Home automation is the latest trend in electrical installations; it allows you the functionality to control various devices in your home, via a mobile device from any location (in your city or even from across the world). It’s true that the term home automation could be used for various programmable devices such as sprinkler systems and thermostats.

However, home automation is much more than that, and it encompasses a number of things in a home including:

All of these are connected to a network that can be remotely controlled. From the perspective of home security, this includes fixtures such as the alarm system in your home, as well as the windows, doors, smoke detectors, locks, the CCTV cameras as well as the other sensors that are connected to it.

Even up until the recent past, it was only commercial systems and high-end homes that had automated centrally-controlled systems. Typically, these included only the heating & cooling systems, lighting systems and they hardly ever provided anything more than just the standard controls, monitoring functions as well as scheduling actions. In addition, these were accessible only from certain control points from within the very same building.

While this was a definite convenience and advantage, home automation takes this concept and technology one step further; and is popularly called the – ‘ Internet of Things’. In this type of system, everything has a specific IP address that can be accessed and monitored remotely.

Smart devices and various smart appliances are the most obvious things that get connected to the LAN via Wi-Fi or Ethernet. However, it’s possible to incorporate electrical outlets and light switches into your home automation network.

In addition to the convenience factor, the energy efficiency factor is what makes home automation such an attractive option. While modern appliances provide convenience and comfort, many of them are also power guzzlers; home automation systems also address this issue. Thermostats help monitor the heating and cooling system in your home; similarly the lighting systems can also be programmed and set for various target temperatures.

This helps keep energy usage at the minimum levels during the times when you aren’t really going to be using them. In fact this scheduling can be broken down at a more micro level to distinguish between the seasons of the year and the weekends etc., in some instances. If required, ‘macros’ can also be programmed into the system and these can be controlled remotely as required.

In fact, you can add settings – like “coming home” etc. that can activate various appliances, equipment and installations at the tap of your smartphone and you can have the opposite set as a “leaving home’ event. This ensures you use only as much energy as required, which adds to the overall energy efficiency of your home.

If you are considering getting smart automation solutions for your home, it’s important that you get experienced and credible electricians to handle the job for you. We at Allround Electricals are a company that has been operating in this space for a number of years and know what it takes to provide our customers with the kind of solutions they need.

For any more information about home automation or simply speak with the experts at our company. You can take our advice on various aspects of electrical and wiring installations. The number to call is – 1300 169 263. You can also write to us at this email address.

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Recently, Digital Trends profiled a Paolo di Trapani, and his work has a lot of people excited. For all the rapid progress that has been made with LEDs, no one else has made this important step towards recreating natural light.

The article explains how lighting innovations have allowed people to use artificial light in a number of amazing ways. We can change the color temperature of a light bulb with a smartphone, and we can grow food indoors, but we haven’t yet been able to mimic the way the atmosphere scatters the sun’s natural light…until now.

According to Digital Trends, di Trapani’s technology scatters the light of a panel of white LEDs with “a clear plastic panel studded with nanoparticles that are invisible to the naked eye.” What’s a nanopartical? A nanoparticle is what it sounds like: A really small particle. Nanoparticle research is currently hot because there are tons of ways that nanoparticle research could be applied in biomedical, optical, and electronic fields.

When you are using an electronic device and need to charge it, you look for the closest power point to plug it in. There are times when you just can”t find a plug point within easy reach; that’s when you look for an electrical extension cord and plug in the device you need to charge.

This is something most of us do as a matter of routine and we don’t give much thought to it. Extension cords are undoubtedly a very handy tool that solves some very basic charging problems. When there is a shortage of outlets or if an electronic device is just a little too far from the closest electrical point, these extension cords prove very useful.

However, it’s important to keep in view the fact that an extension cord isn’t meant to be a permanent electrical fixture; it’s to be used for a specific reason and it can be hazardous to use them incorrectly.

Here, we talk about the different hazards of electrical extension cords and how they can be avoided:

When storm activity increases, there is always a chance that your electrical system in your home is in danger. In fact, a storm can be the cause of your electrical system if your system isn’t up to par. The following are three potential electrical hazards that a storm can turn into a nightmare.

No one understands the how lightning has so much power. And, no one knows where lightning will strike when it hits. During a storm, it is possible for lightning to strike your home, causing a surge of electricity to go through your home. If this happens, then it is possible to short your electrical components and cause damage to your home’s electrical system.