One way to secure yourself some extra time in the day is to automate your home. Once you’ve set up a home automation system, with just the tap of a finger on an app or a voice command, you will take care of some basic tasks.

It doesn’t matter what your budget is, whether you are just planning on getting your first smart device or you are ready to set up a full automation system, our four-step guide will be very useful for you.

When you talk about a smart home, you are basically referring to a house that uses smart devices to automate and control household functions. This is usually done through a mobile app or via a device that uses voice commands.

Now that you know what a smart home is, let’s show you how to go about setting up your own smart home.

There are four major steps you will need to take in other to set up your smart home, these include:

• Choose your First smart device
• Choose your smart home platform
• Create Routines and Automations
• Connect more devices

1. Choose your First Smart Device:

When most people decide that they need to set up a smart home, they often get overwhelmed with the thousands of options and smart devices available and so they are unsure which ones to get first.
Our advice is to consider your budget, the cost of some smart devices are quite high, secondly you should think of what task you would need the device to handle. People have different lifestyles and so this would vary among individuals. Then finally, do some research on the device before you purchase it. read customer reviews and buyer guides so as to have an idea what to expect.

Here a few basic things you can get for a start:
1. A smart Bulb
2. A smart Speaker
3. A smart Plug
4. Video Door bells
5. A smart lock

2. Choose your Smart Home Platform:

In other for all your smart devices to be able to work cohesively, you would need a smart platform. A smart platform will allow your devices to talk to each other and you will be able to control them from a single platform.

This will enable you to manage all the devices remotely through an app on your smartphone or through digital assistants like Amazon’s Alexa or Apple’s Siri.

3. Create Routines and Automations:

The primary aim of a smart home is to have a system that allows all your devices to work together and save you time.

In other to achieve this aim, you will need to create Routines and Automations after setting up the basic devices in your home.

Routines will enable you to group device functions together under a single command. This is called creating a Shortcut. What this does is that it allows you to change multiple settings at once instead of using the slow process of manually turning on the controls one by one on your device.

There are two major instances where routines can come in handy

The first is when you want to control multiple settings on a single device.

The second is when you want to control multiple settings across a group of devices.

These are the steps to creating a routine on your smart Platform

1. Locate where the app allows you to create routines
2. Select the device you want to control
3. Adjust the device settings to your liking
4. Give the routine a simple and memorable name.
5. Try out your new routine to see if it’s working correctly.

The second advantage of having a smart home is Automations. Automations use a cause-and-effect structure that allows devices to react automatically to changing conditions in your home. However, they often require a longer setup process than routines.

Setting up an automation consists of two parts:

>Choosing what activates the system
>Specifying how the system reacts

Some of the common triggers you can mix and match in most smart home systems include:

• Setting a schedule: This allows you to control when devices turn on/off during the day. It’s handy for predictable events like waking up and going to bed.

•Voice and app commands: These are the most common ways to activate routines. They’re helpful for manually starting devices on-demand, like when you want more light in the kitchen.

• Status changes: This allows the system to react to different stimuli. These are especially great for security since they can tell a sensor to send a notification or sound an alarm when there’s activity.

•Geofencing: This allows the system to change settings based on your location. This is useful for preparing an empty house for your arrival after work or locking up when you go to the store.

4. Connect more devices:

Now that you have experienced what a smart home can offer, it would be hard to resist adding more devices. But before you jump on new ideas, here are some categories to consider in other to achieve balance in your smart device collection.

1. Control: These include devices like Garage door opener, smart lighting, smart Plug, etc.

2. Entertainment: This includes devices like smart display, smart speakers, TV streaming Stick.

3. Security: This includes devices like a security camera, smart lock, smoke and Co detector, smart doorbell, etc.

So there you have it. These are our four-step guide for anyone who is trying to set up a smart home for the first time.

One thing you should remember is that whatever your budget is, there is always a device that will suit you.

All you need is to work with the right partners like E and E solutions to guide you through the process of purchasing your smart home devices.

This will save you a lot of unnecessary stress and mistakes as well as wasted expenses.

Reach out to us today and let’s discuss your smart home needs.