Example of a starter set with the basic components for smart home lighting control

From a technical point of view, it is basically very easy: purchase the smart home central unit already mentioned, smart sockets, switches and buttons buy and let's go . Good smart home providers have starter sets that make it easier to get started.

What is always very important when it comes to light: Be sure to consider the purpose of the room to be illuminated! Because light clocks the “internal clock” of humans and can also influence it negatively.

Before you set up your smart home light control, think about it: Is it a work, bedroom or living area? The specialist speaks of "functional room or ambient lighting". Depending on this, the right light color and temperature as well as the wattage of the lamps should be selected and the dimmability of the light should be planned. Here's a thumbs up: During the day, cool white light with a high proportion of blue and high illuminance levels is recommended because it has an activating effect. In the evening, warm white, subdued light with more red components is recommended, as it relaxes and ensures a good night's sleep.

Daylight has significantly more blue than red components. This type of light activates and suppresses the sleep hormone melatonin so that we can concentrate well during the day. Perfect for exactly those areas of the home where we work or are awake and want to stay that way. For all LUX nerds: Light with a wavelength of around 480 nanometers in combination with high illuminance is ideal. Our recommendation for the design of this lighting scenario: large-area lights on the ceiling, which ensure optimal lighting conditions in the room. To support this, a desk lamp with a cool white light color can also be integrated into the smart home system as a direct light source.

This is important in our latitudes, especially in the rather dark winter months: Almost 40 percent of Germans suffer from a lack of drive and mood swings that can develop into depression. Fortunately, this can be counteracted with controllable lighting. One American study confirmed also that good light leads to more productivity. In the study, nine to 31 percent of people found their workplace uncomfortable if it was only illuminated with direct-emitting systems. 91 percent found the combination of direct and indirect lighting and many vertical lights pleasant. Productivity was even better when the lighting in the workplace was also dimmable. The workers were more alert, more persistent and more precise in their job.

Good to know: Older people need significantly more light at work than younger people! Not only because of age-related declining eyesight, but also because of their different concentration rhythms.

With the smart home light control, you can not only program high illuminance levels and cool color temperatures in the morning into your system – tailored to the incident daylight. The smart home system also offers you the right lighting in the evening: You can choose dimmed, directed light and gently illuminate the room with less lighting.

The smart home welcomes you: With pre-installed light scenarios, not only can all the lights at home be switched on with one click in the mobile app. You can also program light switches to automatically turn themselves on at a specific time. This is also done by networking the lamps, switches, sockets and the smartphone via a central unit, e.g. B. the access point from wesmartify. By the way: These so-called Welcome Home functions are not only available for the lighting in the smart home, but also for the heating, blinds, air conditioning and more.

No more stumbling in the dark with sensor-based light scenarios that respond to movement. So-called presence detectors ensure this. They are particularly well suited for use at night in particularly large rooms or in the basement where the light switches are difficult to reach. Incidentally, this also makes ecological sense: Because the lamps only come on when they are actually needed and go out when nothing moves in the room. A presence detector is also recommended in hallways and basements because it sends a message to the smartphone and triggers an alarm when the protective function is activated.

Dimmers are another fine invention for smart home lighting control. This allows you to adapt the lighting better to your daily rhythm: the light comes on very slowly in the morning, similar to a natural sunrise, and is gradually dimmed up automatically. The dimmer is also practical in the evening for the later hours when you might want a warmer light. You can now even dim it down from the couch with your smartphone.

Anyone who has children knows that creepy monsters often sneak under the bed and falling asleep in complete darkness is an absolute no-go. A small night light must remain on in many children's rooms. Dimmers are the perfect solution here: you can let your kids fall asleep with the lights dimmed and switch them off from the living room after an hour or two. The absolute top highlight are also cozy moods in different light colors at the next pajama party. Everything is possible with the smart dimmers.

Parents are familiar with another phenomenon: After brushing their teeth in the bathroom in the evening, the dead tired children suddenly feel “switched on” again. This can be due to the often high proportion of blue in the light from the bathroom lights. Small receptors in the eye pick up these light signals and tell the body: "Oops, it's so bright, you have to wake up quickly: It's daylight everywhere!" And that was it for a good night's rest. The reason for this is not only the light receptors, but also the sleep hormone melatonin, the value of which drops drastically in the blood in the presence of blue light with a wavelength of approx. 480 nanometers. The solution: avoid blue light before going to bed and in the dormitories! To prepare children for sleep, dimmers help to lower the illuminance and create warm light colors. In general, we recommend spot-like, direct and not large-area radiant lights in all rooms in the evening hours, not least for reading lights by your own bed!