Top 5 Ways Your Smart Home Can Help You Keep Your Home Safe During Your Vacation
By Rafi Zauer, Head of Marketing, Essence
With smart technologies, you are never too far from home, even if you travel to the other side of the globe. All it takes is a glance at your smartphone to monitor and manage your house, which is highly convenient now that you are about to start your vacation.
Here are five ways in which your smart home will help hold the fort while you bask in the sun and enjoy a mojito or begin your autumn travels, knowing that all your belongings are well cared for.
1. Make sure your house is locked: Double-check that all entries are locked and the alarm turned on
Gone are the days when you were about to board a plane close to a panic attack, suddenly unsure if you remembered to lock the back door before leaving the house. You can check your smart locks from your smartphone and verify that all of them are locked safely. The app will also allow you to arm the alarm and even close the shutters, if they are also connected to the smart home ecosystem.
2. Grant access when needed: Remotely open and close the door, and disconnect the alarm at will
Now you know the house is locked, and you can rest assured. But perhaps you may need to grant access to a technician or to a neighbor who offered to water your plants while you are away. If so, you will be able to unlock the door and disarm the alarm for them and even watch them while they are in the house, using your camera. No more leaving keys under the doormat, making burglars’ lives easier! Also, when they leave you can lock the door and turn the alarm on again yourself, of course, instead of worrying whether they remembered to do it. Another option, in case you prefer putting your smartphone aside and fully relax, is to grant temporary access on your smart home system so people can come and go during a particular time.
3. Simulating presence at home: Set a pattern of automatic lighting to simulate that the house is occupied
A connected home allows you to create smart scenarios, in which the trigger of an action activates a set of rules. For example, you can set your connected lights to turn on automatically at specific times or set them to follow an apparently random pattern during the evening to simulate that there are people at home to deter any potential burglars from targeting your empty house.
4. Be alerted in real time: Receive actionable notifications if anything happens
Many things can happen to an unoccupied house. Incidents that, if left unchecked, can lead to a bigger problem, such as water leakage in the kitchen. Flood and smoke detectors will help you prevent these type of accidents, notifying you on the spot and allowing you to take immediate action. The same is true in case an intruder tries to break in. No matter what the emergency is, real-time notification will allow you to react on the spot, saving precious time.
5. Check on your pets: Don’t forget the best friends you left behind
A smart home will also come in handy if you have to leave your furry friend behind when you go on vacation. You can check on your pets at any time thanks to real-time video streaming, and with some systems you can even speak to them- reassuring them, or even scold them if they are ruining your furniture! Also, you can keep track of the times your pet-sitter comes and goes, making sure your pet is well cared for.
Any time of year is the perfect time to travel, to relax, to go to music festivals, to hike in the mountains or enjoy a peaceful sunset at the beach. But we also know it is the time when our houses are most vulnerable, and burglaries increase.
A connected home brings you the confidence and the peace of mind of knowing that your house and your possessions are being proactively protected when you are away, so you can fully make the most of your holidays.
Rafi Zauer is Head of Marketing at Essence, providers of intelligent end-to-end IoT platforms for service providers offering home security, automation and senior care services. Read more www.essence-grp.com