{"id":1334,"date":"2020-03-18T07:05:40","date_gmt":"2020-03-18T11:05:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sense.com\/consumer-blog\/sense-can-youre-away\/"},"modified":"2025-06-20T12:07:58","modified_gmt":"2025-06-20T16:07:58","slug":"sense-can-youre-away","status":"publish","type":"consumer-blog","link":"https:\/\/sense.com\/consumer-blog\/sense-can-youre-away\/","title":{"rendered":"Tracking Your Second Home From Afar"},"content":{"rendered":"

With many people staying home now, including Sense staff, we were reminded of an article we originally posted in early summer 2019. It was inspired by stories our customers shared with us about keeping track of a second home in the Sense Home app. One customer kept an eye on his parents\u2019 home, and two AirBnB owners checked on their rental properties. We hope that Sense can contribute in some small way to your peace of mind as our lives seem to have changed overnight.<\/em><\/p>\n

It\u2019s odd how daily routines can become so automatic that ten minutes later, we can\u2019t remember our actions. Rushing to get to work, you might ask yourself later, did I turn off the kettle after pouring water for tea? Or perhaps you wonder if the coffeemaker is still warming the coffee two hours after it brewed. Or it may be the iron you use in the morning that pops up in your mind an hour later. Did I unplug it after ironing my shirt?<\/span><\/p>\n

Sense can help when you leave the house for work or vacation and wonder if you left something on. Sense is not just an energy monitor \u2014 it also tracks home activity. Once Sense has identified a particular device, you can see when it turns on and off in the Now screen in the Sense Home app<\/a>. You\u2019ll see when your microwave, toaster, electric kettle, fridge, and other devices are running (or have run recently). <\/span>One Sense customer, Fred W, even detected an <\/span>overheated pottery kiln in the Sense Home app while away from home. A major fire hazard! <\/span><\/p>\n

But Sense isn’t just for your<\/em> home. Many of us have other properties that can benefit from real-time and historic energy monitoring. In other cases, Sense can be a great tool to help our older family members maintain the dignity of “aging-in-place<\/a>,” while still providing insights into their well being.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Sense customer Mark K. built a house in Arkansas for his parents about 20 years ago. It\u2019s powered entirely by electricity, which runs two refrigerators, an under-counter freezer, a Burnham boiler, hot water recirculation, a radiant hot water collector on the roof, and radiant floors. Not surprisingly, the home uses a lot of electricity. Using Sense, he identified several areas for energy and cost savings, then installed Wemo smart plugs<\/a> to control the hot water recirculation system, the radiant hot water system, and outside landscaping lights, while making other efficiency improvements like switching ceiling lights to LEDs. Says Mark, “I’ve combined Sense with Nest and Wemo to cut $700-1000 from the annual electrical expense of my parents\u2019 house in Arkansas.”<\/span><\/p>\n

Mark’s Dad was diagnosed Alzheimers 5 years ago and the disease advanced rapidly. He and his mother decided to support his father in staying at home, so safety was important. Sense helps him determine the activity in the home and where it\u2019s happening. For instance, says Mark, \u201cThe Sense Home app could tell me that my mom got up in the morning and turned on the coffee pot, which became a really important thing. As soon as you put a lanyard on a person, it changes their life, so Sense helps us avoid this.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

Sense can also be a great tool to monitor your rental and vacation properties. On the <\/span>Sense Community<\/span><\/a>, <\/span>iansampaio<\/span> shared the ways he checks on his AirBnB from 4,353 mi away<\/a> \u2014 while being careful to respect his guests\u2019 privacy. They include:<\/span><\/p>\n