3 Ways to Go Whole-Home with Lighting Control Systems

Lighting control is one of the most sought-after smart home features. We’ve written at length on these pages about the virtues of smart lighting, from energy efficiency to aesthetics and wellness. And while lighting control can be applied to one area of your house or the entire Cumming, GA property, we are a big advocate for whole-home lighting control systems.

Why? The reason is straightforward: The benefits in convenience, luxury, safety, and energy efficiency multiply when you can manage your entire home’s lighting intelligently. And while you might think that it sounds more complicated to do your entire house, you might be surprised to learn that lighting control systems – like those from Lutron – are adaptable for retrofit installation as well as for new construction and major remodels.

Keep reading below to explore three ways of adding smart lighting to your home!

SEE ALSO: 4 Elegant Keypad Options for Whole-Home Lighting Control

Wireless Lighting Systems

What is a wireless lighting system? Generally, it means that you don’t have to rewire all your lighting loads (the switches that control the lights). Systems like Lutron’s RadioRA 2 operate from wireless keypads that communicate through wireless radio frequency (not Wi-Fi) to provide an instant and reliable response at the press of a button.

A repeater system links all your wireless wall controls to coordinate them and spread the network without communicating back to a central point. This differs from a centralized system with lighting loads wired to a main "brains" controller that manages the automated lighting for the home.

This wireless system can replace simple light switches and dimmers with smart, multifunctional keypads and provide you with the ability to control lights in one room or many at once. Best of all, it requires minimal wiring and no rerouting of your electrical wiring.

Centralized Lighting Systems

Centralized lighting systems are sometimes called "panelized" as there is a central panel located in the home where all the lighting loads are wired (much like your breaker panel), and the intelligence is located there. The main advantage of this is that smart wall controls can be placed anywhere since lighting is wired back to and controlled by the centralized panel rather than by local dimmers and switches. In addition, centralized systems offer greater design flexibility with controls and scalability, as systems like Lutron’s HomeWorks QS can manage thousands of devices across extensive properties, even with multiple structures.

Hybrid Systems

As the name implies, a hybrid system could use both models. For example, say you are adding an addition to your home. With new construction, you could install a centralized system with efficient electrical runs to the main panel and flexible controls without location limitations. You could also add smart lighting to the rest of your home with a wireless approach. Lutron’s HomeWorks QS allows for a hybrid model for flexibility and scalability. Plus, you don't have to make every light in your home smart if you don’t see the need. Closets, minor rooms, and other spaces may be fine with typical light switches and dimmers. 

Whether centralized, wireless, or hybrid, GHT Group is your local expert lighting company for the ultimate in smart lighting and home technology solutions. Get started learning about smart whole-home lighting control by visiting our Marietta showroom, contacting us here, or clicking the chatbox below to quickly connect with one of our lighting experts. We look forward to working with you!