Top 10 home automation ideas - Ultimate smart home tour 

If you liked this video, be sure to check out more of my smart home review videos here: ru-vid.com/group/PLnTSM-ORSgi7obxembH4OAHDsrw52r9zk I've got some good ones in there on Hubitat, and wireless security cameras.

One of my favorite automations is a LED strip and a motion sensor under the bed, so when I step off the bed during the night it lights up the floor subtly so that I can see without waking my partner. Great for when the toddlers wake up during the night and you have to scramble up quickly to stop them from demolishing something in the house at 2 am.

I just found you and I must say, you are an amazing presenter. Thank you very much for the great ideas!

Love these ideas. Thanks for the insipration. I'm using Home Assistant, but here's my set up on my Washer/Dryer. 1) Energy monitor outlets for Washer and Dryer 2) Aqara Door/Window sensors on Washer and Dryer doors. 3) Input/Selector "Helpers" in Home Assistant. For the Washer the options are Idle, Running, Clean. For the Dryer it's Idle, Running, Dry. 4) When the power usage is over 50W for 2 minutes, the Selector is updated from Idle to Running. When the usage drops below 1W for 5 minutes (and the Selector is set to Running), the Selector is updated to Clean (or Dry), a message is sent to our phones, an Alexa announcement is made, and a Helper timer is started. 5) When we open the door to the Washer or Dryer the Selector is set back to Idle. 6) BONUS: If the door isn't opened and the Selector isn't set back to Idle within 30 minutes (remember the timer in #4), Alexa gets snarky ("Seriously, the Washer is done. Do you want the laundry to get moldy?" or "The Dryer is done. The laundry's not going to fold itself, you know!"), and the timer resets. Each time the timer hits zero the cycle begins again until the doors are opened to reset the Selector. 7) BONUS BONUS: We have a top loading Washer, and sometimes we start it then do one last run around the house for loose items. We've both forgotten to put the lid down if we get distracted. If the Selector is set to Running, and the Washer door sensor is still open after 5 minutes, a message is sent to our phones and Alexa to tell us to check the Washer lid.

Just discovered your channel. Cant believe I never stumble on it before. Love your content man

The credit card idea worked perfectly! I started from the top and ran it along each side and it popped right off. Thank you!

My first automation was before smarthomes. I bought one of those mechanical timers meant for wall-sockets for my coffee-machine, and ever since I have always woken up to the smell of fresh coffee

I setup home/away based on our phones being connected to the WiFi and this has been faster and more reliable than any GPS method I tried. Also got a Yale Assure with August and it's awesome!! Love the door unlocking when I walk up and relocking 100% automatically.

My favorite: 1. Geofence to turn on lights in the garage when I come home. They automatically turn off 5 min. later. 2. No light switch at the door where I enter the house. Three lights automatically turn on when I arrive home but only if it’s after sunset.

Got a robot vacuum and mop combo (coredy) and it has changed my life! I have it scheduled for morning and night which is tremendously helpful when you have 4 cats and a teenager. My floors are ALWAYS clean now.

You offer some excellent insights into building a smart home. I'm diving into smart home equipment for the first time after buying my house last year and I appreciate the clarity with which you explain your device choices and their functionality. I work in industrial automation for a living but smart homes and home automation is a very different beast. On an unrelated note, I noticed you mention in a previous video that you used to work for a video game developer. I'm a heavy-duty gamer myself, mind if I ask which developer you worked for?

Hi Matt, I see from the video, you are using home automation products from different brands. Are they interconnected to work like an integrated solution?

This channel is underrated, it should have a minimum of 3M subscribers!

hey brother ive had so many of the products that your talking about and ive forgot how many things work together and ive been lazy to set things up specially like you said we have been stuck at home and instead of working on projects ive been on RU-vid haha... but tonight i thought to my self i want to do something with my night. your videos gave me so many new ideas and i need to buy more smart home gadgets but i have so many that ive not taken advantage of. great video thanks for the tips...

Matt, great video and very helpful. Have you seen the SimpliSafe Smart Lock? Any opinions on that vs the Yale one?

Dude I love your videos, there soo well done and addicting.

This video gave me a lot of ideas for my smart home. Thanks.

I have outdoor smart plugs for the holiday lights and the backyard lighting, automated to turn on at the local sunset and to turn off at 11:00 pm. I added lights above and below the kitchen cabinets and those are automated to turn on and off at specific times. My wife has a glassblock in a basement window next to the front porch which she decorates according to seasons/holidays. It also turns on at sunset and shuts off at 11:00 pm. I’m looking at getting “Level” locks for our three exterior doors.

