When looking to make a home as effective as possible, installing the correct smart technology is only the first step in maximising the efficiency of that technology. PBT Installations believe that energy management has an essential role in reducing energy useage and making renewable energy a more sustainable and efficient way of life. PBT Installations endorse Loxone as our preferred Energy Management System (EMS) and are able to help customers build this into their project.
Loxone takes energy monitoring and management to the next level in reducing and conserving energy useage. Loxone looks at how a property uses energy, where savings can be made and predicts the best times to utilise energy for routine tasks such as running washing machines and charging electric cars based on spot pricing and weather patterns. It also factors the daily routines of the property occupants by monitoring presence in rooms of the house and adjusting to accommodate.
Automated energy management with Loxone can be broken into 3 stages:
Recording and visualising energy flow
The first step is all about understanding your building’s energy usage. A Loxone system can help you measure and analyse the energy consumption of your building through the clear app interface. We need to know where the energy flows to, how much each component consumes and how much power the building produces.
There are powerful software features that enable integration with many different energy-related devices, such as solar panel inverters, battery storage, EV chargers, etc, and a Loxone installer can incorporate these into a holistic system to provide a clear overview of the current energy status of building operations at all times and enable targeted optimisation measures.
Reducing basic power consumption
Looking at the useage as a whole and identifying where changes can be made to reduce energy consumption and improve energy baseline useage. Using Loxone within your property allows the system to monitor where and when energy is used and then work to reduce unnecessary use. For example, in a domestic property where the occupants are vacant during office hours, there is no need to heat or cool the house, or power the kettle. Loxone uses motion sensor technology to identify patterns in time periods and adjust its useage of energy to make the best use of what is available.
Shifting energy consumption
The Loxone system is very strategic when it comes to drawing energy from the grid. Once configured, it will help you shift your energy consumption peaks to times when energy is cheaper based on the spot market. Due to holistic monitoring and energy management, the system can prioritise and reschedule appliances in the most cost-effective and energy-efficient way. For example, it’s cheaper to charge electric cars or run the dishwasher during the night than in the early evening when the cost of electricity is at its highest.
Loxone also considers weather patterns and can alter the way energy is used to make the most of predicted weather patterns. Utilising periods of good weather to charge Wallbox for electric car charging, or using weather forecasts to configure air conditioning to activate. Loxone can control heating, cooling and ventilation creating communication between these elements to ensure that heating and cooling are not both occurring at the same time.
