We hear a lot about smart homes and how to turn your kitchen and living areas into tech-savvy spaces, but have you ever wondered how to ensure your backyard is keeping pace?The team at Bunnings suggests the following ways to make your outdoor area smarter, safe and more efficient with clever technology.
Create a free account to read this article
or signup to continue reading
Light ideas
As the sun sets and evening hits into a sultry summer evening, keeping the party going with ambient lighting and good tunes has never been easier - it's all connected. If your house has light bulbs under cover, it's relatively simple to upgrade your bulbs. Sengled light bulbs are LED, providing excellent brightness and efficiency, and some models also feature a built-in speaker from JBL. Up to eight can work together to really spread the party music.
Irrigation on tap
Remembering to turn on your watering system in the heat of summer can be a matter of life or death for plants. Timers have been around for a long time, but are now digital and can be connected to your smartphone. Try a product such as the Holman 'BTX1', which clips onto your tap fitting and allows you to use an app to set water times. A larger investment of the smart watering systems will be an added cost, but have the ability to manage watering zones, water according to the weather and even integrate with your home voice assistant. Remember to make sure your watering system is compliant for water restrictions in your local area.
Security!
Smart lighting can also have a security function, switching on to flood an area with light when motion is detected, or operated remotely via an app to welcome you home. Arlo's weather-resistant wireless version works on rechargeable batteries and can be linked to the Pro 2 security camera, triggering it to start recording when the light is activated. The Pro 2 can be battery powered or charged with a solar panel, so can be positioned almost anywhere. It has two-way audio so you can speak to anyone who might turn up at your front door, and night vision that switches on automatically when is gets darker.
Meat and greet
One of the greatest Aussie traditions is a backyard barbie - and when guests are over, the pressure is on to not burn the steaks. Whether you'd call it cheating or clever cooking, there's an app for that. Upgrade your barbecue to something such as the Matador 'Radiant Pro' kettle, which has a built-in feature to regulate the temperature of the barbecue, so you can cook or slow cook without hands-on intervention.
For more information, visit bunnings.com.au.