Matt, have you ever thought through the process of temperature monitoring of your freezer(s). I have freezers in my kitchen refrigerator, a stand alone freezer in my utility room, and an old freezer in the ‘replaced’ frig/freezer that’s now in the garage. I’ve tried the transmitter design with batteries in the freezer, but they just don’t last. My desire would be to have a probe inside the freezer that is direct wired to a sender unit outside of the freezer (where the wire that the magnetic door seal goes over doesn’t affect the seal). This could then interface with a Hubitat for warnings if the temp rises above a certain temp. I’ve seen a couple of DIY videos, but I don’t have the talent of an EE to effect such a contraption. It seems like there is a valid need for a ‘home owner’ product that works as discussed. I’ve seen commercial, big freezer products that are too expensive for home use. Thanks.

I love the SmartDry sensor for the dryer. SmartDry just released a beta program and now my Alexa devices alert me the dryer stoped and still wet, or when close are dried. Virtual switch to create the automation and when the switch is triggered then Alexa announces the automation. Pretty cool

Enjoying the videos Matt, thanks.

0:49 Love it... I've seen a lot of videos where people overautomate (if that's a word) just for the sake of doing it.

Great, thorough videos. A recent fan and i like the content. Keep up the great work!

Awesome video! I always dig your videos. Can you share the link to the humidity sensor you use in the bathroom? I like that idea a lot and want to get it working with my house.

Thanks for this. I have all of the items setup like you do except for the laundry. Just 30 minutes ago I was frustrated that I had left clothes in the washing machine. Since I have an electric vehicle, I am on a time of day usage, so there are limits to when I dry my clothes unless I want to pay the highest usage rate. These examples should help me greatly. (My system is SmartThings tied to my Google home speakers with z-wave light switches, although I recently bought a HomePod and now have to reconsider how my system integrates since my Apple Music subscription doesn’t easily play on the Google speakers except through painful workarounds.)

Very professional and truly valuable content. I find few channels that are so well done. Thank you

Awesome video - thanks! Questions: Are you pairing the lights with Hubitat directly? How about the Caseta gear? Using the Caseta hub or pairing directly with Hubitat? Are you doing all of your automation in Hubitat? Any automation happening elsewhere? Thanks again for your great videos!

These are great ideas man especially the washer dryer dongle. I have 40 smart things contact switches and 10 motion sensors that correspond to every drawer and cabinet in my kitchen. The idea is to have intuitive lighting only when you are around it.

Hello, Mr. Ferrell, I like the font you use on your intro card mentioning SurfShark as well as the other topics of smart home automation. Do you know what that font is called and where I can download it? It almost looks like a variation of HP Simplified, but it is subtly different.

Always love your smart home videos, Matt!

Best smart home video I’ve ever watched! Well done

Created my smart home around my seriously ill wife. Using Amazon Alexa enabled devices I set up smart bulbs and switches so that she could switch on and off lights via her voice, setup routines to alert me during the night when she required assistance, and when things got to the stage where she was confused and couldn’t make Alexa understand, I set up alarms using routines and Amazon buttons, one in the bathroom one in her bedroom and one in the lounge. Together with a couple of Wyze cameras I could check on her day and night from anywhere using the smart phone. Peace of mind for us both . Smart homes are not just for helping with mundane things but are extremely useful for disabled, elderly or ill people whether living alone or with someone you are never going to be alone and vulnerable again. p.s. Amazon bring back the simple button it is useful for much more than for playing games

Great video Matt with some great ideas! Nice job!!

Only my 3rd video but I like your style Matt no BS and open honest opinions. I'm planning to build my own house in the next 5 years and definitely looking to integrate things like solar and battery system etc

Nobody can convince me that the guy at 9:38 actually took a drink of coffee. Also great video, thanks!

Matt, your videos are top-notch, very pro! In this one you mention power switches for washers that send a message when the appliance is finished. I can't find any that are Alexa-compatible. Any advice? Also, do you know any that would work for a 3-wire range outlet?

Best home automation video available, thank you !

I like this video because, for most of the things, he isn't telling you to buy all these expensive light bulbs and washing machines, he's showing you how you can make the things you already have IoT-enabled.

