Malvern East Family Home

The brief

This is a home built around people: a pool, an outdoor kitchen and fireplace, a golf simulator, an alfresco made for long evenings. The owners did not want to automate everything, and they were right not to. They wanted the parts that earn their keep: music that moves with the party, confidence the house is watched while they travel, and one motion to close the whole place down instead of a final lap of the house.

What we installed

A considered, targeted setup on Apple Home. Key lighting for the leave-home and bedtime routines. Music through the living spaces and out across the alfresco, one tap from anywhere. An alarm that arms itself as the last person leaves, backed by cameras, a video doorbell and locks. The garage and gate answer the phone. Climate joins the same scenes, so the house settles when the family does.

Tags:  Lighting, Multi-room audio, Garage and gate, Smart locks, Sensors, Alarm, CCTV, Video doorbell, Climate control, Scene automatio

What changed

Walking out the door is now the whole routine: everything off, alarm on, house waiting. And when thirty people are spread from the kitchen to the fire pit, the soundtrack keeps up without anyone leaving the conversation.

"Enjoying the ability to walk out the door and have everything switch off and the alarm arm, and the multi-room audio."

FAQs

Do you have to automate the whole house?

No, and often you shouldn't. This project automated only what the family would actually use, lighting routines, audio, security and climate, for $15,000 to $20,000. A well-chosen partial installation delivers most of the everyday benefit, and because it runs on an open platform it extends whenever you're ready.

Can outdoor areas be included?

Yes. The alfresco here has audio, lighting and ceiling fans in the same system as the rest of the house, so outdoor entertaining runs from the same app and the same scenes as everything indoors.

Credits: Architecture by Project Ten Fifty Five. Built by Calibre Custom Builders.

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