Control4 home automation

What a Control4 system actually does

Most homes we work in have a dozen separate systems that were never designed to talk to each other — a lighting system, a heating system, an alarm, a set of cameras, a handful of TVs, a music system, motorised shades, a gate. Control4 sits above all of them and presents one consistent interface, whether you're standing at a keypad in the hallway or looking at your phone from an airport lounge.

The practical difference is the number of decisions you have to make. Instead of four remotes and three apps, there is one button marked Movie. Instead of walking the house at night, there is one marked Goodnight. The complexity does not go away — it moves into the programming, where it belongs.

Scenes, schedules and automation

We programme scenes around how you actually use the house. Arrival lighting that responds to the gate opening. Shades that track sunrise and sunset through the year rather than a fixed clock. Heating that steps back when a wing is unoccupied. A single away command that arms the alarm, drops every shade, sets back the climate and confirms it on your phone.

For second homes and rental properties this matters more than it does anywhere else. A house that manages itself between visits is a house that is warm, secure and ready when you land.

Integration with everything else

Control4 is only as good as what it is connected to. We integrate Lutron lighting and shading, Sonos and Episode audio, video distribution, security cameras, alarm panels, door locks, gates, video intercoms, pool and spa controls, snowmelt, and irrigation. Where a manufacturer offers a certified Control4 driver we use it; where they don't, we usually find another way in.

Upgrades and takeovers

A large part of our work is systems somebody else installed. Control4 has changed considerably over the last decade and older OS 2 systems can often be brought up to current OS 3 or OS 4 without replacing every piece of hardware. We are happy to take over an orphaned system, document what is there, and give you a straight answer about what is worth keeping.