In Control or Being Controlled? Investigating the Control of Space Heating in Smart Homes

Low-carbon scenarios for enabling heat demand flexibility in district heating networks include smart home technology (SHT), which can automate control of heating by responding to utility signals while considering household preferences. This study empirically explores how control of space heating using SHT is performed in heating practices by occupants. The study is based on in-depth interviews and home tours with occupants living in smart homes in Denmark. The results suggest that (1) practical knowledge, (2) notions of being in control, and (3) temporal aspects of everyday life are of specific importance for how occupants perform control of space heating using SHT. Furthermore, results show how occupants act when feeling out of control. The data illustrate that control of space heating using SHT is performed in a variety of different ways, displaying the dynamic relationships between the materiality of the home, the importance of practical knowledge that occupants draw upon, and the meaning they ascribe to ‘homely’ practices. As SHT limits people’s active engagement in controlling space heating by relying on automated features, the findings presented in this paper highlight how control of space heating is more than the ability to control but concerns the dynamics of social practices performed within and outside of the home. Based on the results, the paper recommends four specific design and policy implications for future SHT solutions.