Wouldn’t it be great if you never had to worry about wasting electricity? Imagine lights that turn off once you’ve left the room. Or light bulbs that use just the right amount of brightness.
And the icing on the cake? Cheaper energy bills!
In the world of home automation these benefits are already a reality with intelligent lighting design. Smart lights are more energy efficient than normal lights because they don’t emit heat, last longer, and switch off automatically when not in use.
Bottom line: smart lights save you money.
They can also light up your life by adding ambience to your home.
If you make one smart upgrade to your property it’s got to be smart lights. This article explains why.
What are smart lights?
At their most basic, smart lights are lights you can control remotely via your smartphone or tablet. They can also be activated by voice command.
With smart lights you can:
- Turn lights on and off automatically
- Adjust brightness and tone
- Program lights to switch on or off at certain times of day
- Set a soothing atmosphere with light displays
- Control your home lighting regardless of where you are
How do smart lights work?
Smart lights replace existing incandescent light bulbs. They can be screwed into the original fittings and look like normal lights with one key difference — smart lights connect to the internet.
Once your smart lights are online you can control them from your phone via an app. This means you can switch the lights off or on regardless of your location.
If you have the budget, a hardwired, whole-house smart lighting system is the way forward. Cutting-edge technology from the likes of Lutron, Control4 and Rako give greater, more reliable control over the lights in your home which means bigger savings on energy and electricity.
How much money can I save with smart lights?
To give you a rough idea, 20,000 hours of light from a traditional bulb costs £25.80.
Smart lights give you the same amount of light for just £5.40.
Obviously, there is an upfront investment with smart lighting. However, wasting less electricity means you’ll soon see a boost in your home’s energy efficiency and reduced bills.
Ways smart lights save you money
Curious to see how smart lights can reduce your energy bill? We asked Smart Living co-founder and tech guru John to illuminate us.
Automatic habits
Hands up if you’re guilty of leaving a light on after getting comfy on the sofa.
The ability to control lights from your phone means you can switch off the kitchen lights from the living room without needing to get up. Lazy, yes. But habits of a lifetime are hard to break.
Even better, motion sensors can be part of your smart lighting set up, meaning lights switch off automatically when you leave a room. Small habit changes make a big difference over time — and can reduce your electricity bill significantly.
Lights out
Heading to bed? Turn off every light in the house at once. A godsend if you live in a big house, and it means you won’t accidentally forget to switch off a light.
“That’s the best part about living with smart lighting automation; it simplifies daily life,” says John.
And simplifies saving money!
Illuminating solutions
Need lights to come on at a specific time?
You can set smart lights to a schedule so they’ll illuminate paths and driveways at certain times of day. For example, when the kids come home from school in winter.
Scheduling lights to only come on when they’re needed saves you money. It’s also peace of mind knowing that family members are returning to a safe, well-lit home.
‘Dusk to dawn’ switches can also help you make savings on artificial lighting by adjusting brightness levels depending on the amount of natural daylight available.
Brighter and better
Planning a new build or renovation?
“Budget for cabling in smart lights right at the start of the project. It’s a wise move that future-proofs your home and saves money in the long run,” John advises.
Smart lights are more effective than traditional lights — and last much longer. In-wall, wired smart switches like Lutron Caseta work with smart bulbs which last up to 15,000 hours.
If you use your smart lights for 6 hours a day average then you might only need to replace the bulbs every 6-7 years.
More than money-saving
With smart lights, you get your money’s worth.
Aside from being energy efficient and saving you money, smart lights come with a range of nifty features. We’ve outlined our favourites below.
Let there be light
At the press of a button you can switch off every light in your house. Handy if you leave for work in a rush and realise you’ve left the lights on, or like to read in bed but can’t be bothered to get up and switch the table lamp off.
Lights, camera, security
The lights are on but no one’s home.
Making it look like your home is occupied when it’s empty deters would-be burglars and gives you peace of mind. You can also combine smart lighting with smart security, such as outdoor cameras and motion sensors so that lights automatically switch on when a stranger gets too close to your home.
“Alexa, get the lights.”
How many times do you come home laden with shopping? Or start carrying something heavy down to the basement but forget about the lights?
Voice-activated smart lights that connect to Alexa or Google Home Assistant are an easy way to switch on the lights when your hands are full.
Smart lights that operate via voice also help keep elderly relatives independent for longer.
Set the mood
Smart lights are a fun way to create ambiance within your home. Ever feel sluggish on dark winter mornings? Light can play a starring role in how we feel.
With smart lights you can create a lighting schedule that suits your lifestyle, helps you through seasonal changes, and improves your overall wellbeing.
Smart Lighting design near you
Intelligent lighting design saves you money. And expert installers save you time and hassle.
John Ross Smart Living can help you:
- Create a whole-house lighting design that suits your lifestyle
- Save energy and money with intelligent smart lighting
- Live life on easy mode with reliable, neatly boxed-in cabling
From a quick chat about which products you need to full-on drawings and renders for a lighting plan, our team wants to help you. Life’s better with technology, but sometimes you need expert advice to know where to spend your money.
Things our team excel at:
- Turning existing floor plans into detailed circuit diagrams that show the optimal location and installation for each light fitting
- Flagging complications early and fixing them
- Fast, effective, and friendly service — just read our reviews!
Our expert team is based in Scotland and works on smart home projects across the UK. Simply give us a bell to get started.
Fancy reading more smart tips? Our blog is full of ideas on how smart technology can save you money. If you really want to fall down the rabbit hole of smart home automation subscribe our YouTube channel — that way you won’t miss a thing.