My top smart home bits: #1) without question my most favorite is my smart thermostat. It cost about $60, integrates with my security system, and within the month, I saved $60 on my electric bill. #2) Automated irrigation. My system does *not* integrate with my alarm system (or anything else, as far as I know), but it will monitor both soil moisture and weather conditions; if the soil is damp enough, or if it's rained recently or forecast to do so before the next routine, it won't run. #3) my cameras. I know people have concerns about having cameras in the home and I perfectly well understand that (I myself don't even plug my Alexa in unless I'm actively using it for some of those same reasons!), but hear me out on this one. I was out of state for a week visiting a friend, and we had gone out of cell phone range into the mountains for the day. The minute I entered the service area, my phone blew up with notifications, including that my alarm system had lost power. I've lived here 18 years and can count on two hands (with fingers to spare) how many times I've lost power AT ALL, and on one (also with fingers to spare) that it's been off for longer than five minutes, so this was an exceedingly rare event. I immediately checked my alarm system, saw everything was armed, saw none of the glass break sensors had gone off, that none of the door or window sensors was triggered. Then I looked at the camera. I saw one cat passed out on the couch, and the other was happily eating, thought to myself "well it can't be that bad if the cats are relaxed", and would have forgot about it entirely I wasn't fielding panicked and hysterical phone calls from friends & family about the 5 stadium wide EF5 tornado that had just passed by my house, killed a bunch of people including by picking cars up off the overpass and throwing them to the ground, and generally wrought tons of havoc. And with my cameras? I knew everything was fine before I even knew there was a problem.

Great videos. Please keep it coming!

The Hubitat hud rocks. I'm using some similar smart home setups. Thanks for the washer and dryer tips.

Energy savings is my biggest goal at the moment. I like the idea of the SmartDry. I saw in another video that there was something to get for making a water heater work more efficiently. Unfortunately my water heater is not compatible. I recently installed a heat pump system and I’m under contract for a solar instal. I’ll keep an eye on the channel for more energy saving ideas.

Like always, great video. Thank you!

A friend recently discovered robotic (Smart) cat litter box. It looks like an escape pod from a spaceship but it's been a real game changer for her!

I have a lot of the same automations, although certainly not all. My main objective is voice control (as an option) for lights, TV, temperature, etc. One thought: when you have a case like your kitchen when one switch controls multiple lights, you really want a smart switch, even if smart bulbs will be fine -- the switch gives you the option of controlling lights either way. I have stuck with Alexa even though not entirely thrilled with it, and don't want a hub. There's a lot of complexity in all of this, and voice control gets harder as you have more devices, as you have to remember the incantation needed in that case.

Good video content! automation is key for me from garage doors, to Honeywell smart thermo, roomba etc..

Great video! I just would love if you could put a list on the description down to all the things that you mention! I’m looking for those humidity sensors, but you didn’t tell what brand are they

And wow that dryer thing is awesome!!

Great video Matt. I am such a nerd and want to do home automation so badly. I didn't realize you were listening in on our dinner conversations this weekend where I talked about looking for the "killer app". Even with your help, I can't see the value or wow over-weighing the hassle. Thanks for trying,...

This dude is next level smarthome savvy.

You got my sub for Blazing Saddles footage, lol. Brave, in today's environment!

I have a Neato vacuum cleaner and I notice that I don’t need to have her charging all the time. So I have a smart switch (HomeKit) that turns on one hour before it has to start vacuuming and one hour after it finishes. That gives the vacuum cleaner enough energy to do its work and save some energy at the same time.

I’m setting up my house right now, so at the moment I’m just looking to set up the most smart lights I can (have 2/3 bulbs, a couple of lamps and some leds, all from Hue); the automation for the tv looks very interesting and I’ll look into it!

Pro tip. Put one of those water sensors in your furnace water pan. My system was going on 10 years and it leaked over the water pan onto the ceiling above. The only way we knew the furnace was bad was when we saw the watermarks on the ceiling. $18,000 later we have a new furnace and one of those sensors in the water pan. Cheers

Hi Matt! Great video, very clear and precise! Any chances of making a new video on the best ways to improve the AWAY/AT HOME detection for a house when parents are away but kids may be at home with the nanny or grandparents?

Thanks so much for ur videos! What's the exact model for Yale lock? There are several on Amazon and I'm not sure which one ur recommending!

