Smart home devices are luxury products. In the past, that statement was true. But now, having a smart home is a necessity. They offer comfort, convenience, security, and better energy management.
So, how can you automate your home?
You can automate your home by buying smart home devices to replace your conventional devices and appliances. The field of information technology is still growing. Likewise, the Internet of Things (IoT) is still expanding. Smart home devices are examples of IoT products. That means you can connect these devices to a shared network. That allows them to communicate with each other. Furthermore, that allows you to access them in a common point.
So many devices are available in the market. So, it can be a little confusing at first when you are just starting to adopt. But don’t worry because you have this guide. Here are some smart home ideas you should consider:
Bathroom Automation
The bathroom is one of the high-traffic areas in your home. Every member of your household uses it daily. So, giving it some love is a sensible move.
Bathrooms’ high usage makes them prone to leakage, which causes humidity. Consequently, it can deal damage by peeling wallpaper and paintwork. Also, it can cause your wooden furniture to rot.
Furthermore, the humid environment promotes mold and fungus growth. Therefore, you might see mildew growing at the back of your toilet, on the bottom of your modern freestanding tub, and the walls.
You can install leak sensors on your taps to prevent this from happening. These devices will alert you when there are leaks, allowing you to act before the problem gets bigger.
Aside from that, you can buy humidity sensors to keep track of your bathroom air’s moisture.
Laundry Automation
The way we do laundry has evolved. You can now buy automatic washing machines – all you need is to load the clothes and come back when it is done. Still, laundry can be a bit of a job. If you are busy, you can forget the clothes that you loaded. So, you may need to rewash them.
You can buy a smart washing machine so you will not find yourself in that situation. It will notify you when it is done with its cycle. You can also start, pause, and stop these machines using your smartphone, Alexa. or Google Assistant.
But what if you don’t want to replace your laundry machine yet? You can install a vibration sensor instead. That will notify you when the machine’s vibration stops – an indication that it is done with its cycle.
Automating Lighting
Needing to flick the switch to turn the lights on and off is not much of a hassle. But still, not needing to do that is better. That’s why buying smart lights is one of the first automation ideas you should consider.
You need to buy smart light bulbs/panels/strips, plugs, and lighting control to automate lighting.
Smart lights will not just let you turn them on or off hands-free. You can also control the mood in different rooms of your house through scenes. Furthermore, you can dim and brighten the lights depending on your activities. And, of course, you can schedule the lighting to match events such as sunrise and sunsets or when you arrive home.
While you are at it, you may also want to consider installing motion detection lighting. That will improve security in your house and reduce your electricity bills.
Security Automation
Making your home as secure as possible is a must. One step toward accomplishing that goal is by investing in security automation.
According to a reliable source, there are an average of 2.5 million burglaries annually in the USA. More or less than 66% of those are break-ins. To lessen the chances of you becoming one of the victims, you can buy the following devices:
- Smart locks
- Smart Camera System
- Open door and window sensors
- Motion detector and security lights
These will notify you when there are suspicious activities around your house. Also, they will help you ensure no one can enter without your permission.
Automated Heating System
Before smart devices, you come home to a cold environment and wait for the thermostat to heat it up. With smart homes, it is different. You can warm your house before you even arrive. So, you’ll feel comfortable immediately after opening the door. A well-connected smart thermostat will let you do that.
Additionally, smart thermostats can adjust the temperature when you are not at home. The thermostat will also know how to deal with heating when you have an open window or door. That will help you save money by reducing your energy bills.
You need to link your thermostat to several devices for this automation. That includes your door and window sensors, smart blinds, and your smartphone. Also, the device would need updates from your local weather station.
Your smart thermostat learns when to start heating the house through the geolocation your smartphone provides. But it can use other triggers, such as a smart lock or remote access.
Smart Entertainment
This part is not as important as the others. But you should still consider it if you want to be extremely comfortable while at home. You can buy smart speakers as a start. There are many options from Apple, Amazon, and Google for your home use.
These speakers support voice assistants and voice commands. So, you can use them to control the compatible devices from your home – ex. Your smart television.
Your digital assistant can also give you reminders and help you with your day-to-day activities.
Of course, you can also use the smart speakers to play music, podcasts, or audiobooks.
Summary
Home automation will help make your life easier. In the current state of the world, anyone will appreciate that. If you want to get into home automation, you should consider these ideas:
- Bathroom automation
- Laundry automation
- Lighting automation
- Security automation
- Heating system automation
- Smart Entertainment