Smart furniture and appliances have become such common household items nowadays that we often forget that this was not how furniture and appliances were like back then. Everything was more manual and hands-on. You need to use the remote to turn a TV on or off. You have to go over a fan or an air conditioner to activate it. Ovens and microwaves need to be manually set; fire alarms and other detectors need maintenance.
But now, you barely have to do anything. Smart devices are becoming more and more intelligent, being able to adjust to pre-set restrictions autonomously. But if you’re living in an older home with very few smart devices, these features might have eluded you. Fortunately, you don’t need a brand new home with smart functionality. Below are some ways you can integrate smart appliances into your current home.
Smart Home Security System
Home security will always be an issue because we can never be too confident about our safety. Don’t fret if you’re living in an older house without integrated smart security features. It’s relatively easy to set up your own smart security system, all thanks to the innovations on the Internet of Things. You don’t even have to wire an alarm system in your home; you only need to use wireless sensors strategically placed throughout your house.
These could be motion sensors, hidden cameras, or even fire alarms or CO2 detectors. All of these devices will send information to your smartphone, so you’re always updated. You can also use smart locks that receive information on when to open or close, so you can always make sure that you’ve locked the door wherever you are.
Managing Temperature
Nowadays, almost everything has a smart equivalent, from smart furnaces to smart thermostats or air conditioners. This is a great way to manage your energy consumption and save more money as you better control your home’s temperature. For houses without an integrated smart temperature management system, you can use a smart programmable thermostat and can be connected to the internet to adjust according to the temperature.
If there’s a heatwave coming in, your programmable air conditioner will automatically turn on, or if the temperature is going to be cooler, it can automatically turn itself down. Smart thermostats and air conditioners can also detect when you’re nearby, so it only turns themselves on when you’re actually inside your home.
Smarter Kitchen and Better Food
Homeowners used to track what’s inside their fridge- and unless they track it religiously, it’s difficult to know everything that’s inside and whether its contents are still any good. Drinking spoiled milk or forgetting that you’ve left a cake inside (for months on end, too!) was a relatively common occurrence. And if this happens to quite a lot, maybe it’s time to invest in a smart fridge.
It will allow you to automatically track the contents, it can tell you whether you need milk or any other crucial ingredient, and more importantly, it tells you whether it’s still good or it’s gone past its due date. The great thing is refrigerators aren’t the only smart thing. There are smart coffee makers, smart microwave ovens, and even smart barbecue grills! These devices are energy-efficient, consuming even less energy than their analog counterparts ever did.
Purchase a Smart Assistant
Of course, the fastest way to have a smart house is by using a smart assistant to do menial tasks for you. And you probably already do! The smartphone in your pocket carries voice assistant functionality, allowing you to give it commands such as writing notes, searching something on the internet, and even ordering food online.
There are dedicated smart assistants for homes, such as Amazon’s Echo and Google Home. You can ask these devices for the time, temperature, traffic conditions and even tell them to look up something online! Of course, these devices are best complemented by having smart furniture to connect and control to. Still, even if you only have a smart assistant, for now, it will do a considerable lot for your home experience.
Turning an old home with very few smart functionalities into a modern smart home isn’t particularly difficult. You need to have the right set of tools and equipment. You don’t have to splurge, either; you can start slow- use your smartphone as the hub for now, and take advantage of its abilities and functionalities. Slow start purchasing smart devices to replace its analog counterparts, and sooner than later, you’ll have a fully-fledged smart home.