The only smart-home automation item I have (besides my powerwall... does that count?) is an Orbit b-hyve irrigation controller. I could see getting the garage door opener module as I've put solar on my garage roof the past year and when the sun is shining, the RF from either the panels/wiring/inverter interferes with the remote control. Surprised you didn't put in the doorbell as one of the top 10. That also seems very useful, especially for people that aren't home. TBH though, most of the other items seem frivolous, IMHO.

skynet approves of this.

Is there any way you could share your Hubitat automation for your Zooz ZEN15 and your washing machine? I've been messing with mine for two days...I feel like I'm getting close but I could be very very far off. I enjoy your videos, keep up the great work!

Hi Matt, what would be your recommandation for geofencing if wife and I have cellphone but not the kids.. motion detection?

One issue with Ecobee geofencing. As far as I can tell, it only detects if 1 device leaves the area. So if you are home and your wife runs to the shops, the ecobee goes into away, even though you are still home. With HomeKit, you can select the option of, if one OR if last person leaves. Also, if you run out for 5 minutes, and it is now in Away mode, it will not change to Home mode if you return before the status period has ended.

Hi. Can you suggest a few options to control a water geyser. Would you use a Thermostat ? We don't really have home heating in South Africa. We have created a Googlesphere with Google mesh and 5 Google assistant's around the house. Thank you. I wish I was in the USA!! We are so far behind and I have had to import most of my smart stuff.

Great video . What is the specific model of the Yale door lock you used in the video ?

Great video! Can you write an article showing how you did all this stuff?

Hi. matt good suggestions however what are your thought on smart blinds ?

I am new to this and am accessing my needs. Do you know it their is a heavy duty smart switch that can be used on 220 volt appliances like a electric hot water tank?

What is the humidity sensor you use? What protocol does it control the fan switch with? I have a use for a similar setup.

Nice video. Good tips and ideas to get started on this. Thanks

I have been using Insteon products for about 3 years - from internal and external cameras (useful for proving FedEx did not deliver when they claimed they did), motion detectors, thermostat, door sensors, water leak sensors, garage openers, front door locks, lights switches, etc, Multiple devices can be controlled through "scenes" and states of devices can also trigger other devices and so on , like turn TV on if motion detected while away. However, Insteon stopped providing support for remote front door openers which was a pain (I suspect insurance issues). I'm about ready to move from the Insteon hub to another more "open" system. It seems you like hubitat. What are its pros and coms? Do you use just the one systems or do you have many and if so how well do they integrate?

My son sometimes slams our deep freezer door when he shuts it and it can bounce back open. I setup a smartthings temperature sensor to send an alert when the freezer temperature goes above a certain temperature. Save our stuff in our freezer a time or two.

How do you make your Google assist or Alexa to announce the washer is done? Does all power plug support energy monitor?

for the smart "dryer", you could just set up a smart plug that notify you when its no longer drawing electricity right?

great stuff i am looking for a auto lock for a sliding glass patio door. sliders only can be locked from inside but is you have on a guest unit or pool house there is nothing any ideas

04:10 shots fired.. then remembering how comfy the bed is XD

Please provide the link of items explained in the video. I really like Automatic lighting (outside) . In my garage generally, I forget to switch it off. I don't want to use simple motion detection, because in some case, may be I am working in garage, and I want it to be on continuously.

Thanks for all of the clear advice although it comes at me rather quickly - but clearly! I am part way through connecting my lighting, front door access, video doorbell, Nest Thermostat and Nest smoke and carbon monoxide detectors.I have the Insteon system of switches, dimmers and outlets basically installed. I also have the Nest Thermostat and 3 Nest Protect devices installed. Then I have the newest Eufy video doorbell 2K as suggested by you. (Thanks) The Eufy is battery powered and I have purchased the very same 24volt transformer so that I can plug it into the wall. This means that I have the Eufy Homebase 2. I want to find out if there is a base system that I can add that will link all of these devices. I had purchase the Insteon switches, dimmers and outlets prior to my limited knowledge of bases to which I can go to link all of my current items. I am completely at a dead end and ideally would like to employ someone to help me finish the project. I have had nothing but problems with my Nest products. I've had the thermostat replaced 2 times and hired a Nest Pro prior to the 3rd unit in my home. The Nest Protects (3) have all been replaced twice and one of them three times! They seem to be 'working' now. I got a false Carbon Monoxide reading once and Protect did turn off my Air Conditioning system as it should. Can you think of any base that will link the Insteon, Nest and Eufy products? And an installer? Sorry for length. Ron

Saving energy is a good place to start. An even better place to start is saving money by saving energy. Which kind of energy is the large chunk of your bill and which devices or rooms are using that much. concentrate on the big ones and try to invest in something that will earn itself back long it needs to be replaced. That way you earn money for new improvements. If is heating, a programmable thermostat in every room that can demand for heat only when needed can save you up to 50% certainly if you make sure the heating system is properly maintainted and (cv)-tuned. I love honeywell evohome. Electricity is kind of hard, most people have already changed their halogeen lights for leds so not much to do there. Fridge and freezer is often the next station together with desktop computers and large TV's.

