Water heaters go smart: households benefit from lower electricity prices without compromising their comfort!

by | febr. 26, 2024

The SENDER project is proud to announce the successful delivery of innovative water heaters to 10 households in Finland and Austria, with different capacities to meet the different needs of each country! Standard water heaters normally heat on demand when hot water is drawn. By using the water heater as a thermal battery, it is possible to delay heating, enabling households to take advantage of lower electricity prices without compromising comfort.

Last year, advanced water heaters from SENDER partner Nxtech were delivered to VTT in Finland and WEIZ in Austria, marking an important milestone in the development of energy-efficient solutions. Now that most of the water heaters have been installed, the SENDER partners look forward to seeing how they fit into the SENDER project and demonstrate their value on a larger scale.

Integrating smart water heaters with other loads or generators, such as photovoltaics, is essential for reducing electricity demand peaks and achieving a smoother energy consumption curve. In addition, by working with renewable energy sources, particularly local sources such as photovoltaic panels, a water heater can be programmed according to anticipated energy production. This synergy enables a more efficient use of energy, reducing the total cost of electricity for the homeowner.

Transforming a standard water heater into a more intelligent one for programming its heating activity requires an external control mechanism. This is where the SENDER project’s innovation plays an essential role. By knowing the amount of hot water remaining and the potential energy production, SENDER can precisely adjust the water heater on its three power levels in addition to none, choosing the most efficient times to heat the water.

The water heater controller software has been updated to ensure stable and continuous wireless communication. To communicate with the SENDER smart box, the water heater controller must be connected to the Internet. Software updates are received over the air, making it unnecessary to manually update the software on site.

In addition, we collect and store historical data on water use in the cloud, provided to other partners for analysis and modeling purposes. This data-driven approach not only enhances the functionality of these smart water heaters, but also contributes to the wider goal of making energy use in the home more sustainable and efficient.

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