Do you use any sort of home automation devices? If so, how have they helped in your rental business?
What are they?
Like remote light bulbs and thermostats?
Yeah. Those are the best examples.
We use solar powered garden lights to light the path from the front of the house to the guests entry, and a motion sensor light to let them see the entry. We let the guests control their own AC.
Motion sensor light here too
Lockstate 6i smartlock, motion sensors, automated room lights, Nest camera and Nest thermostats, Singled outdoor cam.
Camera too here. Pos
Astro Clocks that switch on the exterior lighting. Switch on at Dawn and off at 0:00. Switch on at 06:00 and off at sunrise.
Currenlty saving up for some Z-Wave equipment for a better pump and lighting steering.
Where does the Nest camera point?
Do you get requests to change the thermostat remotely or do guests do it themselves?
$12 light bulb in porch light that senses light so it comes on and off automatically with sunrise and sunset.
Yale Keyless Entry ZWave Front Door Lock.
Vera Lite Home ZWave Hub that programs the Yale Lock with 30 sepreate resetable codes, turns on 3 seperate lamps in 3 seperate rooms using scenes using Zwave power outlets.
This is only marginally on topic, but would anyone like to weigh in on the pros and cons of timers vs motion sensors? I donât know if this is too specialist for a separate thread.
Is the goal security or allowing the guest to see? I prefer a light sensor over a timer. For about 2USD you can get a screw-in sensor, which will turn the light on when it gets dark and burn through the night or until someone turns it off. This way, the guest will be able to leave the switch on and the light will be on for them if it gets dark before they get back, without having burned all day long.
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I use a Smarthings automation hub. It has no monthly fees.
I have a Schlage keypad deadbolt for guests to come in and out. Paired with the Rboy Smartthings lock app, it lets me set the 4 digit codes to their last 4 digits of their phone number, and have it start and expire at a specific date & time.
I have a Nest thermostat that it can control and automate the temperature based on time and presence (hub connected presence sensors throughout the house).
I have my outdoor and landscaping lights set to turn on 100% after dusk, and dim to 15% for the rest of the night before turning off around 3am.
I have an Amazon Echo connected to the Smartthings hub that guests can ask Alexa to turn on/off the lights or the TV/Roku.
Motion sensors connected to my hub allow me to use it as a poor manâs security system, and I can also check them to know whether my guests have checked out of the house.
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The camera covers the entrance, the door only. it has a trigger that sends me a text if/when something happens in their zone. I can toggle thru moments that are recorded of activity so that, for example, I can see guests enter, and possibly smuggling in other person lol.
The nest is in the open but the nest allows for a limited range (72 to 76 for example) to be adjusted manually. I also see and can control it remotely. Also, it is âsmartâ so it senses when people are away etc.
Hi @felixcat,
The goal is having the light on when necessary. I think a motion sensor coupled with a light sensor (so the motion sensor is inactive in the daytime) is not a bad way to go, provided the technology is reliable and doesnât have much in the way of false positives.
We use none. Possibly the reason is that our rental is Mid-Century Modern built in 1949. I might be very wrong but I believe that guests like the âtime-warpâ experience. If we introduced modern devices, it would possibly detract from the MCM experience.
The stove dates from 1949 (and works brilliantly!) as does the entire 1949 kitchen and the bathroom. The most modern thing is the microwave for our guestsâ convenience.
Admittedly, we are a niche. But hopefully one that our guests appreciate â old Florida!
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$200 for the Nest Cam. We have the thermostats and 
ď¸:heart:ď¸:heart:ď¸ them. I was holding out for the YaleLinus lock that connects directly with Nest but Im going to just get a Smart Things Hub