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Prevent Costly Water Damage at Home with FortrezZ

In North America, one out of every three homes are victims of water damage. The extensive damage caused by leaking and/or flooding can result in insurance claims upwards of $10,000, making water damage insurance claims the most expensive and common claim filed. And those numbers only count those that make the claim, since many homeowners fear raising their rates and paying costly deductibles.

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7 DIY Smart Home Halloween Decorations

Halloween is approaching and it’s time to scare your neighbors! Luckily these days, it’s easier than ever to give house guests a fright with smart home automation. Check out the following DIY smart home Halloween decoration ideas to collect big screams and keep the Halloween fun alive.

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How to use Home Automation for AirBnb and Vacation Rentals

We were featured in a Redfin article! Check it out here: Vacation Home Security: A Complete Checklist for Peace of Mind While You’re Away.

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Troubleshooting Your Skylink Universal Garage Door Opener

Programming the Skylink Universal Garage Door Opener (keypad entry model 89 and remote model 39) has proven to be a challenge for a lot of our customers, and in most cases, it always has to do with 4 reasons:

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Which Smart Home Products Should I Invest In?

Converting your home into a smart home is a wonderful investment because it will not only make home life easier for the entire family, but also increase your property value. Nowadays, there are so many home automation products available with endless options to choose from. Whether you want to control your lighting at home using a smartphone or add smart locks to your property, new products are being introduced to the market each and every day, and by the looks of it, the future is only going to bring more smart devices to our doorstep.

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Smart Automation In The Workplace

Convert your workplace into a smart workplace using smart automation products. There are many advantages in using smart devices at work because businesses can utilize them to simplify the office environment all while reducing utility costs.

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Home Automation with Outdoor Entertainment

When it comes to outdoor entertainment, using home automation devices to control lighting and music distribution is a great way to easily set the perfect ambiance when entertaining guests in your outdoor living spaces.

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Cat5e, Cat6, and Cat6a: What’s the Difference?

Wired connections provide a faster and more reliable connection than Wi-Fi. Ethernet cables have gone through various upgrades to keep up with faster and more commonly available data speeds. So the question is, what is the difference between Cat5e, Cat6, or Cat6a Ethernet cablesa?

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Inexpensive Ways to Simplify Life with Smart Technology

Turning your home into a smart home using inexpensive devices is a wonderful way to help simplify your life. Nowadays, there are more DIY home automation systems available than there were in the past that are affordable, easy to install, and simple to monitor. Just about any tech-savvy homeowner can convert their home into a place where lights, thermostats, security, and other home systems can be controlled with a wide range of devices that can cost no more than a few hundred dollars.

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Great Lighting Scenes for Home Automation

Home automation technology has changed the way lights are being used at home and with the use of a good lighting control system you’ll be able to manage your lights in ways that will make life at home easier, more secure, and a lot more enjoyable. Smart lighting can be integrated into homes and controlled in a variety of different ways, primarily with the creation of lighting scenes. For those who are unfamiliar with the concept of scenes, think of scenes as automatic tasks that your smart home system performs. These automatic tasks, or scenes, are created by you with the use of a home controller. So basically, you can create lighting scenes to follow recurring schedules that will automatically turn on or off certain lights of your home. Besides having scenes automatically turn on by your home automation system, you can also activate them with devices that are compatible with your home controller such as wall-mounted touchscreens, smartphones, tablets, handheld remotes or smart switches.

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How to Save More Energy Through Home Automation

Reduce energy consumption at home and and lower your monthly utility bill with the help of home automation technology. Forgetting to turn things off such as lights, televisions, and other various electronic devices is something we do everyday. As humans, we’re not perfect. In fact, we’re forgetful. Whether we’re trying to get our children ready for school in the mornings to being preoccupied with our smartphones as we leave for the day, it has become really easy for us to leave home with devices left on.

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What is a Central Vacuum System, and Why Would I Want One?

Imagine being able to vacuum your entire home without having to carry around a heavy and bulky vacuum unit. Let’s face it, cleaning your home can be an annoying chore as it is and having to deal with a standard, mobile vacuum unit doesn’t make it easier since they can be really loud all while leaving dirt and debris behind due to their weak motors. Then there’s the hassle of dealing with tangled cords that never seem to be long enough to cover the entire room.

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Prevent Water Damage at Home with a Leak Detector

Water damage at home can be a big hassle to repair and extremely costly, especially if you’re unaware that it’s happening. When pipes burst due to old age or someone accidentally leaves the water running, such as in a clogged bathtub or sink, our reaction time is often slow, leaving the home vulnerable for flooding. In fact, water damage at home happens so frequently that it actually ranks as one of the top home insurance claims year in and year out.

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How ABB Welcome Changed U.S. Home Intercoms & Security

When the ABB Welcome Door Entry System was introduced to the United States earlier this year, Home Controls and installers-in-the-know could already feel that U.S homeowners were in for a real treat. Now that months have passed, we know this feeling wasn’t just wishful thinking. ABB Welcome has changed the U.S. market for home intercoms and security.

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Why Smart Thermostats are the Most Popular Smart Home Devices

Smart thermostats sell like hotcakes, and they are in fact the most popular “smart home” devices purchased by renovating homeowners. This is according to the recently released September 2016 Houzz study on smart home trends in the United States: “Among all the devices with smart capabilities installed by renovating homeowners, smart thermostats are the most popular, installed by 12% of renovating homeowners.”

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How to Upgrade From Analog to IP Surveillance

Surveillance systems made up of IP cameras and networked recording equipment are rapidly growing in popularity over analog surveillance systems for numerous reasons. As such, homeowners who have traditional analog systems are wondering how they can make the upgrade from analog to IP.

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SkylinkNet Now Works with IFTTT! Get 5 Starter Recipes

That’s right, the do-it-yourself SkylinkNet wireless alarm system just got a lot cooler — it now works with IFTTT. Anyone who has the SkylinkNet Internet Hub can automate connected devices using custom IFTTT recipes, so not only do you get expanded automation options for your Skylink devices, you can also integrate third-party devices into your system. Check out the video for a quick synopsis, or scroll down for more info.

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Yale Digital Locks Make Keyless Entry Easy

Expanding our selection of top-quality electronic door locks, Home Controls is proud to announce that we now offer the latest Z-Wave deadbolts and leversets from Yale Security. As part of the Yale Real Living product line, these residential locks bring over a century of innovation to the modern, connected home.

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Smoke Alarm Safety Tips for the Holidays

Smoke alarms save lives. Nearly two-thirds of home fire deaths resulted from fires in homes with no smoke alarms or no working smoke alarms. When there is a fire, smoke spreads fast and you need smoke alarms to tell you when to get to safety.

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Add Smoke Detection to Your Z-Wave Smart Home with First Alert

Home Controls has expanded our collection of First Alert products with the First Alert Z-Wave Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Detector. Now you can receive notifications for smoke and CO alarms through your Z-Wave system.

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