Ceiling Fan Update

When I originally worked with my interior designer on the master bedroom, one item that I neglected to finish was upgrading the old ceiling fan to something that better fit the design style. I finally got around to that recently, and installed a new wifi-enabled smart ceiling fan that really nicely integrates with Amazon Alexa, … Continue reading Ceiling Fan Update

Ring Security Camera

When all of the Lake Wisconsin flooding happened last year, I installed a security camera system at the lake house that would allow me to remotely keep tabs on the dock, boat lift, and boat. I went with an inexpensive wired security system, which worked well but broke over the winter when a tree branch … Continue reading Ring Security Camera

Nest

For a long time, I’ve wanted to replace the thermostat that controls HVAC for the top two floors of the house. My wife hated the old one, and it was clunky with no ability to control via my phone. I took advantage of a Black Friday deal for a Nest Learning Thermostat at the Home … Continue reading Nest

Boat Lift Fiasco

Several weeks ago when I was in Dallas, I received word from my realtor that the boat lift (and the boat) at the lake house was in danger of being swept away due to flooding on Lake Wisconsin and the Wisconsin River. After following up for more information, I was eventually able to get ahold … Continue reading Boat Lift Fiasco

SmartThings Smoke Alarm

One of the many home automation technologies that I use in my houses is Samsung SmartThings. It supports a wide array of sensors, integrated well with Alexa and Arlo, and provides a slick phone UI with the ability to manage multiple homes. For a long time, I’ve used the SmartThings Leak Sensor to monitor for … Continue reading SmartThings Smoke Alarm

So Many New Echoes!

As noted in many previous posts, I have a ton of smart devices throughout my houses, all tied together by a plethora of Amazon Echoes. Today, as described in detail in a post on Gizmodo, Amazon rolled out a ton of new Echo devices. I’m excited to see how I can incorporate them into my … Continue reading So Many New Echoes!