ᐅ What exactly is a smart home, and is it possible to retrofit one?
Created on: 15 Jun 2021 14:41
P
Pacc666
Hello,
I am currently in the process of building a house and have come across the topic of smart homes.
Smart home technology is quite a complex subject, and I am asking for help because I can’t figure it out on my own.
What exactly can a proper smart home do?
I think I only need a very basic smart home or simply remote control for my house.
What I want to have:
Control of roller shutters with rule creation, for example, always open them 30 minutes after sunrise but not before 7 a.m.
Lighting control via smartphone or voice (Philips Hue lamps will be installed in the living room for ambient lighting)
Window sensor for the sliding patio door so my roller shutter doesn’t accidentally lock me out
Video doorbell that notifies me on my phone when I’m at home
Smart sound system in the living and dining area, for example, for internet radio
Maybe later, control of underfloor heating
I definitely want to be able to create rules or scenarios (for example, cinema mode = lower the living room shutters to x % and dim the lights in the living and dining area and activate the ambient lighting)
What I don’t need:
Motion sensors (since I have a dog, they would be triggered all the time anyway)
I’m sure there are many other features I haven’t listed.
I don’t actually need an overly intelligent house.
I just want a few nice quality-of-life improvements.
For now, I want to find out what a proper smart home can actually do to see if I’m missing any functions that might be interesting for me.
I am currently in the process of building a house and have come across the topic of smart homes.
Smart home technology is quite a complex subject, and I am asking for help because I can’t figure it out on my own.
What exactly can a proper smart home do?
I think I only need a very basic smart home or simply remote control for my house.
What I want to have:
Control of roller shutters with rule creation, for example, always open them 30 minutes after sunrise but not before 7 a.m.
Lighting control via smartphone or voice (Philips Hue lamps will be installed in the living room for ambient lighting)
Window sensor for the sliding patio door so my roller shutter doesn’t accidentally lock me out
Video doorbell that notifies me on my phone when I’m at home
Smart sound system in the living and dining area, for example, for internet radio
Maybe later, control of underfloor heating
I definitely want to be able to create rules or scenarios (for example, cinema mode = lower the living room shutters to x % and dim the lights in the living and dining area and activate the ambient lighting)
What I don’t need:
Motion sensors (since I have a dog, they would be triggered all the time anyway)
I’m sure there are many other features I haven’t listed.
I don’t actually need an overly intelligent house.
I just want a few nice quality-of-life improvements.
For now, I want to find out what a proper smart home can actually do to see if I’m missing any functions that might be interesting for me.
Pacc666 schrieb:
I thought it would already be smart if I could control the blinds like that That's so 90s...
Pacc666 schrieb:
What kind of smart home system would you recommend?
The extra cost should not be too high, or as low as possible, because many other things still need to be done and eventually the money runs out First, you should free yourself from the misleading terminology. There is no single "smart home" that can be recommended, since a smart home is not a tangible product but rather a setup of devices that communicate with each other in one way or another.
Basically, what is sold in a box and called a "smart home" is pure deception and consumer misinformation.
In your case, it looks like this:
You first need to clarify what is even feasible from the house electrician’s side. Everything else is just speculation, and discussing hypotheticals won’t get you anywhere.
Pacc666 schrieb:
What is also very important to me is that I can create new settings or rules/automations myself in the "smart home," or modify existing ones That is possible with any modern system, no matter what the half-informed people tell you. The homeowner always has control and just needs to be given the options. If the homeowner says nothing, then naturally they don’t receive any options and the electrician always has to come back.
@untergasse43
I’m not currently an Apple user, but I’m considering switching to Apple for my next phone.
You mentioned that a bus system is out of my budget. What would be the approximate extra cost of a bus system compared to standard electrical wiring? I understand it’s difficult to give an exact figure, but a rough price range would be helpful (around 4000 - 6000€ ??). The house is about 150sqm (1600 sq ft), with 3 floors plus a basement.
If a bus system is off the table, then wireless is the only option, right? With wireless, nothing needs to be done during construction, and you can just replace devices gradually later on, correct?
I’m not currently an Apple user, but I’m considering switching to Apple for my next phone.
You mentioned that a bus system is out of my budget. What would be the approximate extra cost of a bus system compared to standard electrical wiring? I understand it’s difficult to give an exact figure, but a rough price range would be helpful (around 4000 - 6000€ ??). The house is about 150sqm (1600 sq ft), with 3 floors plus a basement.
If a bus system is off the table, then wireless is the only option, right? With wireless, nothing needs to be done during construction, and you can just replace devices gradually later on, correct?
A traditional bus system can become quite expensive very quickly. It’s also hard to say exactly how much extra it costs since the electrical design is completely different. You could only compare if you had quotes for both options with the same functional scope.
