5 Summer Smart Home Hacks

Top Smart Home Summer Tips

While we welcome the warmer weather and longer days, summer can also bring its share of challenges, like keeping your energy use down and ensuring your home stays in tip-top shape. Luckily for you, we have a few tricks to help you get smart about your home this summer!

Here are five hacks to make your home work smarter and more efficiently for you:

Install a Smart Thermostat

If you want to keep your home comfortable this summer and save money, consider installing a smart thermostat. Smart thermostats use Wi-Fi or Bluetooth connectivity to remotely control your HVAC system from your smartphone or computer. Some models even have voice commands! This means that even if you're not home at any given moment during the day—or night—you'll still be able to control how cool (or warm) it is inside your home!

You may be wondering why this is such an important feature when most people already know how easy it can be to adjust your home’s temperature right from the thermostat?

Well, think about all those times when we leave home in a rush only to realize later that we forgot to adjust the temperature, so the system isn’t unnecessarily heating or cooling the house while no one is there. With a smart system, there's no need worry! You can adjust the temperature of your home from anywhere, even your next vacation. This is critical in helping you save on summer energy bills, by ensuring your HVAC system isn’t working overtime when it doesn’t need to.

Block Out the Heat with Smart Blinds

Smart blinds can be an amazing way to reduce the amount of heat entering your home during the summer months. On hot summer days, when smart blinds are completely closed, you have the ability to reduce heat gain in rooms by 45% according to the US Department of Energy (DOE)!

Using smart blinds not only helps reduce the amount of heat entering your home, but it also helps lower your energy bill since your air conditioner will have to work less to overcome rising temps. Plus, you'll never have to worry about forgetting to close them again because with a simple touch on your smartphone or tablet, you can control them from wherever you are!

Stay Safe this Summer with Security Cameras

Did you know that home burglaries increase during the summer and even peak during July and August? This summer, keep an eye on what's going on inside and outside of your home when you're not there. A security and monitoring system can provide you with the protection and peace of mind that you need for your best summer ever.

Home security and alarm monitoring systems can be hooked up with wireless cameras that work much like a traditional webcam but are designed specifically for indoor and outdoor use. They're easy enough for anyone who owns a smartphone – you’ll be able to stream live video of your home from wherever you are!

Summer Smart Home Lights

Since summer means the longest, nicest days of the year, you want maximize your outdoor time! With smart home lights you can control the ambiance of your outdoor setup right from your phone. Whether you’re hosting a party or relaxing by the pool after work, simply use your phone to turn them on, dim, or turn them off completely.

Plus, you can also control your home’s interior lights as well. You can even set timers on smart lights! So, when the sun finally does set, your home will be ready to light up with just as much ease as it does during daylight hours.

You can also keep your home safe from risks by setting timers for specific times throughout the day. For example, set a timer for your lights to come on at night while you're away so it appears that someone is home. Uninvited visitors will be discouraged from taking advantage of your vacant home while you’re on vacation.

Automated Lawn Watering

Do you have a long list of home projects for the summer? But who wants to spend the nicest days of the year working on chores? Check yard maintenance off the list by automating it! No more tinkering with the sprinkler system or struggling with the hose.

By installing a smart irrigation system you never have to think about watering the lawn again. Imagine how much time you’ll save when your lawn takes care of itself and you can spend your time doing what you really want to do. All you have to do is set it and forget it!

Now that you have these top smart home hacks, let us help you upgrade your home this summer so you can live your best life and spend your time how you want to! It doesn’t take much effort or time to implement any of these solutions, but they can make your life (and this season) more enjoyable. If you’re ready to take the next steps on smart home automation, contact us! We’d be happy to help you make your house as smart as possible this summer!