Now that smart homes are more affordable than ever, many homeowners are starting to ask themselves one question: what do I need to know about building a smart home?
As you begin shopping around for new lighting, locks, and other smart home products, it’s important to keep these 8 things in mind when building your own smart home, so you can make the most of your new smart home tech.
- Type of smart home products
To consider your smart home, you need to identify which smart home products you’re going to use. This will vary from person to person and house to house; it all depends on what you want out of your smart home and what pieces of technology you already have.
For example, if you are in an old house without central air, you might look into getting a Nest thermostat because it can integrate with other devices using IFTTT (more on that later).
If you’re in an apartment building or townhouse, some devices may not be feasible for installation (e.g., outdoor lighting).
The first thing you need to consider when it comes to building your smart home is what devices you want (and how many of them).
The list of available devices is quite long and getting longer every day. For example, it’s common for people today to have smart light bulbs, smart thermostats, and even smart speakers with built-in digital assistants.
- Wireless vs. Wired connections
Both wired and wireless connections are fast and efficient, but having a wire in your home can be unsightly.
If you’re trying to build an impressively automated smart home, wireless networking will give you more flexibility for many years to come.
This is especially true if you’re planning on building an expensive or high-tech setup—you’ll want all of your devices talking directly with each other without having to fumble around with physical wiring.
Wired connections do carry less interference than their wireless counterparts, however; they also provide faster speeds and are easier to troubleshoot when something goes wrong.
In many cases, wired connections are preferred over wireless ones because they are so hardy that it would be difficult or impossible for them to even break down.
Wireless connections are useful if you’re building an impressively automated smart home and want some added convenience.
For example, it is convenient not having to fuss with physical wires when setting up your network. Wireless networking also allows for more flexibility in your setup as you can move devices anywhere within the range of your router without worrying about wiring constraints.
Wireless connections have less interference than wired ones but provide slower speeds and are harder to troubleshoot when something goes wrong.
- Buying used versus new smart home items
Buying used items is often cheaper and better for the environment, but there are some potential risks you need to watch out for.
For example, if you buy an item with missing or broken components, you could end up spending more money down the line.
Secondhand smart home items may also not be covered by any warranties; however, if you are buying from reputable sellers on sites like eBay and Amazon Marketplace, such concerns shouldn’t come into play.
If something does break, it’s worth checking if you can fix it before making plans to get a new smart home device.
You may find that DIY websites have step-by-step instructions that can help make repairs much easier than in years past.
If you’re mostly looking for smart lighting and entertainment devices, used products may be all that you need. However, if you want access to cameras or security devices, your used product must have all its components, or else buying new may be your only option.
- Understanding connected devices
If you want your smart home devices (lights, thermostats, and door locks) to communicate with each other and your smartphone for them to be useful and make life easier, you need them all on your home’s Wi-Fi network.
Make sure that you install any necessary apps that may allow you remote access to these devices as well. This will allow you full control of your home from wherever you are.
- Hacking and security risks
As you add more devices to your smart home, it becomes an increasingly attractive target for hackers and scammers.
There are already plenty of examples of hackers taking over cameras and other devices to spy on homeowners or trick them into revealing login information.
Be sure that all of your smart-home equipment is up-to-date and running firmware with security patches—and consider installing a firewall or antivirus software on any connected computer.
Some researchers have even found serious vulnerabilities in some smart lightbulbs. So, be careful when integrating new IoT devices in your home and take precautions to ensure that they’re as secure as possible.
- What’s smart in a smart home?
The beauty of smart homes is that they’re relatively customizable. But, before you commit and start buying everything under the sun (which could get expensive fast), figure out what you want your home to do for you.
Is it about safety? Is it about convenience? More specifically you can define what your smart home will do for you, beyond just being a smart home. Then, you’ll be able to buy products that’ll accomplish those tasks without wasting money on superfluous technology.
The trick here is to make sure whatever system you select can grow with your needs as well—and that might mean letting some equipment or services go in favor of better things down the road.
- Pros and cons of DIY
If you’re building your own smart home, realize that you’ll be taking on more than just electrical work. You will also need to think about and design your lighting, heating, and cooling systems, as well as any appliances that are part of your smart home.
The pros of doing it yourself include a strong sense of accomplishment from having done it all yourself.
If you’re familiar with building and installing electrical wiring, then extending it can be fairly simple; if not, there are many resources available to help you (including DIY sites like YouTube).
The cons? Depending on what else is involved in making your home smart—for example, lighting or HVAC systems—you may have some mechanical skills down already.
- Get your family involved
You don’t have to do it alone! Get your family involved in creating your smart home. It’s their house too, and they might be able to contribute some great ideas, especially if they’re tech-savvy.
If you’re not sure where to start with installation, ask them for help with product selection. You could even set up an Amazon Alexa family group that you all share so that everyone can add items and purchase them—and get notifications when something gets bought by one of you or shipped.