Services · Lighting control
Lighting control. On at dusk, every night, without a thought.
Every system follows sunset through the year and is zoned so the same garden can be a quiet Tuesday or a table of twelve. App control and home automation links are there when you want them.
What it actually is
Automation first. The app second.
Most people asking for smart lighting picture the app. In practice, a well-set-up system is one you rarely open, because everything you would use it for already happens on its own.
Astronomic timing knows when the sun sets on any given day and follows it all year, instead of drifting out of step with the season the way a fixed timer does. Zones handle the rest: the front of the house, the garden, the patio and the pool, each able to sit at its own level.
Ontario gives you long evenings and takes them back in September. Zoned scenes mean dinner outside doesn't end when you can't see the table.
How it's set up
Four decisions, made with you on site.
- i.
Zone by how you use the property.
Zones follow behaviour, not wiring: the arrival, the garden you look at, the spaces you sit in. A system zoned by whichever wire was closest is easy to install and impossible to use.
- ii.
Set the scenes after dark.
Scenes are built on the commissioning visit with you there, adjusting live rather than guessing numbers on a laptop. Three or four well-judged scenes cover almost every evening.
- iii.
Automate the routine.
On at dusk, stepped down later in the evening, off at the hour you choose. Once that runs, the property behaves correctly with nobody touching it, including when you're away.
- iv.
Add the app where it earns it.
App control, and links to a home automation system you already have, are available on any project. They move a project up a tier, so we'll say plainly when a simple schedule is the better answer.
With audio
One scene for the light and the sound.
When outdoor audio goes in with the lighting, the zones line up. One patio scene brings up the patio lights and the patio speakers together, from the same app.
Lighting control questions
Answered plainly.
Does every system come with controls?
Every system gets astronomic timing and zoned scenes. Astronomic timing follows sunset through the year, so the lights come on at dusk in June and in December without anyone resetting a timer. App control and links to a home automation system are optional and move a project up a tier.
What is a lighting scene?
A saved setting for a group of zones: the front of the house at full, the garden at a low glow, the patio off, for example. Most homes use three or four, set with you on the commissioning visit after dark.
Will it work with my home automation system?
Links to a home automation system are available, and we confirm what you already have before proposing anything. If you have no system, a simple timer or app is usually the better answer.
Can controls be added to a system someone else installed?
Often, depending on how the system was zoned and what transformers are in the ground. The $195 inspection documents what is there and tells you what is possible before you commit to anything. More on LED and smart upgrades.
Goes with
Control is how you live with the design.
It runs every layer: landscape, architectural, pool and water and audio. We work across Toronto, Oakville, Burlington, Mississauga and Vaughan, and further out.
All servicesYour evenings, next
Let's work out what you'd actually use.
We come out after dark, light the property temporarily and talk through how you use it, so the zones and scenes are designed around your evenings. Free, 45 minutes.
Book free evening demo 888-444-1530