Category Archives: Energy Management

Smart, Safe Home System Can Save You Money This Winter


There isn’t a day that goes by where we don’t speak with a customer who is concerned about the cost of heating their home.

Most of the money that a homeowner spends on energy in this area goes to heating their house. The best way we know to cut the energy bill is to use less energy.

That;’s where our Smart, Safe Home system comes in. By tying your thermostat into the system, you can automatically have the thermostat turnmed back every time you leave home and arm the system.

Where does a smart thermostat fit in a home automation system?

Your thermostat: A gateway to savings.

Home energy management starts with the thermostat. In the U.S., more than 8 percent of energy consumption is controlled by the thermostat.

Most homes these days have a programmable thermostat. In fact, 40 percent of existing homes use programmable thermostats while almost 100 percent of new homes have them installed. But that doesn’t mean that people are taking advantage of them. There is one major reason for that: Programming a thermostat is easier said than done.

Program? I just turn it on and off…

For over 60 years we have providing heating and cooling service. Our experience tells us  that a majority of programmable thermostats are left in manual mode. Many homeowners tell us that they rarely or never change the program (kind of defeating the purpose of a programmable thermostat). So if you’re like most people and you’re not taking advantage of your programmable thermostat they way you could, what can you do about it?

Here at Burns & McBride Home Comfort we have a solution. It’s a Honeywell “Smart” thermostat. It’s similar to a programmable thermostat, but with one key difference: Every time you leave your home it is smart enough to turn the heat off.

What makes a Smart Thermostat smart?

Simplicity

Your Honeywell “Smart” thermostat is connected to the Internet through your Burns & McBride Go!Control. Having your thermostat connected to the Internet through our interactive website keeps things simple.

Through Internet access or your smart phone, you can control your heating and cooling whether you are at home or away. It only takes a few seconds to set up a schedule based on government-approved Energy Star heating and cooling programs. And you can do it all through your Burns & McBride Home Comfort online account.

  • The smart thermostat communicates with your Burns & McBride Home Comfort home security system. When you arm that system, the smart thermostat can automatically raise or lower the temperature. The thermostat adjusts to your schedule; not the other way around.
  • Every time you leave home and arm your system, it will turn the thermostat back! When you return and disarm the system, it returns to the original settings.
  • You will even receive a text or email notification if the temperature in your home crosses a high or low temperature threshold. In’t it better to know that you have a problem with the heater at 10 in the morning rather than finding out at 6 in the evening when you get home from work?

Affordability

Having a simple way to manage your energy saves you money.

  • Simply using a smart thermostat will save energy and save you money. Reducing the temperature on your thermostat a few degrees when you are sleeping or away will save money over time.
  • When using government-recommended Energy Star heating and cooling schedules, you can expect to save around $30 a month.

Smart thermostats may seem like a small thing, but at the end of the day, they make a huge difference. They are one of the simplest ways to manage your energy consumption and save money.

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Home security has become about much more than just security.


Trends in the Home Security Industry

15-20 years ago people paid a huge, upfront cost ($3K-10K) for their home security systems, and the technology they used was a basic, hardwired panel over a land line that would notify the central station of the emergency through a dialup connection. At this point, only about 5% of homes had security systems. Then, about 10 years later, APX Alarm and others came along and made home security more affordable, but the technology had remained basically the same, with the only major upgrade being wireless technology.

But in the last 3 years, technology has exploded. Now everyone is doing everything on their smart phones, like money transfers, Facebook and Skype; but until recently, the security industry had remained the same. This was mainly because upgrading the technology would require the larger security companies to go out and make those system changes for all of their millions of customers, and there was enough pressure on the industry that nobody wanted to change.

Our Vision

When we chose 2-Gig and Alarm.com as our partners, we asked ourselves, “What do we believe is the future for home security?” Since so many people have ditched their land lines for cell phones, we wanted to use a cellular technology that would allow people without a land line to:

  • Communicate through a two-way voice panel
  • Have the peace of mind that their system would never be disabled because someone cut their phone line
  • Receive automatic updates to their system software without having to schedule an appointment with a tech

When we designed our “Safe, Smart” home security system, we envisioned a beautiful color touch-screen panel that would become a platform in the home to serve the family and allow them to conveniently control their home. In other words, we wanted more than a mere home security system; we wanted a service system that would be able to do many different jobs for the customer.

We wanted our customers to be able to use their computers and smart phones to arm and disarm their system, check on their kids, receive notifications, view video surveillance, adjust their thermostat, turn the coffee pot on, and control their lights and door locks. we wanted a simple to operate, affordable system which would let homeowners take advantage of our years of HVAC experience to reduce their energy footprint.

Living the Dream

What started as a dream is now a reality for our customers!

Have your kids ever forgotten to lock the door when they run out? Mine do. But right now on my phone I can check to make sure all my doors are locked, and I can turn off all my lights and appliances with a touch of a button. Getting locked out of my house will never be a problem for me again. I can program a timer on my lights when we are gone on vacation.

