With winter rapidly approaching, many people in the US and throughout the globe will undoubtedly need to get ready for the problems that come with living in a house, driving a car, and leading a general lifestyle. Being prepared is crucial, whether it involves thinking about making a financial investment in an external power generator, sealing your doors and windows from the outside, cleaning your fireplace or furnace, or even clearing your gutters of snow and rain runoff.
EVVR provides excellent software and hardware solutions for smart living from summer through winter. Whether you want a single, smart device to test the waters or get into the ecosystem to streamline your living, we have got you covered!
- Cold Weather Tips To Cozy Up Your Home
- Smart Home Ideas For Cold Weather
- EVVR Center Lite Offers Automated Routines & Scenarios To Streamline Winter Living
Cold Weather Tips To Cozy Up Your Home
Many of your appliances will have to work extra hard to stay up when the temperatures drop below freezing. Your power consumption may skyrocket as a result, increasing the strain on your water heater, HVAC system, and pipes. Homeowners who live in areas where wintry weather is possible must understand how to weatherize their homes for the winter.
Here are some recommendations for preparing your home for the winter.
Mind The Cracks & Holes
One of the best cold-weather ideas for your house is to seal, seal, seal as you get ready for winter. Your doors are an excellent place to start. To assist in keeping the cold air out, add weather-stripping door draft stoppers if there are any visible gaps between the bottom of your door and the door frame. This also lowers your summertime air conditioning costs.
Examine the caulking surrounding your windows next. Reapply the external caulk if you see any gaps or places where the original caulk has worn away. To preserve the heat in your windows, you can also buy clear, insulating shrink film and place it inside.
Protect Pipes Around The House
Pipes that freeze can be a nightmare. You should drain all of your outdoor hoses, store them in your garage or shed, and disconnect them from the spigots in preparation for the upcoming cold snap. Next, use a foam faucet cover or an insulated sleeve to fasten each outside spigot. By doing this, the stopper is kept from freezing.
Insulating your pipes is also essential to prevent freezing and bursts. Because they are closer to the freezing weather, pay extra attention to ensuring that the pipes around the exterior of the home are well-insulated. To keep the water flowing during an impending cold snap, turn your faucets down to a steady trickle and open any cabinets beneath the sink to allow warm air to enter your pipes. You may avoid days without flowing water and save money by taking precautions to keep your pipes from freezing.
Insulation Is The Key
A common problem with attics is inadequate insulation. Make sure there is enough insulation in your walls, flooring, crawl spaces, and attic to prevent those freezing outbursts. Insulating your attached garage is another safety measure for cold weather.
If there are any thin, single-pane windows in your house, heat loss could be a factor. To help you save energy, think about purchasing the double-paned model that is also certified by ENERGY STAR.
Backup System For The Heating Pump
You might have a heating pump to keep your home warm if you don't live in a very cold climate. When winter weather is moderate, heating pumps perform exceptionally well; however, when temperatures drop below freezing, they lose their effectiveness. In the event of a cold snap, backup heating options like heat strips across your HVAC system or a gas furnace may come in handy.
Get Smart Thermostat
The life of a programmable thermostat can be greatly simplified. It can be programmed to adjust to the temperature you choose automatically. To walk into a toasty house without spending a fortune, you could, for instance, keep the house chilly while you're out at work and then warm it up fifteen minutes before you arrive. You may set distinct temperatures for different areas of your home with many smart thermostats, which you can operate from your phone.
Gutter Cleaning Routine Saves A Lot!
Making sure your gutters are clear of debris is another beneficial wintertime advice for homeowners. The deposits of debris in the gutters can cause the formation of ice dams. They may cause moisture to seep into your walls and ceilings and harm your shingles. To keep your roof free after a significant snowfall, you can also buy a roof rake.
Smart Home Ideas For Cold Weather
You can improve your house's energy efficiency and make it feel more comfortable and inviting by using smart home technology. We'll look at the different ways that smart home technology can help you enhance energy efficiency in the winter in this post.
EVVR has a diverse range of products to help you beat the winter without paying high utility bills. From EVVR Center Lite to EVVR Energy Monitoring Smart Plug, everything is aligned to make your smart living experience smarter and better.
Smart Thermostats
Heating or cooling an empty house is one of the biggest causes of energy waste. Conventional thermostats use needless energy because they can't adjust to shifting schedules. Conversely, smart thermostats provide the following capabilities that can help you save money and energy:
You may set the temperature to drop while you're gone and to rise when you get back, thanks to programmable settings.
By analyzing your usage patterns, smart thermostats can optimize your comfort by adjusting the temperature.
Temperature control that is dynamic and dependent on occupancy and weather conditions is made possible by integration with other smart home devices.
According to studies, homeowners can reduce their heating expenses by up to 10-12% by installing a smart thermostat, which also significantly lowers their energy usage.
Energy Monitoring
It would help if you comprehended how much energy you use to make improvements. Real-time data from smart energy monitoring systems lets you detect energy-hungry gadgets and modify your consumption accordingly. The major advantages of using the EVVR Energy Monitoring Smart Plug consist of the following:
Monitor energy usage at the device level to distinguish between power-hungry and energy-efficient equipment.
Get alerts when energy usage is out of the ordinary to help you spot possible problems like broken appliances or excessive use.
Establish targets for your energy use and get tailored advice to increase efficiency.
With this degree of awareness, you can not only decide how much energy you use but also where energy-saving improvements can be put in place to have the biggest impact.
Innovative Lighting
Any home needs lighting, and with the development of smart lighting solutions, you can now enjoy convenient, ambiance-enhancing, and energy-efficient illumination. The following are some benefits of smart lighting:
When paired with intelligent dimming controls, LED lamps use a lot less energy than conventional incandescent bulbs.
When a room is empty, smart lighting systems can be set to automatically switch off the lights or alter the brightness according to the amount of natural light present.
Hands-free control is made possible by integration with motion sensors and voice assistants, which further optimizes energy use.
You can save more than 50% of your electricity bill in lighting usage with smart lighting, which will improve the aesthetics of your house and result in significant electricity bill savings.
Automatic Drapes & Blinds
During the winter, windows lose a substantial quantity of heat. Intelligent window treatments provide an automatic way to control interior temperature and cut down on energy waste:
To stop heat loss during the winter, smart blinds and curtains with built-in sensors can be set to close.
With motorized window coverings, you can effortlessly regulate privacy and natural light via voice commands or remote control.
Sun-tracking capabilities move blinds to follow the sun's path throughout the day to optimize natural light and reduce artificial lighting requirements.
According to studies, installing smart window coverings can save cooling and heating energy use by up to 10% and 15%, respectively. Lower utility costs and a more sustainable way of life result from this.
EVVR Center Lite Offers Automated Routines & Scenarios To Streamline Winter Living
Even when you have all the smart devices and gadgets in the house, you need a brain of the operations or a command center to ensure that they are working in concert. EVVR Center Lite is that smart home hub that can cover all the bases for you securely and automatically. It supports various communication protocols and ensures that you have the best smart home experience. You can set routines and maintain schedules while saving thousands a year. So, what are you waiting for?
