Here are some of the appliances that are worth spending your money on at home : )

 

Smart Thermostats

Programmable thermostats offer incredible aid in reducing unnecessary power bills. Most of the utility bills come from electricity heating and lighting. The use of smart thermostats has the capability of drastically lowering energy uses. Depending on your preference, you can choose the best thermostat that is synchronized with your homes energy use. The thermostats analyse the daily heating and cooling needs of your home and then follow them. It has been established that effective use of smart thermostats can reduce your power bills by 40% or more. As such, this is definitely a worthy investment.

I looked through Amazon and found the top 3 smart thermostats:

The Honeywell Wi-Fi Smart Thermostat is generally well received by online reviewers and is competitively priced. The 3 important things to look out for as adequately spelt out by a reviewer, Vdub are:  1)  Installation – the Honeywell Wi-Fi Smart Thermostat aced this comfortably as the wire connections if labelled well will be a breeze to install. 2) User interface and app setup – the Honeywell uses a Competent app that is both easily programmable and well designed. 3) Price – The Honeywell Wi-Fi Thermostat is priced rather competitively, coming in at $175, it is cheaper than the Nest thermostat.

The Nest Learning Thermostat, 3rd Generation has a very slick and modern design, it is also a good thermostat to have at home if you do not mind its higher price point. Based on the three criteria I set above, the Nest Thermostat performed well for the first 2 as it is easily installed and offers a well designed app, however, it is priced on the high side coming in at $249. One reviewer R Yanco also highlighted one problem: The display of the Nest is confusing as it does not display the current temperature of your home as readily as you might like.

The Sensi Wi-Fi Programmable Thermostat, 1F86U-42WF for Smart Home is an economical alternative from the Nest Thermostat or the Honeywell ones. 1) Installation – You will need to log on to its app to install The Sensi Thermostat. 2) User Interface and app setup – The Sensi Thermostat is easily programmable with less pre-set programs to change as compared to other systems. It also has few buttons causing less confusion. However, no touch screen may result in less than optimal user contact. The wi-fi works perfectly indoors and outdoors to display house temperatures and other information. 3) Price – The Sensi Thermostat comes in at a very competitive price of $115.

 

LED lights

To be honest,  most of us will likely want our home to have not only the most economical lights but also the brightest and most efficient ones too! The LED bulbs will offer home owners this opportunity. This kind of lights provide consistent lighting that won’t break your budget and efficient use of energy ensures that it helps reduce power usage by up to 80%. You do not have to invest in halogen and complex fluorescent systems anymore when you have a cheaper and more reliable lighting alternative : the LED lighting system.

The top few options for LED Lights in Amazon:

 

The TCP LA1027KND6 LED A19 – 60 Watt Equivalent Soft White (2700K) Light Bulb – 6 Pack enable home owners to save power bills  by up to 30%.  They turn out brighter than the usual 60W light bulbs and offers much more efficiency.

 

 

The LE® 12V DC Flexible LED Strip Lights, 16.4ft/5m LED Light Strips, Daylight White, 300 Units 3528 LEDs, Non-waterproof, Lighting Strips, LED Tape is great for decorative purposes especially during the festive season. One reviewer mentioned some positives: It offers satisfactory brightness, flexibly powered using various battery options and comes with anti-static bag and free tape for mounting.

Philips 455717 100W Equivalent A19 LED Daylight Light Bulb, 4-Pack is a great lighting product that is also competitively Priced.

Power Managements Systems

The latest technology has seen the introduction of many systems that are capable of regulating energy within the homestead. With these systems in place, it is now possible to control your home using a remote. Interestingly, these systems can also be synced with other smart devices to allow easy home control. This not only save on power costs but also makes the control of major home appliance systems easier and more efficient than ever before.

We picked out a few home Automation Systems in Amazon as listed below:

The Honeywell Wireless Lynx Touch L5200 Home Automation/Security Alarm Kit with Wifi and Zwave Module system helps to automate the house well. Lets put it to the three criteria test I had set for the thermostat. 1) Installation –  The Honeywell Lynx touch is not easy to set-up and may take some time for non- techies to understand all its programmables and functions. 2) User interface and setup – The Honeywell Lynx is not compatible with many other systems and programs. It works well with Zwave products only. Other than the above issues, the Honeywell Lynx works well as advertised. 3) Coming in at $315, it is reasonably priced.

 

The Samsung SmartThings Home Monitoring Kit is also a reliable home automation system that helps control lighting and other home devices. 1) Installation – The Samsung SmartThing Home Kit is fairly easy to install. 2) User Interface and Setup – The Samsung SmartThing Home Kit can link up to generation one hub devices easily but you have to rebuild all the SmartApp from your generation one hub.  3) Based on its price at $99, minor problems can easily be forgiven.

The Insteon – Starter Kit 2 “Product Category: Home Automation/System & Controllers” system helps control your home lighting, CCTV Cameras as well as some compatible appliances. 1) Installation – The Insteon Home Automation system is easy to set up. 2) User interface and setup – Using both wire and wireless communication setup, it offers flexible control over old and new devices. However, programming is done within its app which may turn out more difficult than you may like, browser support as indicated on the package may not be there. 3) Price – The Insteon Starter Kit is competitively priced at $125.

 

Charging Stations

Most home energy wastages come from appliances that are plugged into sockets but are not actually used or even turned on. Unused electronic appliances account for 8% or more of our monthly energy bills. When controlled effectively, this amount of energy can be used for other purposes. The best way of doing this is through the use of charging stations. Charging stations easily turn off such appliances and thereby preventing phantom power leaks. Once the phones or MP3 players are full, the charging station turns off the electricity supply through programmable settings. This is one of the most often overlooked ways of effectively reducing energy within the homestead.

Charging stations featured in Amazon currently do not boast programmable charge timings but below are some charging stations I found more useful than others :

The Electrohome Alarm Clock Radio with USB Charging for Smartphones & Tablets includes Dual Alarm, Battery Backup, Auto Time Set & 1.2″ LED Display with 4 Dimming Options (EAAC470) is a nice gadget to have to facilitate your charging needs as well as offer other functions like time management and alarm. I chose this one above others as it is competitively priced at $29 with good reviews to back it up too.

 

The #1 Rated Alarm Clock Fm Radio with Dual Alarm USB Charging Station for Any Cell Phone or Mobile Device. Lifetime Guarantee! is a multi functioning gadget that is a clock with power backup and also a charging station. This design is a cheaper alternative coming in at $23.

Do you have any of these gadgets at home ?

Try them out to see if your power bills go down.