# smart home products / wireless thermostats



## Versoman (Jan 6, 2006)

Just wondering what smart home gadgets you guys have got and what you could not live without since buying

Thinking of having a new heating system installed what wireless thermostats do you have or are they a waste of time


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## Paul04 (Jul 26, 2013)

Interested in this too, would like to hear people's thoughts.


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## kimm87 (Mar 29, 2015)

I got the Danfoss living connect system with wireless thermostat. Works great, we heat our home with an oil furnace and the ability to program and control the heating schedule at all times saves us about 20% in oil spend. 

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## tommyboy40 (Feb 28, 2012)

I have all my house lighting replaced by Philips Hue smart lighting. My smoke and carbon monoxide doctors replaced by smart units. My heating is controlled by a nest unit and my audio and video from a central point. Difficulty level 3.
It works like this: I arrive home, the lights come on automatically to my preset state, other settings are voice controlled ( evening, shower, tidying and doing it) Smoke/ monoxide detectors connected to the lights to flash in orange for a warning and red for a fire. the detectors are also connected to the heating to ensure a gas shut off in the event of a fire and also to keep the heating off if i'm not home. From all this it costs €0.043 per hour to run my house on electricity. This man maths is necessary to own 3 x 5.0 V8,


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## tosh (Dec 30, 2005)

I was looking at Hive yesterday as they have 20% off if you are a British Gas customer...

They have smart plugs, dimmable lights, door/window switches and movement detectors and have recently introduced IFTTT integration. So for about 200 quid for boiler only or 500 quid for lots of bells and whistles, it's good value. 

I think the next level is Honeywell evo home, but that just does heating at the moment, but uses radiator valves in all rooms. 

The nice thing about Hive is that the sensors are all battery based, lithium that last a couple of years. Also looks like a system they will keep adding to. 

Can't keep waiting for a reasonably priced HomeKit system and this may have to do for the time being. 

I think it's a no brainier for the heating and a few sensors personally. 


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## Del-GTi (Mar 31, 2007)

I installed Hive earlier this year as it was on special offer in Screwfix. So, as it's just starting to get in to colder weather, I'll be looking to see how it performs. So far, so good. It's definitely better when it comes to timing events.

I love how I can monitor the temperature of the house during the day when no one is home (and turn down the thermostat when the wife goes out and leaves it cranked up). It's also great for switching on the heating on the way home, as sometimes our arrival time varies, so it's better than a timer. Also house heats up pretty quickly, so can keep heating off during the day when no one is home. 

I'm looking at investing in a couple of bulbs/motion sensors, as hive have recently developed 'receipes' so for examples you can set it to switch on a light in the hall when the front door opens.

Pay particular attention to where you install the 'stat as there are a few different opinions as to where you should put it. In saying that, Hive have released a stand for it recently so you can always move it from room to room. 

I'd definitely have a look at installing it yourself, especially if you have an existing thermostat. I was gonna get it put in by a electrician mate, but when I realised how easy it was, I'd did it myself. Watch out for deals, as I paid £125 for my kit and that is for a standard boiler with separate hot water tank.

As previously mentioned, Hive has recently started supporting IFTTT and are supposed to be releasing security cameras too, so plenty of scope for home automation.


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## tosh (Dec 30, 2005)

Hive have announced they have Amazon Alexa support; so you can now speak to your heating for 50 quid (Echo Dot)


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## shl-kelso (Dec 27, 2012)

I have Honeywell Evo and full room by room zone control. It should connect to Alexa directly and can also use IFTTT. Honeywell also have their new Evo security system too that links API as the heating controls.


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