Houses in Europe have changed a lot in recent years. It is true that their size has not increased, at least in general, and especially in large cities. But many improvements have been made, many of them related to energy savings. We have even seen financial aid to change the elements that most penalize energy consumption, such as windows.
He energy savingas well as self-production through the use of solar panels (or wind turbines for individuals), has become one of the most important elements when renovating a house, whether totally or partially. But there are other devices that can help you.
A good example is windows, which have improved a lot in recent years and now insulate not only from noise, but also from strong temperature changes between outside and inside. And next to the windows are the Blinds, a classic element in Spanish houses which is not generally observed in many other Western countries, probably because the solar incidence in those countries has nothing to do with that of this country.
Home automation of blinds, That is, being able to control them remotely from a remote control, mobile phone or smart assistant has many advantages and is not at all an expensive process, although we will have to have motorized blinds, which implies a greater expense. Installing a home automation controller only means replacing the classic controller for motorized blinds.
Comfort. The first reason is the simplest. The automation of blinds allows us to control them from anywhere and at any time, whether from a smartphone, a tablet or even with voice commands, which allows us to open or close the blinds in any part of the house, wherever we are, without having to get up. In addition, no physical force is required to move them, which is important when dealing with large and heavy objects or when elderly people or children have to move them. It can even extend the life of the blinds by not subjecting them to specific stresses greater than those necessary since the system always moves them with the same power, without jolts.
Energy savings. The second reason is less obvious but equally interesting. Thanks to home automation, it is possible to program the movement of the blinds so that they open and close automatically depending on the time of day or the sunlight that falls on the house, thus optimizing natural lighting and reducing energy consumption. In this way, if the indoor temperature reaches certain degrees, it is possible to partially lower the blinds, preventing heat from entering the house and having to turn on the air conditioning earlier. This improves the thermal insulation of your home, keeping it cooler in summer and warmer in winter. It also allows them to open automatically when it is cold and the sun begins to shine, so that it can enter through the window.
Security. One of the tips the police give when we go on vacation is not to leave all the blinds in the house closed, so that thieves do not confirm that there is no one in the house. This is logical because in no house do you live with completely depressed people. We have already explained how home automation can give the impression that there are people at home even if there are not. Smart blinds take this to another level, since they can be programmed to go up or down at different times, and it is even possible to move them remotely from your phone or tablet, so that the system does not always follow the same pattern.
Protection from the sun. If we live in an area of Europe where the sun is particularly strong and enters through the window, it is possible that the furniture, or the floor itself, ends up being damaged by ultraviolet rays. With an intelligent system of blinds you can prevent this from happening by lowering them during the periods when the solar incidence is highest.
Automation. One of the most powerful functions of home automation is to integrate different devices so that they work together. In this way, it is possible to integrate your blinds with other smart devices in your home, such as thermostats or televisions, to create a completely personalized environment. For example, it is possible to create a command in Alexa or the Google Assistant that turns on the television, opens an application on it and lowers the blinds if we want to watch a movie in the living room as if we were at the cinema.
Of course, to ensure that all the blinds work properly, you need to have a WiFi network with good coverage throughout the house, since each blind has its own receiver and if it is very far from the router, the signal may not reach as well, which should. If necessary, it is possible to install repeaters or create a mesh system like those of Google or Amazon.