Smart thermostats are particularly useful for keeping costs under control when energy prices are high. But researchers are now warning that they pose an underestimated danger. It is precisely because of their best properties that they can become a problem for the power grid. However, owners can easily take countermeasures.
Smart thermostats as a threat to the power grid
Smart thermostats can help save energy. Ideally, they can be easily adapted to the respective habits of the owner, so that energy is no longer wasted for no reason. Yet this is where danger lurks, as explained by Max Zhang of the Sibley School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering at Cornell. According to him, the advantage of smart thermostats can quickly turn out to be a disadvantage.
Zhang explains that the smart function of thermostats can sometimes lead to that the entire power grid suffers. In practice, the energy helpers come with a default setting that many owners don’t seem to change. As a result, at fixed times – such as 6 a.m. – there is already a noticeable load on the power grid.
However, problems can also arise when owners take the time to configure smart thermostats individually. If many just one full hour as the start time choose, this can also lead to synchronized demand peaks in the system. It is recommended to use a slightly different time – i.e. better 6:03 a.m. instead of 6 a.m.
Consumers should also be careful with the new energy labels:
Smart thermostats: Potential remains untapped
According to an American study conducted in the state of New York, a lot remains Potential of smart thermostats unused. Operating errors would only save 5 to 8 percent of the heating energy. In the best-case scenario, however, the devices are able to save up to 30 percent energy (source: Cornell University).