Swidget & Energy Savings

Swidget & Energy Savings

At first glance, customers tend to make the unfair comparison between the cost of traditional electrical devices and Swidget. This can understandably make the purchase somewhat difficult to justify. What we often point out is that Swidget may look like a receptacle or a light switch, but it is so much more. What follows below is a simple analysis of the savings that are possible using Swidget’s power monitoring functions.

Swidget Energy Savings Techniques

Dimming

There are a variety of ways to reduce the amount of energy that your lighting uses. The easiest way is to replace your standard light switches with smart dimmers and then set the upper brightness threshold to 80% of max. This change is almost imperceptible to the eye but very noticeable on your electricity bill as your energy use for lighting has been lowered by 20%.

Schedules

Schedules are a simple and intuitive way to reduce your energy use. The great news is that you can customize each schedule for your typical use of each device plugged in to a controlled outlet and for your lights in different areas of your house. That way, for example, you can automatically shut down your entertainment system during regular working and sleep hours during the week but have them automatically available for you at different times on the weekend. You can also easily override a schedule by turning the outlet or lights back ON manually at the outlet or remotely through the Swidget app, or even by using a voice command with Alexa or Google Assistant.

Occupancy Sensing

By connecting your Swidget devices to a Motion Insert you can create a rule that automatically turns off your lights and non-essential appliances that are plugged into the controlled outlet when vacancy is sensed. Savings of 50% or more are easily achieved using Swidget Motion Sensor Inserts.

Demand Response

In many areas of North America there are peak and off-peak rates for different times of the day. By enabling a demand response automation your dimmable smart lights can be dimmed and appliances that are plugged into the Swidget controllable outlet that you have deemed non-essential, can be turned off. This automation can greatly reduce energy usage when it is most expensive and put that money back in your pocket. Imagine using this with a backup generator or in the middle of summer when demand for electricity is sky high. You can make a real difference in the amount that your household consumes.

Did you know?

Each year Americans spend $130 billion on wasted energy. It is easy to imagine that a large percentage of this comes from Vampire Power: electric power that is consumed by electronic and electrical appliances while they are switched off. This energy loss costs an average of $165 – $440 per family per year.

Vampire Energy Stats by Appliance per Year

Televisions – $160 each Video Game Consoles – $75 Desktop Computers – $40 Laptops – $19 Kitchen Appliances – $15 Cable and TV Boxes – $11

By simply connecting these devices to a Swidget outlet with Wi-Fi control you can eliminate almost all of this wasted power through the use of schedules, vacancy sensing, and other simple automations. It may not seem like much but by setting a schedule for your television to be OFF for 12 hours per day- perhaps during work and sleeping hours- and eliminating the corresponding vampire power, you can save $80 per year. At today’s electricity prices, this more than justifies the cost of your Swidget outlet and Wi-Fi Control Insert. Imagine how much it will save as the price for electricity continues to rise?

Since Vampire Power accounts for between 5-10% of household total electricity use there is a lot more room to reduce your energy use. By using Swidget outlets, light switches, and a multitude of our smart Inserts to modify your usage habits, you can save a tremendous amount of money and reduce your carbon footprint at the same time.

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