Smart home technology needs smart energy users
WATERLOO, Ontario: The key to any healthy relationship is communication. The same can be said about our relationship to home energy use.
That makes Bronwyn Lazowski a kind of therapist for our dysfunctional home energy patterns. She studies everyday energy consumer patterns and interactions with technology to help people understand that to live sustainably we not only need smart home technology, but also a smart energy culture.
“Saving money on home energy conjures images of sitting in a cold dark home, where convenience and comfort are sacrificed for sustainability,” says Lazowski, a University of Waterloo doctoral candidate. “That’s a misconception. Many of the best energy saving technologies and home upgrades actually make our lives more comfortable, convenient and efficient.”
Lazowski is part of a nationalleading community of sustainable energy leaders at the University of Waterloo. She’s also an Energy Council of Canada Energy Policy Research Fellow with the globally recognized, Waterloo Institute for Sustainable Energy (WISE).
With a holistic approach to reducing carbon emissions in our homes she identifies the three main technological advantages we have; smarter home design, a smart energy grid and smart home appliances.
Smarter home design goes beyond technology to also include the home’s environment. The design can be as straightforward as great insulation, good ventilation and well-placed windows for passive heating and cooling. It also can be as easy as sealing around windows and doors. That’s the first step.
The second step involves smart energy grids leveraging the latest in information technology. “The smart grid connects consumers to control rooms by allowing for two-way flows of both information and energy. Bringing information and communication technologies into our traditional energy grid enables this shift,” she says. “But the crucial part is effectively engaging consumers so they can become ‘smarter’ energy consumers.”
Lazowski notes that the smart grid has the potential to bring new roles for customers in the energy grid. For example, passive consumers can become active “pro-sumers,” where they can generate, store and sell energy back to the grid.— UW News