Want a Smart Home? Start with Your Lights

Today more and more households start to think about sustainability. They choose natural materials and optimize the way they consume resources to save the planet. This is one of the reasons why more and more people decide to live in a smart home where technology enables reasonable resource consumption.

However, implementing a smart home in its full scope is costly. So, if you want to take things slow, consider going for smart home lights first. That’s a sure way to create a one-of-a-kind atmosphere and reduce energy bills. Some will say LED recessed lighting is a way to cut energy costs. We, together with Handy Kith specialists, don’t doubt it. Yet, they are nothing like smart lighting.

What Is Smart Home Lighting?

Do you know that smart home can interact with lights? Or are you aware that you can control the lighting in your home from your smartphone? By the way, you can be miles away from the house – it doesn’t matter. That’s what smart lighting is all about.

At the dawn of the Internet, we couldn’t believe that we can watch whatever we like on our TV without a traditional cable or satellite connection. Yet, this is what we enjoy now. The internet has affected the in-house lighting system in almost the same way.

So, what is smart light, and how do smart home lights work? Let’s start with the definition. Basically, it’s an advanced lighting system, where bulbs contain software that connects to an app, smart home assistant, or any other smart accessory. This allows you to automate lights and control them solely or all together remotely.

How Does Smart Home Lighting Work?

Conventional light bulbs are controlled by flipping a switch off and on. A switch can make all the lights in the room work or just some of them. Sometimes, households hardwire the bulbs to a dimmer, which allows brightening or dimming the lights.

Everything is way more convenient if you wonder how to use smart home lights. Since they are usually connected to the Internet, you can control them remotely by using devices: from smart home assistants to smartphones. Smart home assistants like Alexa allow you to control intelligent bulbs even with voice only.

It’s vital to note that advanced lightning systems are way more functional. You can play with brightness and colors, set up an alarm to turn them on or off. The latest models give you the ability to control lights with saturation, hue, and temperature sliders. This way, you can create a unique atmosphere in the whole house that will resemble your inner state.

How to Install Smart Home Lights?

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A small disclaimer: smart light installation is harder than you may think. Therefore, if you don’t have an aptitude for electricity and physics, it’s better to delegate the work to professionals.
If you are confident enough to do this on your own, here is a brief guide that will help you:

1. Get accustomed to the existing wiring setup and a wall switch to buy an appropriate new smart light switch.

2. Choose a new smart light switch. We advise you to go for a single-gang switch with a neutral wire to avoid the risk of running into traveler wires.

3. Get rid of the old light switch. While disconnecting wires, remember which wire is which.

4. Connect the wires on the new smart switch to those inside the wall. Remember: the ground wire to the ground wire; the neutral wire to the neutral wire; the out wire to the out wire; the in-wire to the in-wire.

5. Check the connection by turning on the power. Move to the next step if the switch has power.

6. Secure the smart switch in place.

7. Connect it to Wi-Fi: install the app and connect the smart switch to the network.

The Benefits of Smart Lighting Systems

Once someone is talking about the advantages of smart lighting systems, people usually name the remote control. This is obviously one of the major benefits.

Only imagine: you are resting on a sofa, together with your spouse and kids. That was a long working day; you are exhausted. And here the brilliant idea arises: let’s make a family movie night. Amazing. Your smart TV is ready to start the film. But stop, what about the lights? They are too bright. And here, you just say: “Dim the lights” – and everything is set. Wonderful, isn’t it?
But that’s not all the benefits. Smart lighting is:

Energy Efficient

Smart lights are among eight green smart home gadgets together with a garden watering timer and smart strips. They last longer, generate less heat compared to the traditional bulbs. This leads to reduced energy consumption. Such a benefit is important on a global scale.

Dimmable

Before, you had to look for a dimmable switch or install one in order to control the brightness of your light. What are smart home lights in 2020 for? They come with a preinstalled function. No need to think about a dimming feature any longer.

Connected

A smart lighting system can work in synergy with the rest of your smart devices. Once you make your dream of a smart home come true, you can easily connect the lighting and control all the house remotely.

Considering the fact that the system is connected to the app, you don’t have to wonder whether you turned the light off or not. You can just check and switch it off if necessary.

Automated

You can forget about turning the light on and off. The smart system allows you to set timers that will control the lighting. Besides this, you can configure the system so that it will automatically turn the light on once you are home and off once you are out.

Ideal for Mood Setting

You can pre-set customized light scenes and implement them when necessary. For example, you can set a “Romantic mode” with dimmed yellowish lights. The choice is a matter of your preferences.

What to Implement

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Smart lighting systems are more complicated than they may seem. By this, we mean that there are many options to choose from. You can take a small step and try advanced light in just one room or deploy the whole-house automated system. Here is what you can choose from:

Smart Bulbs

That’s the first and most common option that comes to people’s minds. You can just swap out the existing conventional bulbs with advanced ones. The best smart light bulbs are Philips Hue, Eufy Lumos LED, Lifx Mini, and some others.

Such bulbs boast all the smart features. You can control them via Google Assistant Plus, Alexa, or your smartphone. You can dim them or schedule when to turn on and off. In a word, you can feel the power of smart devices and technologies.

Color-Changing Bulbs

Believe us; once you try playing with smart recessed lighting color, you will never want to go back to conventional bulbs. Basically, color-changing smart bulbs are the same bulbs – only with the color-changing feature. Good news that there is no preset range of colors. You can choose any on your device.

Once you open the app, choose the bulb and play with its configurations. You will see the whole palette of colors. They can be dimmed and saturated. Choose the shade that you like most of all and enjoy a mesmerizing atmosphere in your room or the whole house.

Smart Light Switches

Smart switches are useful when you have recessed lighting or a lot of lamps to control. Exchanging them all with smart bulbs may be too expensive. Therefore, it’s better to use a smart light switch.
This way, all the lamps will be connected to one switch. This will let you control all of them. You can turn them on or off, set up a schedule or timer, or use smart assistants to become the master of lighting in your house.

Layer the Lights

Needless to say that lighting determines the atmosphere in your home. It can make it a whole new place suitable for work or for enjoying a family evening after a long day. One way to put your lighting on a whole new level is to layer the lights.

Implement this in every room: use all the options from ambient to accent. Smart bulbs will help you to adjust the lighting system according to your needs. You can change the settings directly from your smartphone. This allows you to easily find the right balance.

Summing Up

Smart lighting systems provide all the necessary conditions for the enhanced comfort of your house. Moreover, they allow you to always be in control. You don’t need to stress out whether you turned the light off or not. You can just check it on your smartphone, even if you are miles away from home.
Smart light bulbs open new horizons for households. They not only allow you to control the lighting remotely but also contribute to sustainable energy consumption. Would you like to have a smart lighting system?

About the Author

The author, Mr Alex Altuh is the owner of the repairing company Handy Kith. He has over a decade of professional experience in all facets of home repairs and installations. The author’s passion for aesthetics and design has helped him to launch the most in-demand company in the field.

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