Upgrading the electrical panel in your home provides lots of different benefits. The new setup may be necessary to replace worn breakers or old screw-in fuses, both of which can cause a fire. You may also be able to expand the electrical capacity of your home with a larger panel that provides extra circuits for additional appliances, renovations, or added rooms. Those and other reasons make a new panel a good choice, but can we include energy efficiency in that conversation? Here are some of the ways that an upgraded electrical panel can make your home more energy-efficient.
AI Management
One of the best ways to save energy is to turn off things that you aren’t using. We usually think of doing that by unplugging the TV in the guest room or being conscientious about turning off lights at night, but there are even more ways to eliminate wasted electricity. One of the best is to utilize an electrical panel that employs AI to manage electricity consumption.
For lots of electrical devices, flipping the switch to the “off” position does not end their electrical consumption. Computers, appliances, televisions, and many other unused items pull a little electricity even when we aren’t using them at all. An AI-managed electrical panel can track electrical consumption circuit by circuit, informing you of where the waste is taking place. You’ll then use the AI app to shut off those circuits that you don’t want active, cutting your electrical usage significantly.
You can also schedule heavy consumption, such as EV charging, for off-peak hours when rates are lower. The same can be done with water heaters and other big power users. No matter where you are, if you have wifi or LTE signal, you can get on the app and check consumption in your home, making changes that will slow the meter and shrink the bill.
Modern Connections
Electricity is a lot like water. It moves faster if it’s on a smooth surface. Old circuitry inside an outdated electrical panel is not very smooth. The quality of the original materials and the impacts of decades of operation create more resistance for the electricity, slowing its movement through the panel and generating heat. With electricity, energy that generates unneeded heat is wasted energy.
Loose or worn connections are also an issue with resistance. It might be possible to have an electrician from Mister Sparky go through the entire panel and replace any suspect terminals or connections, but it would not be cost-effective in comparison to simply replacing the entire panel.
Correcting Overloads
On a similar topic, not every panel is installed with the optimum load distribution, even if it was installed by a qualified contractor. Your old panel may have too much load on one circuit and not enough on another, forcing the overloaded side to pull harder and potentially function in a more wasteful way.
During a panel replacement, your electrician will be able to assess each circuit and determine if the breaker is sized appropriately or if a different amperage is necessary. This will keep a circuit with a breaker that is just barely big enough from bogging down with a heavy load and wasting power by generating heat.
Generator Capabilities
More and more homeowners are opting to install standby generators for their homes. These helpful devices are at the ready for any power outage, providing electricity to the home immediately after the outside supply is lost and continuing the flow until the utility company gets the home back online. Backup generators can prevent food spoilage and frozen pipes while also allowing your family to stay at home during disasters and other prolonged outages.
On top of all these benefits, a backup generator can actually save you on energy. Every outage lets your home fall behind on its energy consumption for climate control, water heating, and refrigeration. Once power is restored, all of those systems must go into overdrive to get caught up on all the warming up and cooling down that they weren’t able to do during the outage. Hard-working appliances demand a lot of electricity, and the only way to keep from pushing everything so hard is to have a backup generator.
Of course, the only way to have a backup generator is to have an electrical panel that is designed for this purpose, so in a roundabout way, a new panel will actually enable you to use less electricity during the hours immediately after a power outage.
Capture Those Savings Today!
Plenty of electrical panels get replaced for safety and capacity, but it’s also a move that can help pay for itself in reduced electrical consumption. Don’t let an outdated panel make your home unsafe or inefficient. Make the upgrade!