Your home is filled with all kinds of appliances and hardware, from your stove and washing machine, to your lights and your window shades. Within this past decade, the technology for these household items have advanced in stunning ways, and they will likely become standard for newer homes.
Our team at Monarch Design & Remodeling helps clients renovate and refresh their home’s interior design. In addition, our head designer, Gina Simpson, will help you figure out how to incorporate your home technology upgrades into your renovation design. Our expert home remodeling contractors are easily able to source and install these updates, as well as perform efficient and high-quality renovations. In Oakton and throughout Northern Virginia, Monarch has provided top-notch remodeling services for over 20 years.
Here are some of the upgrades for standard home tech that we suggest you make in the near future:
1. Front Doorbell/Lock
The first upgrade you should make involves your front door’s locks, as well as your doorbell. Recent advancements in home security technology has made doorbell-mounted cameras and digital locks both effective and affordable improvements to make.
Products like the Ring Video Doorbell places a digital camera at your front door that connects to your devices via Wi-Fi. They typically come with specialized control apps that allow you to view the camera’s feed through your phone or tablet, as well as remotely lock or unlock your front door. Some even give you the ability to communicate with people that ring your doorbell through a built-in two-way audio system.
Digital smart locks are also an impressive upgrade option, providing a variety of ways for you to safely exit and enter your home without any chance of an intrusion or robbery. Most include a set of number keys to punch in a security code on the smart lock device, while more expensive options allow you to use an app on your phone or have built-in fingerprint scanners.
2. Thermostat
Another vital and remarkable upgrade are smart thermostats, which are becoming increasingly popular for several reasons. One reason is that they, like many smart home devices, provide a versatile range of connectivity and programming features, such as voice control via Alexa or Google Assistant, as well as geofencing, which allows it to adjust the temperature in your home depending on whether you are home or not.
Another reason to get a smart thermostat is because it makes your home’s HVAC system more efficient. The fact that some models can adjust your home’s temperature according to certain conditions means your heating and cooling systems will be used in the most precise way, optimizing the amount of energy they use, thus increasing their efficiency. Down the line, that means you’ll have reduced energy bills.
3. Lighting
Another aspect of your home that you should consider upgrading is the lighting. For a start, if you have older incandescent or halogen light bulbs in most of your fixtures, consider replacing them with LEDs. They are way more efficient and generate less heat, making your home more comfortable and eco-friendly.
In addition, there are a number of smart lights available. Most are also LEDs, but come with additional features when paired with a connected device. Through your smartphone or tablet, you can schedule your smart lights to dim or brighten during certain times of day.
You can also have them change their color, as well as their color temperature, which can make for fun lighting arrangements and optimal mood lighting to create warm, easy-going indoor environments.
Monarch Design & Remodeling: Top Home Remodeling Contractors in Oakton, VA
As smart home technology gradually becomes more affordable, installing it in your home will be less of an upgrade and more of an update. If you are thinking of working with a team of quality home remodeling contractors, consider discussing how they can add smart home installations into the design.
At Monarch Design & Remodeling, we are experts in all levels of renovation, whether it be a simple facelift remodeling to a more transformative pull-and-replace. We have worked in Oakton and across Northern Virginia, helping clients design and reconstruct their homes into the kind they have always envisioned living in. Contact us at (703) 789-3288 and learn more about our client-centric design/build process, and to get a free quote.