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SMART SAVVY!
HOME T
echnology is changing all the time and there are now so many gadgets and gizmos to make life easier
in the home. In some cases, they can help us to save money and lessen our impact on the environment; in most cases, they save us time and effort – and in other cases, they can simply make household chores much more pleasurable! With the increased focus on the need to take action on climate change, we’re all being urged to think about how we can contribute to a nationwide effort to reduce carbon emissions. And when you consider that recent provisional fi gures reveal a 2.8% increase in emissions caused by residential energy use in 2018, compared to the previous year (adding up to a total of 65.9 million tonnes), it’s clear that it is time to look at improving our heating systems. Measures to take include: • Upgrade your thermostat If
you have a simple thermostat that sets one temperature for the whole house, consider installing a more advanced system that lets you set different temperatures for each room so you’re only heating those you’re using at any one time. • Digitise your heating controls You can adjust your heating using an app on your phone or tablet or via a digital assistant smart device, allowing you to turn off the heating remotely when you’re not at home. • Monitor your fuel consumption Install a smart meter so you can keep track of how much fuel you’re using. • Fit self-bleeding radiator valves These automatically vent the air from your radiators, helping your system run more effi ciently. • Upgrade your boiler If your boiler is more than 15 years old, it may be worth changing to a modern condensing model. These are far more effi cient and can reduce your carbon emissions and fuel bills. Be sure to use a registered OFTEC (for oil) or GasSafe (for mains gas) technician to carry out the work.
TALKING TECH… Slightly less high tech, but still extremely clever is the Coravin Model Two Elite (£279 from coravin.
co.uk). If there’s wine leftover at the end of the weekend, this useful bit of kit means there’s no need for it to go to waste! It allows you to pour wine without removing the cork, and then keep any left in the bottle for months without risk of it deteriorating. A needle is inserted through a cork and the bottle is pressurised with Argon gas, preventing oxidation (or, if your bottle is a screw-top, there are special screwcaps that can be used with the system too). And what of the kind of new tech that makes household chores less of a trial? Well, for a start why not let the Roomba i7+ robot vacuum [1] use its smart mapping technology to map out your home, learning up to 10 rooms, then whizz around cleaning as it goes. It will even empty its own bin when it’s done! It’s compatible with Amazon Alexa and Google Home Hub so can be controlled remotely too.
Get ready to make domestic life easier with the latest clever technology – from saving the wine to seeing on your phone what’s in the fridge!
Sarah Giles
1. Roomba i7+ robot vacuum, £1,199 (
irobot.co.uk)
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