Automating Your Vancouver Home – Ask Bruce Coleman, Vancouver Mortgage Broker
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Automating Your Vancouver Home
Technology has provided you with a number of vital and convenient ways which allows you to make your home environment safer and to perform more economically. If you are away on business frequently or have young children, a disability or getting on in age then automation can help you in a number of ways.
The other neat thing about being able to program various aspects of your home is that you can do so to reflect not only your lifestyle but also the circumstances as they change. From programmable thermostats and light timers, you can now apply total or just partial home systems which can be programmable from your laptop or iPhone no matter where you are and at anytime of day.
Today’s automated systems are also designed to alert you of any problems immediately such as a break in or excessive heat so you can contact a neighbour or the authorities right away. Some systems can be programmed to automatically contact either you or someone you designate, or police, fire department or ambulance service. The point is that you can automate your home in a variety of basic or very complex ways.
Home Automation Basics
Home automation is also sometimes called “smart home technology.” They are systems and/ or devices that use computer chips or electrical components that may be automatically programmed and generally use sensors which monitor such things like heat, time of day and sound for example. This would be called the operating system. They are hooked up with the device which you wish to program or operate. The devices being operated use a link or an interface such as sensor or your keypad between the aspect of the home being programmed and yourself.
What can you Automate?
You can just about automate your entire home if you are prepared for the additional expense. If you can attach a computerized device to something then you can likely include that in your automation system. You can program the following on automated systems such as;
- Lighting – both indoor and outdoor
- Motion detection sensor apparatus such as vehicle detection
- Heating and ventilation systems
- Home security systems
- Outdoor irrigation or water systems
- Fire and carbon monoxide detectors
- Internet and telephone
- A variety of fixtures or fittings such as door, windows and blinds for example
The Benefits of Home Automation
Some of the benefits which you can derive from a home automation system include the following:
- Saves you money such as on your heating, cooling and lighting costs
- Increases the overall efficiency of your home
- Provides better protection from threats such as fire, carbon monoxide and break ins
- Allows you to personally monitor potentially damaging situations and gives you better control even when you are not present.
- Allows you greater safety features
- Provides you with a variety of alerts
How to Automate your Vancouver Home
There are actually companies which specialize in this and offer packages so you can customize your home automation to suit and reflect your own particular individual needs. There are a number of DIY kits which allow you to set some limited home automation systems on your own but you are best advised to be computer savvy.
The most important thing to do is to perform some in depth research before you decide so you better understand the pros and cons of these systems before you expend a bundle of cash, but these systems can be well worth the investment.
