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From Simple Dimmers to Smart Home Lighting
From Simple Dimmers to Smart Home Lighting
If you walk into the average home, you may see a dimmer in a dining room or family room. Interestingly enough, you may not see one in a bath or some other place where it would be beneficial as a way to conserve energy or set a mood. In upper-end homes, you are more likely to see dimmers employed, as lighting is more complicated and there may be different banks of lights in a given area.
You may be wondering why we’re talking about dimmers when we often talk about smart home lighting on these pages. Let’s call the simple dimmer the gateway drug to intelligent lighting. Unlike other gateway drugs, this one has very positive effects and no negatives.
Dimmers help to save energy by enabling you to adjust light levels. They can help set the right ambiance or act as a nightlight to keep you from stumbling in a dark hallway or room. They can shine the right amount of light on a feature of a room or artwork.
When it comes to lighting switches and controls, one company has long led the way. We partner with Lutron for lighting solutions because they have been doing it for over 50 years, and their products scale from simple dimmers to whole-building solutions for skyscrapers. Let’s take a closer look at how Lutron can make your home lighting smarter in Minneapolis.
SEE ALSO: Lutron Enhances Every Aspect of Your Home
DESIGNER DIMMERS
If you want simple dimming solutions for various rooms, Lutron has it covered. First, they make dimmers that work with all types of bulbs. Some care needs to be taken with dimmers, as not all will work well depending on the bulb. Lutron dimmers work with dimmable CFL (compact fluorescent), dimmable LED (light emitting diode, the newest lighting technology), and the good old incandescent and halogen bulb.
A word about light bulbs. CFL bulbs became popular as the US Department of Energy mandated that incandescent lighting start phasing out in 2014. CFL has been an inexpensive replacement, but the bulbs can take an annoying amount of time to get to their full illumination. LED bulbs are now mainstream and continue to drop in price, and have advantages in brightness, lighting hue, and longevity.
We would strongly recommend upgrading your lighting to LED wherever it makes sense, as it is economical, long lasting, and they are more easily dimmed and controlled compared to CFL. No matter what bulbs you use, a dimming solution will make your lights last longer and save energy, making the investment pay for itself – not to mention the aesthetic benefits you’ll get.
Lutron dimmers are available in a variety of styles and 27 colors that complement any décor. If you don’t want to replace certain bulbs for reasons of style or cost, there is still a Lutron dimming solution for it. The Diva and Lumea styles complement any contemporary décor with Decora type light switches. Lutron also makes traditional rotary dimmers and the Ariadne toggle dimmer that matches older styles. Beyond those, more connected dimmers like the Maestro and GRAFIK T series not only offer elegant on-wall control but also tie into Lutron’s sophisticated lighting control solutions.
OCCUPANCY SENSORS
There’s another simple solution in Lutron’s arsenal for saving energy and the longevity of your lighting. Wireless sensors, like the Radio Powr Savr, can be mounted unobtrusively on walls or in ceilings. When paired with compatible Lutron switches, they are an easy and inexpensive lighting control solution. If you have kids that continuously leave lights on in the house, this may be a smart solution for you. The sensors can detect movement and turn lights off after a period of inactivity in any room. The sensors do not rely on any home networking and connect via a reliable radio frequency technology that Lutron has perfected over many years.
Of course, Lutron makes more advanced lighting control solutions for your entire home like RadioRA and Homeworks QS. But you can start with simple solutions and work your way up to full smart home control and lighting.
Let us work with you to integrate dimmers into your Minneapolis space in the fastest way possible. Contact us today or call (612) 353-5087 to connect with one of our smart home specialists.