Top 3 reasons to convert to a smart home
If you are not interested in a created a home of the future, there are other reasons for wanting to install smart devices in your home.
Save Money
We all want to save money any way we can. A smart home can be used to ensure you are only using energy when you need it. For instance, do you (or your kids) forget to turn off lights at night or when you’re not at home. You can have all the lights inside or outside the house turn off when you are not home or after a certain time.
The same can be done for the temperature in your home. Do you need the temperature to be at a comfortable level when you are not home? What if you have pets at home? You can’t turn off the air conditioning completely but you can get alerted if the temperature gets too hot and you can turn it on remotely to keep Fido cool.
The result is saving money on your heating/cooling and electric bills. You would be surprised how much you could save by simply adjusting the temperature in your house by a few degrees. As a matter of fact, some local utility providers are willing to discount your utility bill to control your smart thermostat by a few degrees to reduce the load on the total demand on the grid during high demand times.
Protect Your Home
The safety and security of your home is very important. Security systems have been around a while. They used to require hard wiring and a subscription service, but you can setup some simple systems to ensure that you are being notified that there is any activity in or around your house. For instance, get text notifications when motion is detected outside your home or have a siren go off when doors or windows are opened.
Securing your home does not always mean you have to protect against intruders. Plenty of damage can happen when you are not home. You could turn off the water if you spring a leak while you’re not home or get notification that smoke and carbon monoxide detectors are triggered.
Convenience
Another reason for a smart home is for convenience. Use your phone or voice to turn on /off lights. How about automating a sequence of events like locking all doors, turning off lights, or turning off the tv when you are ready for bed. Get a reminder when the laundry is done so you don’t forget about the wet clothes in the washing machine.
Have I convinced you yet?
How do I get started?
Getting started is getting with a smart home is getting easier. First, get a smart home hub. Then Purchase some smart thermostat, lightbulbs, and outlets
Smart Hub
To start you will need a smart hub like a Samsung Smartthings, Phillips Hue, or Google Nest. The hub will connect to your home network so you can connect to it remotely over the internet. Some hubs don’t need the internet to function.
Smart Thermostat
Probably the most cost-effective device you could install is the smart thermostat. With it, you can control the temperature in the house and reduce the heating/cooling bill every month. As a matter of fact, some utility companies will give you a discount if you install a smart thermostat.
Smart Lights and Outlets
You can control the lights and other plugged-in devices just by replacing your existing light bulbs and electrical outlets with smart light bulbs and outlets.
