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Friday, January 3, 2014

Modernizing the Modern Home

One of the reasons why the blog was not updated last year was due to a ton of projects we were working on.  Lots of these projects I've wanted to do since we moved in but we did not have the time to do them.  I've also been waiting for some of the technology to catch up with my vision of a Modern Home. Now the wait is over!  The house is entering the Digital Age! <<Queue Ode to Joy>>

One of things that really bugged bug me was the original builder used the standard ole flip light switches that have been around since the dawn of time. They are functional but they are pretty mundane. So I replaced all the internal house switches with Lurton Dimmers. This had two effects: Lower power consumption and a nicer look.


Now you may have noticed I said “internal” light switches above. The reason for that is I found some interesting switches for the external lights. I could have gone with a simple timer but no! It must have tech in it! The Honeywell switch I found actually gets programed by longitude and latitude.  Once that is set, it calculates sunrise and sunset on a daily basis.  The lights turn on/off with the sun no matter what time of the year it is.  The only real downside to theses switches is that they don’t work well with LEDs but they look cool.


With all the light switches done, including a motion sensor activated one in the walk-in closet I just HAD to add more tech to standard household devices.  First up is the thermostat. The Builders put a standard no frills one in and it was functional but it needed a bit of automation. Originally I wanted to get an Ecobee since it was the first internet connected thermostat on the market but then Nest came on the scene.  The Nest was designed by some former Apple Engineers and it has a nice blend of form and function.  Putting this in saved us about 8%-9% of electricity as well as the dimmers and LED lights saved us another 2%-3%.


Technology marches on and so do I! Nest recently (as of this posting that is) came out with new smoke detectors.  Since we already have one Nest product it was time for two. To help us with this project my Litter Sister started us out with one as a gift. We have really high ceilings on the second floor which makes it painful when the backup battery in the smoke detectors dies at 3am. Climbing up a 10ft ladder while half asleep in the wee hours of the morning is not fun.  So the two highest Smoke Detectors were replaced with Nest Protects.  No more waking at 3am for me since the Protect is smart enough to know what time it is and it will not wake you until you get up.


That was the past and now it’s back to the future! Some of the projects on the slate for this year is replacing the door bell and automating the locks. Both are still in the early days of development but I’m keeping an eye on these emerging techs.

For the doorbell I’m keeping an eye on Skybell and Doorbot.  I like the idea of being able to see who is at the door without going to the door.  It’s early days yet but I like where things are going.

The other little upgrade I’m looking into automating the house entry.  It is super early in the product cycle and I really don’t trust a lot of manufactures to have good wireless security but still.  Having the door open up as I walk to it has that great Star Trek feel to it.  Right now it looks like the August Smart Lock is the one to beat and its due out later this year.

4 comments:

JFloColman said...

Is that the smoke detector I got you?

NetNomad said...

Yep, That is the one!

JFloColman said...

I see how it is! I give you credit for your gifts on my blog, but you don't credit me on yours. no brotherly love!

NetNomad said...

Should I mention the burnt toast detection of them as well? :P