Featured INSTEON Home - Hollywood, CA
May 10, 2008
Before upgrading to INSTEON, this Hollywood Entrepreneur used X10 for his automation needs. Constantly struggling with signal strength and battling the “X10 ghosts,” who were turning his lights on in the middle of the night, Mike was ready for faster and more reliable technology. While his new INSTEON keypads and switches are backward-compatible with X10, Mike chose not to use X10 at all, but completely switched over to INSTEON and he’s never looked back. The first thing Mike did was program his favorite scene, “All Dim,” into all of his keypads and wireless remotes. This scene dims every light in his home to a 25% brightness level, creating a consistent relaxing and cozy feel throughout. All of his INSTEON controllers contain another version of “All Dim,” which dims only the lights downstairs, consuming much less energy. As he continues to program the rest of his scenes, it’s this kind of flexibility that reminds him he made the right choice switching to INSTEON. With over 200 INSTEON devices in his home, Mike has used INSTEON to improve the value of his home and the quality of his life. From temperature control to whole-home timers, Mike’s entire home is at his fingertips.
Guest Entertaining
Mike loves to entertain, and his company and house guests appreciate how easy it is to use his INSTEON setup. Mike programs all of his keypads to be “guest-friendly,” so even those unfamiliar with the technology can use it for the first time without any training. His 8-button KeypadLincs allow instant access to multiple Home Theater scenes, which are clearly labeled on the opaque buttons. Tabletop keypads next to every guest bed allow the guests to turn on the lights in their rooms and to access the heater without leaving their bedside, making them feel like they’re in a high-end resort. To improve his movie watching experience, Mike has integrated lighting into his home theater using IRLinc. Every time he pushes the “play” button on his universal remote, the lights fade to 30 percent for the ideal movie watching atmosphere. The “stop” and “pause” buttons bring the lights back to 90 percent, perfect for a popcorn run or a bathroom break. Lance, a friend of Mike’s, likes to write for a popular HBO® series Big Love in a mostly dark room with sports on TV. Just for him, Mike installed a point light directly above his favorite spot on the couch which he calls “Lance-a-Light.” Now from the “Lance-a-Light” button on a tabletop KeypadLinc, Lance has complete dim/bright control over his light for when a moment of inspiration strikes; he can easily switch to writing before the moment passes without getting up to adjust the lights.
“I always design [my keypads] to work for a guest. I assume my mother is going to get there and not want any instructions and just be able to look at the wall and figure it out. ” – Mike
Heating and A/C
Mike uses INSTEON technology to control more than just his lighting: with an INSTEON-compatible thermostat, he can adjust the temperature with the press of a button from any INSTEON controller anywhere in the house. The remote-controllable and programmable thermostat saves energy, which has made a significant impact on Mike’s electric bill. Whether he’s turning off the air conditioning on his way out the door by tapping a button on his KeypadLinc, or turning on the heat without getting out of bed from his bedside tabletop keypad, Mike adds comfort and convenience to his life with this INSTEON-controlled HVAC system.
“If you’re going to bother automating, then you go all the way” – Mike
Timers
With so many lights and other devices in and around his home, Mike makes sure that no excess energy is used by setting his fountain, music and certain lights on timers set to turn off automatically late in the evening. This gives him peace of mind, knowing that nothing will be running all night long, wasting energy. Mike’s heat is scheduled to turn off at 9:30 a.m., so it won’t continue to run throughout the day while he’s away at work. He uses HouseLinc Desktop Software with a PowerLinc Controller to automatically turn off his lights and heater according to the schedule he chooses. For the pumps, fountain and fans Mike uses OutletLincs and he uses LampLinc Dimmers for each of his plug-in lights and electric candles.
“Timers are great; I can be sure nothing gets left on… I hate to waste energy” – Mike
Whole House
Mike never comes home to a dark house. Whether he’s pulling up the driveway by himself or with a friend, Mike keeps a RemoteLinc in his car to turn on the driveway lights, the decorative lights adorning the whiterose- wrapped archway, and the lights in the entryway. A pair of KeypadLincs are installed side by side at the front door to give Mike instant control of every light and heating/cooling zone in the house. This freedom and control gives him the ability to set up the lighting and temperature in his house exactly as he wants it, seconds after walking in the door. As an added bonus, it allows him to turn everything off with the press of a button on the way out, ensuring that he won’t be wasting any excess energy when he’s not at home.
“…having only 8 buttons, KeypadLinc forced me to consider what was important, keeping it simple to use ” – Mike
Exterior
The exterior of Mike’s home is as automated and impressive as the interior. From archway lights that adorn his driveway, to hanging lamps, pool lights, and electric candles, Mike’s elegant setup complements his 180-degree view of the Hollywood skyline. With this beautiful array of outdoor lighting front and back, Mike has one-touch control; over nearly a hundred lights. Before installing INSTEON, it would take him up to 20 minutes to turn every light on and off every day! Mike use OutletLinc remote control outlets for his fountain and pool lights and InLineLinc Dimmers for his hard-wired lighting. He keeps a RemoteLinc in the cabana, for when he doesn’t bring one out with him.
“INSTEON is infinitely more reliable and intuitive than X10” – Mike
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