Just as a rough figure:
Our architect initially planned about 20,000€ for conventional electrical work. We quickly decided to go with a bus system using KNX. In the end, we spent 60,000€ on electrical installations. However, this included several other things like networking, audio/video door stations and intercom, outdoor cameras…
The pure bus part, without knowing the exact amount, was probably around 40,000€. It might be more or less, but roughly in that range.
Edit: to clarify my post further.
A bus system (a traditional one) does not get added on top of normal electrical wiring but replaces it. That’s why it’s difficult to specify the cost difference.
Oh, and the house is about 250m² (2,690 sq ft) including all rooms and the garage (electrical wiring has to go everywhere), no basement.
Just as a rough figure:
Our architect initially planned about 20,000€ for conventional electrical work. We quickly decided to go with a bus system using KNX. In the end, we spent 60,000€ on electrical installations. However, this included several other things like networking, audio/video door stations and intercom, outdoor cameras…
The pure bus part, without knowing the exact amount, was probably around 40,000€. It might be more or less, but roughly in that range.
Edit: to clarify my post further.
A bus system (a traditional one) does not get added on top of normal electrical wiring but replaces it. That’s why it’s difficult to specify the cost difference.
Oh, and the house is about 250m² (2,690 sq ft) including all rooms and the garage (electrical wiring has to go everywhere), no basement.
Thank you for your reply.
That is obviously a huge price difference. I think the bus system is out of the question for us. (Since house prices have recently skyrocketed, that’s no longer feasible.)
I could realistically spend a maximum of €5,000 (about $5,500) on it, actually probably less.
So I will probably have to go with a wireless solution later.
Which comprehensive wireless system (one that combines different wireless technologies in a single system, such as Zigbee, Z-Wave, EnOcean, Wi-Fi, etc.) would you recommend?
What do you think about homee?
It is also important to me that the system can be operated using Android or iOS phones in the end, so that I have flexibility in choosing products.
That is obviously a huge price difference. I think the bus system is out of the question for us. (Since house prices have recently skyrocketed, that’s no longer feasible.)
I could realistically spend a maximum of €5,000 (about $5,500) on it, actually probably less.
So I will probably have to go with a wireless solution later.
Which comprehensive wireless system (one that combines different wireless technologies in a single system, such as Zigbee, Z-Wave, EnOcean, Wi-Fi, etc.) would you recommend?
What do you think about homee?
It is also important to me that the system can be operated using Android or iOS phones in the end, so that I have flexibility in choosing products.
Pacc666 schrieb:
I don’t think the bus system is an option for us anymore. (since house prices have completely skyrocketed recently, it’s no longer feasible) It’s clear from the first post that most bus systems are off the table. Actually, you’re just too late for that anyway.
Pacc666 schrieb:
Which overarching wireless solution (that unifies different wireless technologies in one system, e.g., Zigbee, Z-Wave, EnOcean, Wi-Fi…) can you recommend? None at all, since they all have major drawbacks. However, I would recommend an open system in this case (which already rules many out); in your case, probably Z-Wave. It has the greatest potential and the best future prospects.
Pacc666 schrieb:
It’s also important to me that the system can be controlled with Android or iOS phones so that product selection remains flexible. That’s not really a problem. So far, all can open a browser.
If the wiring hasn’t been installed yet, I definitely wouldn’t recommend a wireless system. They tend to be too unreliable and are often battery-powered (window contacts, sensors, etc.).
As an affordable solution for small-scale control of lighting and blinds, a Siemens LOGO 8 is worth considering—provided the electrician hasn’t been there yet. The LOGO can be programmed once to handle the basic functions initially (blinds up/down, terrace door open = blinds up, lights on/off, etc.). It’s not smart home technology yet, but it provides a foundation that can later be expanded or adjusted (dimming, voice control, occupancy detection, heating, and who knows what else), and these units are fairly inexpensive.
As another user mentioned, smartphone apps are only used for the first couple of days. They’re too complicated to operate. The blind needs to lower automatically when I turn on the TV and the sun is shining—without me having to do anything or use an app. Okay, I still control the fan via the app, but only because I’m too lazy to get up and I don’t yet know under what conditions it should switch on.
As an affordable solution for small-scale control of lighting and blinds, a Siemens LOGO 8 is worth considering—provided the electrician hasn’t been there yet. The LOGO can be programmed once to handle the basic functions initially (blinds up/down, terrace door open = blinds up, lights on/off, etc.). It’s not smart home technology yet, but it provides a foundation that can later be expanded or adjusted (dimming, voice control, occupancy detection, heating, and who knows what else), and these units are fairly inexpensive.
As another user mentioned, smartphone apps are only used for the first couple of days. They’re too complicated to operate. The blind needs to lower automatically when I turn on the TV and the sun is shining—without me having to do anything or use an app. Okay, I still control the fan via the app, but only because I’m too lazy to get up and I don’t yet know under what conditions it should switch on.
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