automation – do you want a smart home?

Home automation

Wouldn’t you love to wake up with the drapes opening automatically in the morning? Sunlight filtering in, right up on your face, rather than with the monotonous beep of your alarm? As the drapes open, a pre-programmed soothing morning hymn starts playing in the background!

Check out the product here.

By the time you get up, hot water is ready for bathing at your desired temperature. As you get ready after your bath, the coffee machine dispenses your favorite cup of cappuccino.

Now imagine coming back from the office dead tired. Wouldn’t you love that the main gate opens automatically for your car to drive in, right up to your main door? As your gate opens, the lawn lights are turned on automatically at pre-set luminosity.

The AC switches on automatically in your living room at your desired temperature. Lights get turned on with just the right amount of dimming. Sounds too good to be true.  Isn’t it? But this is just a glimpse of what smart homes are capable of doing. The possibilities are endless.          

A lot of connotations are associated with the word smart homes. When we hear words like automation or smart, our mind thinks about a myriad of things associated with them. However, we are not clear about what exactly a smart home is. In this fast-paced, technologically advancing world what all it can achieve for us.

This write up is an attempt to give a bird’s eye view of the subject and dispel a few doubts.

In simple terms, home automation means that a house is connected with smart devices which enables us to control the household gadgets remotely. It connects your home appliances, home surveillance systems, lighting, entertainment gadgets via the internet.

It lets you operate, manage, and control them remotely with various means like voice commands, mobile phones, or touch screens.

The world is moving to smart homes rapidly. Once, considered a luxury, they are now a lot more affordable and easier to use and are penetrating urban middle-class homes rapidly. A smart home offers the convenience, safety, customization, and integration of gadgets in one go or phases as per the budget, preferences, and needs.

There are two ways you can go about automation :

Automation from scratch

The first and the easier method is hardwiring your electrical points in your home at the time of construction and terminating them at a single point where the controller or hub is kept. A professional can plan out the automation wiring as per your requirements and guide your electrical contractor about the wiring requirements.

This system works better and is preferred over retrofitting as the devices are communicating with each other via physical wiring rather than entirely depending on the strength of the Wi-Fi signal.

Automation afterward

However, if your house is already constructed and you do not want major changes in electrical works, then the option is there to retrofit your home to make it a smart home. You do not need to change your switch modules as the new switches will fit in the existing switchboard panel without having to change your existing wiring.

It can be controlled either by switches or by smartphones. The command given by any device reflects in all the connected smart devices.

You can go in phases. The advantage of retrofitting is that you can start with one room and add rooms later as and when you feel like. The entire automation system can be accessed by multiple devices and from multiple locations. So, the entire family can control it from their devices from any location.

Why would you love a Smart home with automation?

Safety and security

One major advantage of a smart home is safety and security. When you have the option of seeing the live feed via security camera on to your smart device or mobile phone, irrespective of whichever part of the world you are in, it gives you a sense of security which is unmatched. You feel that you are in control.

Motion sensors detect any unwanted intrusions. A blaring alarm alerts the neighbors. Remote monitoring will alert you immediately if any suspicious movement is noted around the house. You can mitigate the risk of break-ins substantially. The smart homes call up the cops on their own in case of intrusions and alert the neighbors as well.

Smart lighting

Another major advantage is smart lighting. Smart lighting helps conserves energy. It saves costs in the long run. Most of the pre-sets work at 70% luminosity. The auto-off feature helps in conserving energy. The major component of smart homes is lighting. Not only is it very convenient, but is a lot more energy-efficient solution.

Smart lighting means that it can turn off/on based on your movement in the house thus saving energy by automatically turning off the lights in the areas which are not in use. You can use voice commands through Google Home, Alexa to dim the lights, turn an individual light off, or on.

You can have a preset for mood lighting. The possibilities of scene creations through lighting are endless. Simple voice commands through Alexa can turn on or turn off the lights or have the desired color as per mood.

Convenience

Convenience is one of the major aspects as to why people are attracted to converting their homes into a smart home.

In today’s times, there is plenty to worry about. At least we have one less thing to worry about when we are living in a smart home. Voice commands through Alexa or Google home are extremely useful features and can be integrated with various devices.

Now imagine, if you want to shut the curtains and just a voice command to Alexa does the job. Alexa shut the curtains! Voila! The drapes start closing by themselves.

Convenience is one of the major selling points of home automation devices, which virtually eliminate small hassles such as turning the lights off before you go to bed. Many systems come with remote dashboard capabilities, so forgetting to turn off that light or air conditioner before you leave no longer requires a turn back of your car to physically turn off the equipment.

