Why Are So Many New Home Builders Choosing Smart Lighting?

When it comes to building a new property, there are so many considerations that lighting is often overlooked. Lighting is all around us at all times and often fades into the background — in other words, we take good lighting for granted. 

Ever since the invention of lighting dimmer systems, technology has advanced to give us more control over our lighting. Most recently smart lighting has innovated the way that we interact with lighting in our homes and made complex lighting easier thanks to building automation controls. If you are building a new home and haven’t yet considered smart lighting, keep reading!

Building Automation Systems Help Us Use More Sunlight

Learn about optimizing your home lighting with building automation systems

Automated home lighting adjusts to outdoor sunlight levels.

When you think about artificial light, what is the first thing that comes to mind? For many, it is the harsh fluorescent light of a large store or healthcare facility. Though this kind of lighting is important for certain industries, it is less than ideal for the home. So, how can you make sure that you are getting as much natural sunlight as possible and ensure your artificial lights are not overwhelming? The answer is simple — building automation controls.

When you install a lighting system in tandem with your automation system, you can take advantage of sensors and dimmers that ensure you are receiving the best indoor light quality possible. Sensors integrated in your smart lighting system communicate with lighting controls to dim or brighten each room of your home according to how much sunlight each area receives. Not only that, but many smart lighting systems have the ability to mimic sunlight patterns. These lighting systems can be preset to deliver bright, energizing light to help you adjust in the morning and warm, relaxing, sunset-like lighting in the evening.

Building Automation Controls Allow For Better Lighting Design

Don’t install a lighting system that will be out of date in a few years. Opt to integrate your lighting in your building automation controls

Easily adjust lighting profiles from smart devices.

As we already mentioned, lighting design can fade into the background — both in our lives and when it comes to smart home design. However, lighting is often one of the first things people notice when they enter a space. Though we may not realize it, lighting can affect our mood and our perception of a home. That’s why automated lighting is so important for new home builds. When you choose to install smart lighting, you are giving yourself the opportunity to control your lighting at a minute level.

For example, if you are having a dinner party in a home without smart lighting, you can’t alter the profile. All you can do is turn your lights on and off — or dim the lights a bit if you have a dimmer installed.

When you use building automation controls for smart lighting, you are now capable of controlling several different lighting aspects. These different lighting aspects include hue, quality, brightness, and several other predetermined settings that you can adjust from your smart device. A smart lighting setup also comes in handy if you want to illuminate the outside of your home. With smart lighting, you can easily adjust colors and set the mood for outdoor entertainment, or even holiday color schemes. No changing bulbs or rewiring required — just you and your smart device!

Building Automation Controls Help Conserve Energy

Not only do building automation controls allow for more options and better lighting, but you can also save money in the process

LEDs are the future for home lighting.

If automatic lighting and building automation controls make such dramatic changes to new home builds, then what is the catch? The catch is that automated LED lighting systems are more expensive upfront than traditional lighting methods. However, there are money saving opportunities after installation. LED lights are ideal for smart lighting because they can receive commands from your control system via Power over Ethernet (PoE) technology and they use far less electricity than fluorescent or incandescent bulbs.

Because home automation requires LEDS, it also saves money. We already discussed how sensors are able to automatically dim lights depending on the amount of sunlight coming from the outside. Since your building automation controls are able to automatically make these adjustments, you are no longer wasting money on unnecessary excess lighting.

The benefits of automated lighting are clear on your monthly energy bill. LED lights use 90% less energy than incandescent bulbs and you can reduce your total lighting energy usage by up to 25% with the help of automation.

Still have questions about building automation controls and smart lighting? No problem! There are a lot of online resources you can consult to learn more about why smart lighting is best for your new home build. You can also ask your architects or builders whether or not smart lighting is the best option for your property. As smart lighting becomes the default option for new homes, more people will take advantage of the everyday benefits of automation.