Why use home automation?
There are many reasons why home automation may be (or not be) for you. It’s a very good idea when getting started to take a moment and think about why you are using home automation, your goals can have a big impact on how you set it up, what equipment you may purchase, etc.
Energy Efficiency is a great reason to use home automation, it can save you money and be good for the environment. While anyone can already buy a thermostat with automatic timed setbacks and be energy efficient, using home automation tools can provide more flexibility and minimize the impact within the home. The most common example of this type of home automation is a NEST thermostat. It can sense whether the home is occupied or not, and if not, setback the heat or cooling to save energy, regardless of the time of day. The benefit of this over a traditional thermostat is you can control it remotely. In the summer, as I’m leaving work, I’ll often grab my smartphone and tell my NEST thermostat to start cooling the house, so by the time I get home it’s already cool, and I don’t have that 20-30 minute wait in a warm house. Automatic drapes are another way that home automation can help make your home more energy efficient by keeping the hot sun out of the house. If this is your goal, you can probably buy some simple “off the shelf” home automation products and get the results you need easily.
Security and Safety is one of the most often mentioned reasons to use home automation. Remote video monitoring, motion sensors/security systems and smoke alarms can all provide peace of mind while you are away from home. Remote video doorbells can provide the ability to see who is at the door, and monitor packages that may be left on the porch. Having lights going on/off while the house is empty can make it look occupied and reduce the risk of a break-in. Water leak sensors and smoke alarms can provide great safety when integrated into a home automation system, potentially shutting-off a water line, or turning the furnace off in the event of a fire (and of course notifying you in our out of your home). Much of this functionality can be provided by buying a professionally monitored security system (such as ADT), however you may choose to build some or all of this functionality yourself, saving the monthly cost of the service and being able to use products that may not be available from the security company.
Sometimes home automation technology can be used for solving wiring problems in a home. Home automation can control lights even if there isn’t a switch already wired into the wall, or a switch that’s in the wrong place, and can also control groups of lights with a single switch. In my home I have an outside light mounted over my garage door that was added by the last homeowner. It was on a motion sensor, so no switch was ever wired. I was able to add a small controller inside the wiring box, and can now control the light from anywhere I want, without having to hard wire a switch somewhere. Solving wiring problems can be a quick and easy fix that again requires very little effort or setup.
Convenience is the main reason I got involved initially in home automation. Always having lights on when I arrive home, being able to control multiple complex systems (watching TV at my house involves turning on and adjusting the TV, the cable box and the stereo receiver) with the press of a single button can be a big help. With the recent availability of voice control through Amazon Echo, this is getting really interesting… If convenience is one of the reasons you are getting involved in home automation, you will probably want to ensure you use a hub or controller and have remote access, convenience means you’ll want as many (if not all) your controllable devices working through a single app/interface, and you’ll want remote access as well. People with accessibility issues can look at these convenience items as having a significant positive impact on their lives as well.
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