By Kyle Pennell
Guest Contributor
Smart homes promote safety, sustainability and simplicity. They provide a central command center for directing your home’s workflow. Turn your home into a Smart Home with these ten additions.
1. Track Your Solar Production
Those with solar energy at home will definitely want to track input and stats when net metering. If you are able to sell energy to the utilities company then you’ll definitely want to track and ensure everything is in prime running order. Many systems include an app for tracking solar energy. Solrenview provides an online tracking system that allows tracking of lifetime energy production and daily energy production.
2. Stay Safe and Secure
Ensuring home safety while away from home, and especially while at home, is essential. Safety, a company that reviews home safety products, reviewed 50 different home security systems with Smart Home features. The most popular programs provide visual access to the home, allowing owners to check in throughout the day. Some programs allow for keyless entry, which simplifies a hands free entrance system. The owner can also allow access to the house from anywhere in the world.
3. Fight Droughts with Water-Saving Systems
The University of Nebraska-Lincoln provides an online drought tracker for the U.S. There are very few states not impacted by drought. So it is no surprise homeowners are looking for ways to lower water usage and reuse water when possible. Rachio is an easy-to-use application managing home watering systems. Simply program and let Rachio take care of scheduling watering based on climate and weather.
4. Save Money with Smart Utility Tools
Heating and cooling often monopolize a good portion of home budgets. Smart home management allows users to play with utility off peak hours for hardy savings. CNET looked at some of the top thermostat systems reviewing both features and pricing.
5. Be Smart about Lighting
Fear the monsters down the dark hallway? No worries. CNET reviewed lighting programs controlled by a simple Smartphone app or home management systems like Google Home. These programs allow control of light switches from the comfort of bed or from your office. If you worked a little too late and aren’t feeling like coming home to a dark house you can flip on a porch light before leaving your office.
6. Breathe Easy with Smart Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Detectors
These smart systems alert you of dangerous smoke, fire and gas. The systems run on Smartphones with notifications alerting of problems. No more broom handle beating the fire alarm after burning popcorn. A simple tap on the app and the alarm goes silent. Check out Reviewed’s list of popular smoke and carbon detectors.
7. Keep Health and Safety in Check
Medical Guardian offers a smart home system that can detect falls and can pinpoint location of a loved one using GPS. The system is sure to please those caring for elderly relatives.
8. Home Maintenance Made Easy
Worried about busted pipes or home flooding? Smart homes can now monitor the health of the home. Reviewed provides an overview of some home monitoring systems that alert owners of potential problems before they become catastrophic. Imagine being able to shut down the water supply before your dysfunctional dishwasher releases several gallons into your unsuspecting kitchen.
9. Smart Entertainment
While the smart TV was one of the first smart home items many jumped at, there are so many additions now. Home Stratosphere provides a list of the top smart home devices for entertaining. Controlling TVs, gaming systems and stereos can be done with a swipe of a Smartphone. One product, Singlecue, allows control through gestures rather than voice control.
10. Make Your Pool Smarter
Pool pumps are one of those items that can run up utility bills, especially in the summer months. Smart Home systems offer pool monitoring and control to make use of off peak hours. Swim University even maintains healthy chemical levels. Save money and avoid red eyes with smart pool programs.
Smart Home technology is constantly evolving with easy-to-use systems at prices that decrease with popularity. While these systems make life a little easier, they also promote sustainability and ease some of the pressure off of mother earth.
