Upgrading your home's electrical system can seem daunting, but it doesn't have to be! With some creative thinking and unconventional approaches, you can totally reinvent your home's electrical in a genius yet budget-friendly way. Here are 7 ingenious tactics I've discovered to makeover your home's electrical:
1. Use Smart Light Switches and Outlets
Replacing all the traditional light switches and outlets in your home with smart versions can entirely change your home electrical system without rewiring anything. Smart light switches and outlets allow you to control lights, appliances, and electronics remotely through an app, by voice, or through automated schedules and triggers. This makes controlling your home's electrical more convenient while adding next-level automation.
Some genius ways to use smart switches and outlets:
- Have lights turn on automatically when you arrive home and turn off when you leave.
- Turn on the coffee maker while still in bed every morning.
- Kill power vampires like phone chargers by turning outlets off when not in use.
- Monitor energy consumption of devices and receive alerts of abnormal usage.
Switching to smart light switches and outlets is one of the easiest electrical upgrades you can make with huge benefits.
2. Add Motion Sensor Light Switches
Another game changing switch upgrade is installing motion sensor light switches anywhere movement is detected. These allow lights to turn on automatically when you enter a room and turn off when you leave.
Key benefits of motion sensor light switches:
- Convenience of lights turning on/off without physically flipping a switch.
- Saves electricity by ensuring lights aren't left on accidentally.
- Provides added security by switching on lights when motion is detected.
Some ideal placements for motion sensor switches are hallways, staircases, garages, basements, and pantries. The hands-free operation brings automatic convenience.
3. Include Dimmers and Timers
Adding dimmer switches and timers allows greater control over lighting. Dimmer switches let you adjust the brightness of lights to create just the right ambiance. Timers allow automatically turning lights on/off on set schedules, like when away on vacation.
Creative ways to use dimmers and timers:
- Install dimmers in bedrooms and living room areas to control the mood lighting.
- Put exterior lights on timers to switch on at sunset and off at sunrise.
- Connect accent lighting to dimmers and sync it to music or movies for immersive experiences.
- Use timers to automate indoor lighting schedules for added convenience and energy savings.
Dimmers and timers are inexpensive devices that can totally revamp your electrical.
4. Upgrade to Smart Plugs
For controlling electronics and appliances directly, smart plugs that insert between the outlet and device are a game changer. These allow turning power on/off remotely and creating automation rules.
Here are some smart ways to utilize smart plugs:
- Automate turning on your coffee maker and toaster oven in the morning.
- Remotely turn on/off heaters and fans when away from home.
- Create lighting scenes like "movie mode" where lights dim and TV turns on.
- Eliminate standby power waste by cutting power to unused devices.
- Monitor real-time energy usage to identify inefficient appliances.
Smart plugs are a simple upgrade that can completely transform how you control devices through your home's electrical.
5. Install a Smart Power Strip
Smart power strips take the smart plug concept a step further by allowing individual control of multiple outlets on one power strip. This allows better automation and energy savings.
Smart power strip uses:
- Designate one outlet to be the "master" that controls the other outlets automatically.
- Cut power to secondary electronics like printers when the computer turns off.
- Prevent vampire loads by killing power to idle devices.
- Assign control of outlets to smart assistants for voice-activated automation.
- Integration with home automation hubs like SmartThings for advanced scenes and triggers.
By granting app and voice control plus automation over a whole power strip, smart power strips are an easy electrical upgrade.
6. Employ a Smart Doorbell
A smart video doorbell may not seem like an electrical upgrade, but it can greatly enhance your home's electrical system. Having a smart doorbell lets you see and speak with visitors from anywhere, control door access, and improve security.
Here are some clever ways smart doorbells reinvent your electrical:
- See and respond to visitors at your door from your smartphone no matter where you are.
- Unlock the door remotely via the app to let in expected visitors when away.
- Integrate smart locks to open your door automatically when a trusted face is detected.
- Receive motion alerts and view video history to bolster home security.
- Pair doorbell motion sensors with other smart devices to trigger automatic actions like turning on lights.
Though not a direct electrical device, smart doorbells enable advanced integrations.
7. Bring Voice Control with a Smart Speaker
Lastly, installing smart speakers powered by AI assistants like Alexa or Google Assistant lets you control your home's electrical with just your voice. This hands-free voice control takes convenience and automation to the next level.
Here are some examples of using smart speakers for electrical:
- Turning lights on/off with voice commands.
- Creating lighting and device "routines" triggered by phrases.
- Controlling smart plugs and power strips with your voice.
- Checking energy usage levels and histories.
- Establishing home/away modes linked to lighting schedules.
- Integrating with other smart home devices for advanced automations.
Adding smart speakers enables the ultimate hands-free electrical control using your voice!
Those are 7 unconventional yet genius tactics for totally reinventing your outdated home electrical system with the latest technology. With creativity and smart devices, you can bring new levels of convenience, efficiency, and innovation without the need for major rewiring. Start small by upgrading a few switches and outlets, and overtime you can build up to complete voice control automation!