What comes to your mind when you think of your home? Comfort, security, family, privacy, and community are just a few thoughts that enter our minds. When designing a new house, we must consider the above points and our customers’ visions and desires to ensure we build their home, not just another house.
Many options are on the market today, and new technology is on the shelves each year for us to consider. There are two thoughts on technology integration in your home today: wireless and hard-wired. We are fans of the advancement in wireless technology and will use it wherever possible. As a fail-safe, we also believe in having a hard wire back up to locations to decrease the load on other technology that might consume our wireless needs.
Many have decided to “cut the cord,” which refers to removing cable television and choosing streaming options. Streaming TV or movies is an intelligent strategy, with the invention of smart televisions and more channels that offer streaming options. However, going this route will increase the bandwidth needed for your wireless services, which could slow down other devices on your network. Hard-wiring your televisions improves the performance and quality of the shows you are streaming.
The easy solution is to install cat-6 wires from a central location to each location where you intend to have a television. This will allow you to be wireless or hard-wired, should it be necessary. The addition of hard-wired services will also enable the consumer to set up wireless access points strictly for guests. Access specifically for guests will help protect the end-user network from unauthorized access.
Technological advancements have made the purchase and installation of cameras possible for many homeowners. As you are building a new home, you might have yet to make plans to install cameras, but you might want to do it. Yes, you can do this wirelessly, but we suggest installing cat-6 wire to locations ideal for a future camera so it is easy to retrofit later. Again, having a hardwired option will ensure you aren’t taking bandwidth from other areas on your Wi-Fi network, decreasing the chance of missing out on valuable recordings.
Cameras will record to an NVR even if you don’t have internet access, and it is even possible to include your doorbell recording device in your system, so you have valuable footage should you ever need to access it. Technology has advanced to allow some of the cameras to have two-way communication so you can communicate with someone on your property while you are in the home or off-site. When you set up your cameras, you can filter them so false notifications are filtered out and do not notify you. For example, most cameras will pick up a car driving by the home unless you filter what the camera picks up and records.
I enjoy streaming music or other audio from my phone or smart devices. More importantly, having recessed speakers in different spaces within a home is a must-have. Installing recessed speakers in your home during the build will make the installation aesthetically pleasing as it will blend in with the walls or ceiling. The speakers will all be hard-wired, so you don’t need to worry about bandwidth concerns. The ability to remove the prominent box speakers of yesterday will free up precious space in your home for furniture or wall art.
We encourage homeowners to install recessed speakers in areas of the home where they will do most of the entertaining. Your living room, outdoor spaces, and kitchens are top locations, and if you add the speakers to your project early, you can coordinate the result with all of the light fixtures you are installing.
For the most part, low-voltage accessories are easy to add to your home build and can often be installed DIY. However, we believe in hiring top-rated professionals because they will install correctly and stand by their product through a warranty period. When looking for a contractor to hire, please ensure they are licensed and insured by the state where they work. We hire All Secure LLC for our audio and visual needs at McMahon Custom Homes, LLC, in greater Richmond, Virginia. Kevin and his team are excellent at listening to and bringing our customer’s vision to life. They can be reached at kevin.deshazo@allsecurellc.net or by phone at 804-650-1479.
