Whether you’re looking to create a smart home during the construction of your property or are seeking to retrofit your home for smart home automation, one of the most common questions people have is, where exactly do you start?
And it’s a great question. Getting the basics of your smart home right from the get-go is important. Done correctly, the initial smart home features you employ will allow you to adapt and improve your smart home over time, while saving you a whole host of money and effort.
So, here’s a quick guide for where to start when it comes to creating a smart home that will simplify your life.
Educate
The smart home sphere can be a noisy space. There are lots of smart products and features out there to learn about and understand.
But the concept itself isn’t actually that complicated. A true smart home is one that is integrated, connected and automated – meaning your home is set up with smart products and features that can easily be controlled using one single app and also voice command, if you choose.
The best way to really understand how that works and what’s involved is to talk to a professional smart home supplier and installer about what’s available and how it applies to your lifestyle.
This gives you a solid idea of what the technology can offer, the features that will suit you best, and also the cost involved.
Infrastructure
The backbone of a smart home installation that will accommodate your changing needs over time is the infrastructure behind it. Therefore, it’s the internet connection, networking, hub and programming that allows products and features in your home to communicate with each other.
This may not be as glamorous as lighting that sets a mood with the touch of a button or security systems that can relay information to your mobile phone. But getting the infrastructure right at the outset allows you to build on your smart home over time, or alternatively add the features you want immediately.
Features
Although the ultimate goal may be a fully automated house where blinds open and close in response to the temperature and time of day, climate control kicks in automatically, smart locking allows entry and security monitors the house 24/7, sometimes it just isn’t feasible or within a homeowner’s budget to roll out all features immediately.
Importantly, some of the smart home features on offer may not be applicable to you, your lifestyle and changing needs so they may not be a priority.
That’s why it’s really important to consider how you want to live within your home and the features that will matter to you most now and in the immediate future.
Take the time to understand what’s available and consider what your average day involves. This gives you a great idea of the features you wish to start with.
For example, if you’re a property owner who regularly travels, remote home monitoring, security and automated irrigation might be the main priorities.
If you’re a family with teen children who are often home in the afternoons before you, automated locking and home entry alerts that tell you your children have entered the house after school might be important.
And if you’re a homeowner with mobility issues, voice activated lighting, door opening and automated blinds might be the immediate features you need.
Lera’s top tips
Do your research
Before embarking on the smart home journey, do your research on the technology, products and features involved. This will hep you understand what’s involved, the technology available and the terminology used.
Talk to a reputable smart home installer
Find a smart home supplier who will work with you to understand your needs and your budget. At Lera, we believe in creating customers for life, so we will only suggest products that are going to benefit you and we will guide you through the best areas to start.
We also willingly show you exactly how these work, so you understand what’s on offer and can make an educated decision about what’s going to work for you.
Make sure you can easily add to your smart home system
It’s one thing to install smart home infrastructure and features, but can you expand on it and build it further over time?
We firmly believe a smart home is something that should evolve with your needs, so we are more than happy to set you up with the basics that you can add to and improve your smart home in the future. We also specialise in technology that makes it easy and affordable to do just.
Pick systems with a proven reputation
When it comes to the networking and communication method you select for your smart home, make sure that it’s widely used and reputable.
At Lera, our networking method of choice is Z-Wave. This is the language that smart home features and products use to communicate with each other. We’ve selected this network as it’s the favoured one for most smart home brands and products, is known for its security and also accommodates a vast number of items on one single network.
In other words, it’s secure, expandable, reliable and caters to all the top smart home products and features.
Make sure you have support
When you select a smart home installer and supplier, you need to make sure they will offer you initial training in using your home and also ongoing support in the future.
That means you can rest assured they will be with you every step of the way, from initial installation to any troubleshooting, the addition of products in the future and ultimately to the achievement of a fully integrated and smart home.
About Lera Smart Home Solutions
Lera Smart Home Solutions is a leading installer of smart home technology in the greater Sydney region. Our team boasts over 20 years’ experience in IT networking, programming and the electrical industry.
We have sourced the most reliable and cost efficient solutions from around the world to provide the very best in smart home solutions, and work with our clients to understand their needs.
You can learn more about transforming your house into a smart home here, access our smart home calculators here or contact us directly for further advice.