With a Sunrun solar system installed at your home, you’re ahead.

With a Sunrun solar system installed at your home, you’re ahead of the times as a smart homeowner living in a smart home. Even then, a whole new breed of apps out there can transform your home from the Flinstones era to the Jetsons age.

Smart home technology powered by apps is here to help you run an even more energy-efficient home and connect all your devices seamlessly. Here’s a quick guide to what they are, how they work, and how they can help you save money.

What are smart home apps?

From remote thermostat control to more advanced features like security system automation, smart home apps can make home management a seamless, connected experience. When it comes to enjoying your Sunrun solar system and managing your energy consumption efficiently, these apps can be a powerful ally in giving you control over your energy production and savings. 

With the ability to connect with other devices in your home, these apps put all the details of your system’s performance right in the palm of your hand.

How do they work?  

Smart home apps can work with specific smart home products or within an ecosystem of smart devices. These apps communicate with sensors placed within appliances, household items and outlets to help you understand and manage their performance. 

Many smart home apps and devices are also unsurprisingly smart enough to work across different operating systems and smartphones. Now you can program items as small as lamps and as big and vital as garage doors from a smartwatch, phone, tablet, computer and, sometimes, through your voice.

Furthermore, apps can provide data about the performance of devices like your battery storage systems, helping you monitor your overall energy production and consumption. Whether you're at home or away, these apps offer on-the-go support right in the palm of your hand, so you can easily control your energy solutions.

Smart solar app and energy efficiency

Smart home platforms can be the fitness trackers for your home. That’s because, in addition to helping you control your home, you can track how much energy consumption is happening throughout your living space. By leveraging these tools, you can make smarter decisions about your energy usage to create more opportunities for savings.

Here are three ways that smart home apps help you take control of energy production and energy consumption:

Schedule

Imagine that you’re leaving town for the week, and by barely lifting a finger, you program your house to lock your doors, turn off your water heater and switch on your security system. You can leave home with peace of mind, knowing your home is in order and you’re not wasting energy. 

Home automation apps and devices allow you to control and schedule household items via your smartphone, tablet, computer or voice. Plus, they provide data on usage patterns so you can make informed decisions in real time.

Adapt

In addition to easily switching household items on and off, there are apps connected with smart appliances that enable more control over managing energy consumption. If your utility charges time-based rates, some apps can program your smart air conditioner and refrigerator to shift energy use when rates are lower automatically. 

These apps connect you directly to your appliances, providing data on how they affect your overall energy production and savings potential.

Monitor

Is your new electric car driving your electric bill, or are your kids playing too many video games? Now, you can get data on how your household uses energy through apps that notify you in real time. You can evaluate your consumption, even seeing how your battery and solar panels work, and make immediate decisions to take control of your home and savings. 

These apps offer continuous support and empowerment to manage your energy from the palm of your hand.

Smart home apps and Sunrun

Sunrun has its very own smart home app: mySunrun. You can track your system’s energy production, submit referrals, and tweet out your solar production details. Sunrun’s app also helps monitor and ensure your system is running efficiently—and provides data on your solar savings—all in the palm of your hand, providing convenient support anywhere you go. 

Here at Sunrun, we’re all for the power of smart home apps and the ability to take control of your energy consumption, so stay tuned in the future for more powerful updates to the mySunrun app for even smarter management at your fingertips.

In the meantime, download the app, which is available for Android and iOS. You'll be able to connect to your solar system in seconds.

You’re in control of your solar power

Imagine a time when you will have full control over your home’s energy production, consumption, and savings—using a smart device right in your hand. That’s closer than ever with smart home apps available at your fingertips. And to think that it will run on clean, affordable solar energy with your Sunrun solar system and battery storage!

Daphne Wu is a Customer Experience Marketing Manager at Sunrun.