#12 Benefits Is Totally Worth It

Smart Lighting Systems for Home is Totally Worth It

Smart home technology has a lot to offer both homeowners. At Cornerstone Protection, we use smart lighting technology to provide better protection for Kentucky homes. This includes our smart security systems with devices like motion sensors, door contacts, and cameras. Still, you also have an array of smart devices that you can use to make your life more convenient while also bringing better security to your home.

One type of smart technology that has great potential in this regard is smart lights. It can be integrated into your smart security system to unlock a range of features. This post will look at what smart lighting solutions are, some of the features you can expect from them, and the different ways you can use these devices to provide better protection for your home.

 

What is Smart Lighting and How does it Work?

In the most basic sense, smart lights encompass any lighting system controlled through a smart platform. With the simplest form of the smart home lighting system, you have light bulbs controlled with a dedicated smartphone app. Beyond that, you have home automation platforms that can control several lighting devices while also integrating the lights with other smart devices.

Depending on the smart home lighting you choose, you can buy smart plugs to control lamps, smart bulbs that connect with your home automation system, or you can install smart switches to control the smart light fixtures. Furthermore, the different features and options will vary from one innovative lighting product to the next.

 

12 Cool Features You Never Thought Before

Before deciding to install smart home lighting control, you should be aware of some of the features that may be available. Depending on the type of smart light and the supporting smart home platform, you could have access to a wide range of features. The following are some of the ways can use wireless home lighting to enhance security for Kentucky homes:

• Control from an App
• Set a Lighting Schedule
• Voice Controls
• Control System from Anywhere
• Grouping Lights
• Setting the Scene
• Smart Lights for Home Automation
• When You are Away
• Working with Your Security Devices
• Keeping You Safe in an Emergency
• Arming/Disarming
• Geofencing

1. Control from an App

Whether you have standalone smart lights or a more comprehensive smart home system, you should be able to control your lights from an app on your phone instead of having to go over to a switch when you want to turn your lights on or off. In addition, you will be able to control from any location.

If your smart lights are integrated with home automation or a smart security system, you will also control from the system hub. In a smart security system, this control hub would usually be the HD touchscreen control panel.

2. Set a Lighting Schedule

One nice feature of a home automation lighting system is that you can set a lighting schedule. If you want to turn on or off at specific times, you can program a customized schedule that fits your lifestyle. For example, you can have the lights come on when you wake up in the morning and then turn them off around the time you leave for work.

It can also work well for businesses. For example, if you want all of your parking lot lights to come on at a particular time, you can put that in the schedule. If you run a retail business, you can program the lights on the sales floor to turn on when you open and then turn off when you close.

 

3. Voice Controls

Another nice feature of smart lights is that many home automation platforms work with digital assistants like Amazon’s Alexa and Google Home. So instead of having to pull your smartphone out when you want to control the lights, you can use voice commands control to the different smart lights in your home.

 

4. Control System from Anywhere

Since the smart lights connect with the internet, it means you can control your lights from anywhere. If you worry that you may have left some lights on when you left the house, you can pull out your phone and check the app. If you see that left the lights on, you can then turn them off using your phone. It is that easy, and it can help you save electricity and money.

 

5. Grouping Lights

Your smart house lighting does not have to be controlled one at a time. When your lights are connected with the network of your smart automation system, you can set up rules and group them based on how you may use them together. Once the lights are assigned to a group, you can then use the app or voice commands to control that group of lights.

As an example, maybe you have multiple lights in your kitchen. You can assign all of the smart kitchen lights to the same group. That way, you can control all of the kitchen lights together or turn them on and off individually. Another example could be the parking lot of a business. If the lot has multiple lights, you can assign them all to one group.

 

6. Setting the Scene

With many smart house lights, you can do more than turn them on or off. You also have smart dimmers and lights that can emit different colors. In addition, you can set different rules for what you want other lights to do in different situations.

For example, you could set a lighting rule for watching TV in your family room. Once you give the home automation system the command, it will set the lighting to your preferred setting for watching TV. You could also put a bedtime lighting scene that turns the lights off in your bedroom but leaves a dim light on in the hallway. It could even be programmed to work with your smart thermostat to set the bedtime temperature and lighting, all in one command.

7. Smart Lights for Home Automation

Accessibility is one of the main selling points for smart lights. With that said, it can also play a vital role in improving security at a home.

 

8. When You are Away

When burglars see a home that has its lights off or has a single light that is on all the time, they know this is an indication of an empty house. Scheduling your lights could be one way to make the home look occupied when you are away, but some alarm systems can take it one step further with dynamic lighting schedules.

If you have a smart lighting system for your home, you can set the lights to run on a pattern that mimics the lighting use of an occupied dwelling. A lighting program like this is more likely to fool burglars, and it can be one of the most effective security measures for when you are out of town.

 

9. Working with Your Security Devices

One of the best things about having your lights integrated into your safety system is that they can be programmed to work with your security devices. One simple way to do this would be to have the lights programmed to turn off when you shut the door on your way out of the house.

Depending on the security devices you have, you could set rules to have them turn on or off in response to any number of triggers. Another good example is if you have a doorbell camera. You could be programmed a home alarm system to turn on the porch light when the doorbell camera detects a person approaching the front door. This can be good for providing light to visitors, deterring criminals, and making it easier for you to see the camera feed from the smart doorbell.

10. Keeping You Safe in an Emergency

Your home security system can protect you against more than just crime. If you have fire protection devices, you can program your lights to come on in an emergency.

With your smart lights and fire protection all in one platform, you can program the system to trigger lights when the fire alarm goes off. So if there is a fire in the middle of the night, you won’t have to try to make your way to safety in the dark or look for a light switch – the lights will come on automatically, and you will be able to focus on the protection of yourself and the ones you love.

 

11. Arming/Disarming

Another feature that can come with having your lights on the same platform as your security system is to program the lights to go on or off when you arm or disarm the security system. You can even set entire scenes that will allow you to control multiple devices when arming or disarming.

For example, you can have some of your first-floor lights come on when you disarm the system. You could also program your alarm system to trigger the bedtime scene when you arm the system before going to bed. It is a straightforward move that protects your security while also setting multiple devices the way you want them for the situation.

 

12. Geofencing

With some intelligent outdoor lighting, you can allow the app to have location privileges to track your phone. With this feature enabled, you can use geofencing to trigger different devices as you leave or come home.

One way to use this with your lights is to have your driveway or front door light come on when the system sees you are almost home. Instead of having to pull into a dark driveway or unlock a door with no light, you can have the system turn the lights on for you. This can also work for a business person. If your storefront is dark when you get to work, you can have it detect that you are coming in and turn the lights on before you get there.

 

Conclusion

Cornerstone Protection is one of the leading names in Kentucky security systems. We also work with an array of home security devices like smart lighting systems along with alarms. Our security experts can design a custom automation system for your home, and we can include features like motion sensors, security cameras, smart lights, locks, and more. Call us now for a phone consultation.