, the system learning function may not save you that much money

How can the Feedback from my Smart Controller help me reduce my energy consumption and bills?

One of the great things about smart controllers is that they can give you feedback via the app or smartphone notifications to let you know when things are not working correctly or in some cases, where energy could be saved.

Pros: The information and data provided via the app and notifications could help you identify where you could lower your energy usage and lower your energy bills.

Cons: Some homes already have a smart meter which keeps them aware of their energy use. Feedback from a smart controller may just provide you with information you already know.

Are Smart Controllers Eco-Friendly?

As you’ve seen from the percentages we shared above, if a smart control is set up correctly then you are likely to save some money each year on your energy bills. In some cases even save quite a lot!

Whether or not you save a little or a lot, anything that helps lower energy consumption even a little bit is helping the planet. Whilst we’re all desperate to lower our energy bills any way we can, we should also be striving to save energy for the good of the environment too.

Pros: Smart controllers can undoubtedly help us reduce our energy consumption, operate our heating systems more efficiently, and make us more aware of what energy we use, how we use and when we use it most. This conscious awareness of how much energy we are using in our homes can help us make small yet significant changes that collectively could have a big impact on the environment.

Cons: Households may already be aware of how to make their homes more eco-friendly, without the need for a smart controller.

How much Maintenance does a Smart Controller system need?

We all know that any system we have in our homes needs some kind of ongoing maintenance. Adding a smart controller to your home means you get all the good of the gadget, but also the inevitable issues that technology can bring.

Think of this in terms of:

• Having someone in the household that can understand how to re-programme and re-schedule the settings
• Replacing batteries regularly in things like smart thermostats, smart radiator valves etc.
• Having a reliable connection between the router and the Smart Controller

Pros: These are things that can easily be tagged on to general household maintenance along with other things like checking smoke detectors. Someone in your home will have likely already programmed a previous heating system, so this would probably be even easier! The wireless signal can be supported with a signal booster if need be. Even if the signal was lost, the system can still operate based on the information and settings previously stored.

Cons: Depending on technology so much can be daunting for some. When things go wrong, they can feel hard to fix if you’re not confident with these sorts of things.

So, are smart controllers worth it?

We think the move towards smart controllers in every home is somewhat inevitable based on the products currently available on the market and the innovation behind new ones.

People tend to love a gadget, and even the most gimmicky features of smart controllers like voice control are a big motivation for many people

Smart controllers could be a great way for many homes to increase their awareness of energy usage, control how much energy they use, and help to save some money on their bills as well as help the environment.

If you are already careful with your energy use, then you might not see big savings. But the convenience and other benefits could still make a smart controller worthwhile for your home. Any saving is a saving, right?

We would always recommend checking out the features of a smart controller in the product description on our website to ensure it meets your needs.