Simply open up an app on a smart device or computer and turn off the AC or lights or whatever you forgot to switch off in a hurry! You do not need to physically go, and check If the lights, and fans are off, and doors are locked.

Similarly, the entire AV of the house can be controlled through your phone. You can choose to play songs zone-wise in your house or a single song can play in the entire house in event of parties. The volumes and other functions can be easily controlled via mobile phone.

By opting for Smart entertainment, the entire house can be interconnected. The same video can play in your entire house with the touch of a button. The home can be networked to connect different streaming devices.

Have you heard the term Moccupancy? Yes, you can fake that somebody is at home by programming various devices in your home to turn on and off automatically so that it gives the impression that the house is occupied, and the owners are at home.

Landscaping or outdoor lighting can turn on at sunset and turn off at sunrise thus saving both energy and the hassle of manually doing it each day and forgetting to turn off on most days! They can also be solar thus saving on energy.

Single-button for multiple functions. E.g. you can turn on or turn off the entire room/house lights with just a single button. 

With motion sensors at night turn on the footlight just at 15% intensity, when you make your way to the kitchen for a midnight snack. Enough light to guide you through and not disturb the other occupants in the house.

Program your shades as per the inflow of natural light in the room during different times of the day. They can partially close or open as per the program. 

Why would you hate automation?

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Nothing vast enters the life of mortals without a curse

– Sophocles

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With all the wonderful things that it does for the user, the home automation system comes with few disadvantages as well….

It is dependent on an Internet connection. The moment the connection snaps, the entire system collapses. Also, it needs a high-speed internet connection. If the connection is slow or it drops frequently most of the products connected with it will behave erratically.

It requires a bit of technical knowledge. If you are a tech-savvy person or someone who has a technical background, it is a breeze for you. However, if you are a layman, then it might become challenging to troubleshoot some teething issues which can happen quite often.

Even with the advancement of technology and falling prices, it is still an expensive proposition to integrate a home and convert it into an automated home.

Most of the devices have limited encryption and are vulnerable to hacking. So, if you have a smart lock on your mind, do proper research about its safety and security.

Sometimes flipping a switch seems a lot easier than opening an app on the phone and switching off the lights! 

Not all systems or equipment are compatible with each other. You might end up in a situation where particular equipment can’t be integrated into your hub or controller since it works on an entirely different platform. However, most of the equipment selling nowadays is backward compatible.

I have often been asked what all can be done in our bathrooms to make them smart.

Smart Bathrooms:

Bathrooms are the place where we spend a lot of time introspecting and thinking. Why shouldn’t one do that in the luxury of automated bathrooms?

To start to install the sensor-operated faucets. Not only is it hygienic as there is no touch involved, but it also prevents unnecessary water wastage.

Jaguar, Kohler, and other companies offer sensor-operated faucets. you can view products here.

Smart Showers :

You can set a particular temperature and pressure of water and the thermostat will take care that they are maintained throughout the shower. For the flow of water, whether you love cascade, spout, mist, or normal shower, you just have to press a button.

The different colored LED lights emitting from the shower gives you a sense of calmness and serenity. And behold, listen to your favorite songs too, with the crisp sound coming right from the showerhead itself. Check out the product here.

Smart W.C. :

High tech WC’s offer a variety of convenience. It is quite common abroad. In Japan, it is used everywhere even in public toilets. You can preheat your seat in cold weather. The lid automatically lifts when you enter the WC enclosure.

It has a water jet with various washing modes. Flushes automatically after usage. Lighting with LED color makes it more attractive. It can be operated with a remote in hand or a control panel attached to the seat. You can view the product here.

Smart mirrors :

Alexa, Google home enabled mirror can show temperature, time, important news of the day on voice command. Or it can turn into a full-fledged TV!!

Mirror defogging can be done with the press of a button to clear the fog on the mirror for clear reflection.

You can make your shower cubicle glass opaque or transparent on a command! How does that sound… You can even have a waterproof TV with IP 65 rating in your shower to keep you entertained!!

Also, the hot water requirements can be met by a solar-powered geyser installed on the rooftop. Energy-efficient, environment-friendly hot water system fairs much better than the ordinary geysers in the long run barring the load of the initial cost.

Vendors and costing for automation :

Many companies are providing complete solutions in India including retrofitting solutions. Control 4, Schneider, Philips, Crestron, Lutron to name a few. If you ask me a ballpark figure, I would say a 3 BR house would be retrofitted in around 5 lacs depending on the gadgets to be integrated into the home automation. For a single room, you can expect the expenditure to be around 1 Lac.

Conclusion :

In conclusion, I would say that it is a double edge sword. But given a chance, I would definitely go for it because, in the long run, it is convenient and energy-saving technology that comes with immense peace of mind.