Bord Gáis Energy have just launched their new Hive Active Heating smart thermostat, or Hive for short. The Hive, along with a dedicated app, will allow homeowners, and not just those who use Bord Gais Energy to control their heating and hot water via their mobile, laptop or tablet.
The Hive Active Heating kit includes a hub, receiver and thermostat with an LED display. Hive boasts a range of clever features including Hot Water boost, scheduling flexibility, Holiday Mode, Frost Protection, Text Control and a Geolocation feature which can send an alert if you’ve gone out and left your heating on.
To coincide with the launch of Hive Active Heating, Bord Gáis Energy surveyed 862 customers about their attitudes to smart energy management. The survey shows Irish consumers are tech savvy with 91% interested in new technologies, 61% using apps on their smartphone daily and one in three interested in having a smart home. The majority of respondents said they would like to remotely control their central heating, lighting and hot water remotely.
8 in 10 said they have left the heating or hot water on unnecessarily with 26% doing so at least once a week. Forgetfulness is the main reason (62%) and the majority (78%) aren’t fully aware of how this impacts their bill. It also seems that the age old argument is still alive with two in five arguing with family members about leaving the heating or hot water on. 39% said that their parents reacted like it was a criminal offence when hot water was left on.
Nicky Doran, Acting Head of Retail with Bord Gáis Energy, said, “There’s more and more interest in the ‘smart home’ and smart energy management with tech savvy Irish consumers demanding convenient, flexible solutions that also help them save money.
“We’re very excited to launch Hive Active Heating to the Irish market. It’s an advanced solution with a range of really intuitive scheduling features and clever settings but can also help users benefit from real savings. So far, the feedback from Hive users has been excellent and we’re looking forward to offering more smart solutions.’
Hive Active Heating is professionally installed by a Bord Gáis Energy Service Engineer and is available to anyone on the gas network with a broadband connection, regardless of their energy supplier. Once installed, users simply download the free Hive app, or log on to www.hivehome.ie, to control their heating and hot water from anywhere.
Hive Active Heating is compatible with Android and iOS operating systems and the Hive app is available for free via the Google Play Store and the iTunes App Store. Fully installed, the Hive kit, including the app download, will be available for a one-off cost of €299. For more information or to arrange an installation, visit www.hivehome.ie or call 1850 427 131.