Great shirt!

what did you use for the auto lock door please? what do i need buy? i am the one always forgot to lock the door. i want something to auto luck on my bed time

thanks for the inspiration - particularly liked the announcement that the laundry was done but how do you get alexa or google assistant to make such an announcement? I settled for a smartplug so when the electricity drops below 0.01, then turn on a light, but i would have preferred an annoucement - seems that is not so easy to do

Matt, looking for the best wireless (battery operated) video doorbell that works well with Google Assistant. Is Nest my best option? What else would work well?

For a device like your humidifier... it looks like its controlled via a button on top, or is it a dumb humidifier that automatically runs when power is applied?

Hey Matt. I find most people in my store are scared of smart tech. Any resources, sites or links for dummies I can suggest or tips? You can recommend i read to help my uses transition? Thanks mate.

I am using a smart things hub with door sensors, and an ecobee thermostat. I really want, and need, and automation that will turn off air conditioning if doors are left open. There is currently an automation on the smart things app that does this, however it is incredibly inconsistent. It will work once and then it will stop working. I am not sure if I have other stipulations on this automation that’s preventing the AC from turning off. Any suggestions?

I tried a Lenovo humidity detection switch in my bathroom and despite my trying differerent settings, I could never get it to turn on and off at the correct time, so I had to remove it. That's a shame, and it dented my faith that other systems like that could work.

As always great video!

I have a automation setup that when i go to bed, my lights auto turn off, works like a charm :)

I have a hue hub will the Caseta wireless dimmer work with that hub so I don't have to have another running I would like to stay with Hue as that's what I have but my new kitchen in a new apartment has 5 led lights in the kitchen that I cant make smart bulbs so I need to go with a smart switch instead?

Thanks Matt.

Thank you, Can you explain how you set away status? How Hubitat decide that anybody is home?

Hey man awesome video thanks 😊

What do I need to run a smart home? I’ve seen a lot of stuff about ubiqiti, access points and switches to run these devices. To me, a non-techie guy, it seems expensive and overkill. Would a simple internet connection and router be enough?

So your saying I can find out when your gone and disable your alarms online before robbing your house.. Gotta love the new technology

Whats the app or hub that you use? And one that you recommend to use from your best bet/experience? I see some hubs with a dashboard display panel, and some just hubs. I am in dilemma between hub with displays vs hubs and have a control over an app. which one you'd suggest from your experience/setup?

I got drawn in by the thumbnail. That bed looks like the one I’m considering from Article.

I'm running home assistant on a NUC and find it really flexible and awesome. If you haven't looked into Node-Red yet on home assistant - give it a try. It's way more flexible than any other system and yet still user friendly. My automations include a home-made smart doorbell based on a $17 ESP board with camera+wifi+PIR. When the PIR fires, members of my family get a text notification with a picture even before someone rings the actual doorbell :) Oh, and I bought a bunch of cheap google home minis and put them around the house for a very affordable notification system. Now I can call everyone to dinner with a touch of a button! Lastly, HA integrates very neatly with my Model 3 so I can remotely control it, charge it and track its location.

All the options, all the hubs, all the rules... I'm exhausted just watching this video! I've worked in tech for 40 years (software engineer) and I still get the heebie-jeebies when contemplating home automation. Plus, living in a household where one or more occupants are luddites does not make things any easier. In any case, thanks for the info -- it still looks like there's a ways to go before home automation is for everyone.

You should really invest in an automatic water shut off valve. It’ll shut off your main water supply and the sensor will show where the leak is. I have one and it’s well worth your time.

Thanks for great video. Definitely gives me plenty to think about. The question that nags me is how safe or secure is the connectivity. Could it be hacked and leave your house open, or someone watching you at home using your own video surveillance system?

Great video! And my family calls me a "geek"