The energy management, 2 way voice, home automation and severe weather alert services have added a lot of value to the Burns & McBride Smart, Safe home security system. People are experiencing this value and embracing it and, because of this, other companies are adopting similar technology. The percentage of people who have security systems in their homes has now grown to around 20%

About Burns & McBride

Our job is to provide essential services to homeowners. one of those essential services is home security and automation. We provide affordable home automation to help protect families, allow them to use energy more wisely and simplify their lives.The Burns & McBride Smart, Safe Home system uses Z-wave technology to tie things like locks, thermostats and lights together so that you can control them whether you are home or away. Burns & McBride has been providing essential home services since 1949. To learn more about Burns & McBride’s Smart, Safe Home can help you – call us at 302-656-5110 or visit our website at www.burnsandmcbride.com

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Filed under Energy Management, Home Automation, Home Safety, Home Security, Uncategorized

Saving Money on Energy This Summer


Our Burns & McBride Smart, Safe Home system can save you money on your energy bills this summer – and for years to come

How?

With the warmer weather on us, people are switching their thermostats from “heat” to “cool.” We all know that the air conditioner is a killer when it comes to your monthly energy bills. You could probably get away with leaving a light on, maybe a fan but when your family leaves the home with the air conditioner running the entire time, you’re going to come home from your family vacation to a HUGE monthly bill and that’s no fun! As if family vacations weren’t expensive enough, the last thing you want to worry about is if you can afford to return home.

Burns & McBride is a leader in simple, affordable Home Automation. Our Smart, Safe Home System lets you remotely control your home from your cell phone, tablet or laptop.

Imagine if you will leaving your home for work in the morning while forgetting to turn off your coffee pot, hallway light or even the TV. No problem; pull out your phone, fire up the Safe, Smart Home app and turn them all off with only your thumb while stepping into your office 20 miles away. Yes, it’s that easy!

Energy Management
Remotely control your lights, thermostat, small appliances, large appliances and more with the click of a button through your iPhone or Adroid, iPad or tablet, laptop and even your work computer. Plus every time you arm your system, you can automatically raise or lower the thermostat with our exclusive energy management rules.

Savings to Smile
Most customers report an minimum average savings of $25 a month on their energy bill. Hot weather calls for air conditioning and with our Smart, Safe Home package you get a new thermostat that works seamlessly when controlled from your smart phone, tablet or even your laptop computer. Yes, you can control your thermostat from your cell phone while away from home.

Savings in Your Hands
It’s a hot one outside and you’ve been running errands ALL day long, now you’re looking forward to getting home and sitting in the air conditioning. You pull out your phone, access your thermostat from the  app and get the cool air flowing and ready for you while you drive home.

Playing Warden
You had to work late, and the kids are at home by themselves. They’re supposed to be doing homework instead they are on the XBOX 360 with their friends. You pull out your phone, access the TV / XBOX 360 from your Safe, Smart Home app and shut it all off. Next, give them a call at home and warn them that it’s now time to start their homework.

Added Bonuses
As if you needed another reason save money, the Safe, Smart Home package includes 24 hour Home Security. So not only are you controlling your lights, small appliances and the temperature of your home but you will also be able to control the cameras, the door locks and monitor it all from your phone, tablet or even your laptop.

About Burns & McBride

Our job is to provide essential services to homeowners. one of those essential services is home security and automation. We provide affordable home automation to help protect families, allow them to use energy more wisely and simplify their lives.The Burns & McBride Smart, Safe Home system uses Z-wave technology to tie things like locks, thermostats and lights together so that you can control them whether you are home or away. Burns & McBride has been providing essential home services since 1949. To learn more about Burns & McBride’s Smart, Safe Home can help you – callus at 302-656-5110 or visit our website at www.burnsandmcbride.com

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Z-Wave Wireless Home Control Module Goes Incognito


To connect lamps and appliances to your Z-Wave network, you used to plug a module into your power receptacle and then plug your lamp/appliance into the module. Now, Z-Wave has an in-wall receptacle, making it unobtrusive.

z-wave receptacle

Wireless Control In-Wall Split Receptacle

The Evolve Wall Receptacle replaces standard wall receptacles. The receptacle contains one Z-Wave AC outlet and one standard AC outlet. An LED shows feedback that the controlled device is working.

The duplex receptacle enables wireless control of on/off functions for standard incandescent table and floor lamps, fluorescent table and floor lamps, and small appliances. It replaces your current electrical outlet, uses your existing wiring, and provides a Z-Wave enabled outlet for the lamp/appliance that you would like to control and a regular pass-through AC outlet for other electrical devices.

The receptacle requires in-wall installation with hard-wired connections.

Any device displaying the Z-Wave logo can be incorporated in your Z-Wave network. Since Z-Wave operates on RF frequencies and every device is a repeater, the more devices you use, the better your network functions.

About Burns & McBride

The Burns & McBride Smart, Safe Home system uses Z-wave technology to tie things like locks, thermostats and lights together so that you can control them whether you are home or away. Burns & McBride has been providing essential home services since 1949. To learn more about Burns & McBride’s Smart, Safe Home can help you – callus at 302-656-5110 or visit our website at www.burnsandmcbride.com

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Filed under Energy Management, How Things Work, Installing and Mainaining, Uncategorized