Insights & Innovations: The Integrated Home Blog

What are your plans this summer? With school out and many couples taking time off work for vacation, it’s time to consider where you’ll be having all that fun. Of course you don’t have to leave home to make your summer memorable and enjoyable. You can stay right in your Charlotte, NC house and have the time of your life. One way to make your home a destination for fun is by installing a media room for watching movies, listening to music and playing games. Here are some ways to incorporate home automation into your media room.

SEE ALSO: Prepare for Summer Fun with Outdoor Audio Video in Your Lake Norman Home

Gaming

A popular and often addictive activity during the summer is playing video games. But how do you take your gaming sessions to the next level? Whether you are playing vintage consoles like Playstation or new ones like XBOX One, a video wall is a great way to display all the players’ views in the room. A video wall is made up of multiple televisions. You can display one large image on all of them or create a grid of multiple channels or views at once. Let’s say you are playing the classic Mario Kart, each player can follow their path on the large TV and enjoy an immersive experience. Add a surround sound system and you’ll feel like you’re in the middle of a battle. If you need to pause, just press a button on the Control4 universal remote. The lights will come on, the game will stop, and you can pick up where you left off in a hurry.

Movies

Spring is the perfect time to spruce up your home with new styles. Whether you want to completely redesign your home or just rearrange the furniture, the small touches make a big difference. Shades, in particular, can have a dramatic impact on your interiors. But are your shades easy to control and are they versatile enough to work with the other smart devices you own? Motorized shades are not only convenient to use, but they also add beauty and style to your home. With so many options, how do you make the right choice? The first step is learning about all the different shade types and fabric types and how they will affect your smart home performance. Keep reading to learn more. 

SEE ALSO:  The Top 3 Benefits of Installing Smart Shades

Choosing a Shade Brand

The Integrated Home is your local Lutron-certified dealer, and there's a reason why we have chosen this brand over many of the others. While Thomas Edison invented the light bulb, Lutron practically invented lighting control. Their company has been innovating lighting and shading solutions for over 40 years. They've installed lighting and shading systems in the White House, Windsor Castle, and many other famous sites all over the world. As a leader in integration technology, we trust Lutron over all the other names.

Choosing a Color for Your Shades

Our goal at The Integrated Home is to make your life simpler, more fun, and of course safe. When it comes to audio, Charlotte homeowners want quality and ease of use. Your best option is to go to an expert—not the supermarket. When you buy a speaker off the shelf, you won’t get the benefits of enjoying music in every room, expanded music library, and of course custom design. When you work with our team, we show you all the details and benefits of using whole house music. In this blog we highlight the perks of a professional system. Stick around after the jump for more.

SEE ALSO: An Expert’s Guide to Outdoor Video

1. Hide Everything

Buy a basic speaker from a store, take it home and then you have to figure out where it goes. First, you locate an outlet to plug in the speaker but if you don’t have a table or a shelf you have to re-arrange your furniture. Then there are those ugly wires. You saw an ad online for this cool, hip speaker but it doesn’t look the same in your bedroom. When it comes time to have friends over for a party, you discover you can’t play the same song in every room at the same time to provide the music at the same level throughout the house. All of these issues are confronted with a whole house system.

One of the best features of a professionally designed system is the ability to make your speakers disappear. We can install invisible speakers in the walls, or place them in the ceiling so they save space and get those wires out of the way. Either style will eliminate clutter and enhance your home design.

2. Control Your Music Anytime, Anywhere

Most individuals make convenience a top priority when it comes to music—that's why digital music sales have skyrocketed over the past decade. However, our team will work with you to connect all of your music sources whether your library is entirely digital, you're a die-hard vinyl collector, or simply can't let go of that coveted CD collection. The beauty of using an integrated music system is that you can easily switch music sources using a mobile device or touch screen. Stream internet radio, like Spotify and Pandora, then switch over to your iTunes account or turntable. All you have to do is select the source, playlist or artist, the room, and then press play using your smartphone, tablet, or smart touch screen.

As spring transitions into summer, there’s often a few sporadic temperature changes—not to mention flooding and fog. It’s important to stay on top of your heating and cooling system at all times since it uses up the most energy. You want to stay comfortable all year long, but save money and energy too. Using a wireless thermostat is an easy way to keep track of your home’s temp at all times, and Control4’s smart thermostat is certainly top-of-the-line. As a Charlotte, NC –based, authorized Platinum Control4 Dealer, we not only have quality equipment, but also decades of experience installing Control4 systems. Continue reading this blog to discover how their smart thermostat can improve your home and lifestyle.

Imagine leaving work and stepping outside into the grueling heat. You start to sweat as you rapidly walk to your car so you can turn on the air conditioning. As you start your commute, your smart home turns on the cooling system. By the time you set foot inside, your residence is comfortable, cool and cozy so you can relax after a long day.

Control4 wireless thermostats give you this ability to create a heating and cooling schedule personalized to your lifestyle. So if you usually come home by 6 p.m., you can schedule the thermostat to change the temperature a half hour before so it’s created the perfect environment for you by the time you arrive. By putting your thermostat on a schedule, you also get to save energy and not have to think twice about managing the temperature. Because who wants to come home to a hot house?

The new user interface of the system was developed to make navigating the thermostat easier. Paul Williams, Vice President of lighting and comfort products for Control4 said, “We went back to the drawing board. People are often intimidated by thermostats. So we asked ourselves, ‘how do we simplify the experience?’” Thus, the OS 2.7 version was born.

SEE ALSO: How to Use a Home Energy Management System

The second biggest user of energy in your home—right after your heating and cooling system—is lighting. The electricity bill can go way up if you leave lights on, not to mention you are wasting resources and contributing to light pollution. Whatever your motivation is for cutting back on your energy, The Integrated Home can help with home lighting control. Here are three main ways to save energy in your Charlotte, NC home. 

SEE ALSO:  How a Control4 Lighting Installation Adds Color to Your Charlotte Home

1. Install Dimmers

Installing dimmers is a great first step to making a difference. Every time you dim the lights you save energy. According to the lighting manufacturer Lutron, dimming the lights by 25 percent can save you up to 20% on energy. You'll shave some cost off your monthly utility bill and make your bulbs last longer. We have dimmers that are compatible with all kinds of different lights, like LEDs, halogens, and fluorescents. Certain models automatically save you 15% on energy. Of course the best time to dim the lights is during peak daylight hours, when the sun is high. Make most of the natural daylight and save your artificial lights for later in the evening. You can set your dimmers to lower lighting at certain times of day, or manually adjust them with your mobile device or a switch on the wall. Our wall plates will look stylish and will be easy to access so you can simply save with the swipe of your finger.

2. Add Occupancy/Vacancy Sensors

Occupancy sensors help you make saving energy a priority without all the extra work. This technology ensures that lights won't be left on due to forgetfulness. If you leave a room, it will know it and turn off the lights accordingly. Depending on the type of sensor you use, it can detect slight movements, like typing on a computer, or just major movements so your dog doesn’t keep turning the lights on

They can save you 20% on energy and last a long time. Daylight sensors, similarly, detect light and automatically make adjustments. If it's a bright, sunny day, the lights dim to a low level. If it's overcast outside, the light will stay bright.