Lawn Irrigation or Maintenance — Do It Smartly!

In southern California, we really need to have lawn irrigation if you want to grow anything like grass. It can also help with fire safety, depending on how you have it configured. There are multiple ways this issue can be solved.

Option 1 — Hire somebody! This is probably the solution you are doing right now, but it is constantly leaving you tied to someone else’s schedule and pricing. By using various technology solutions, you can minimize your paid service to only do monthly or seasonal maintenance.

Option 2 — Replace with zero scape yard. For some, this is a mostly rock design, but many of the local plants are designed to work with the current climate conditions. This means you don’t need to water except for a few times a year during the worst of the dry season. These yards can be beautiful with very little maintenance!

Option 3 — Most people cannot or don’t want to redo the entire yard. Most of us need a more balanced update to our yards. This starts by reviewing what you like or dislike about your yard. Now you can start making changes that will achieve what is really not working for you! This might be removing the bushes that require frequent trimming, replace/remove a tree that is near end of life, and review the conditions of your plants to see what is working and what is not.

Now, once you have that data, you can review some technology solutions to see what is the best fit. This could be just a rain gauge to make sure you don’t water when water has fallen from the sky recently. You may want something more accurate and allows you to water in a zone specific manner! This would involve adding soil moister sensors so plants that need different water requirements can be watered specific to their needs, but not a gallon extra.

A major upgrade would be if you tied this to AI or other monitoring technology. Most of them can be accessed via your phone. Very important information for ensuring your yard really showcases your home!

Give me a call if you require some help trying to figure out what type of update best fits your needs!

And don’t forget, if you have a small yard and like to do it yourself, a “robot” lawn mower may be the solution for you!

Using Smart Home Technology — Smartly!

When it comes to smart home technology, there are an endless amount of possibilities if you have an unlimited budget. The first decision you need to make is what are your priorities and how much they weigh against each other. Some want their home to automate various household duties so they get more time for other tasks in our life. Many of us look at smart home technology as a way to increase the value of our home investment. Some look for security enhancements, especially as the world becomes more crazy. Other considerations are the “wow” factor. The ability to say, I have this and it is great! Most of us have multiple priorities, but they are not all of equal value.

Make a list of your wants. I want to automate some maintenance tasks. I want help with the efficiency of tasks like laundry, cooking, etc… Your concern may be energy consumption without having to negatively impact your day-to-day life. Once you have that list, break each item down into how that happens. Do you want to upgrade your lawn watering from the garden hose sprinkler setup to a permanently installed irrigation system with soil water sensors and computer controls? Now you need to work with the right specialists to see how you are going to accomplish your wants and what will it costs. Another consideration is the complexity of the solution. If you are not technically inclined, you do not want a solution that requires constant human supervision/input to ensure optimal performance.

Now you need to look at the various solutions and see which is the priority. It may be that you really want to install solar panels with a whole house battery option, but considering you have a new roof and the cost of installation, it may not be as good of an investment as upgrading various household appliances. Both would give you productivity/efficiency improvements but with completely different household impacts and budgets.

This is where someone like myself who is familiar with a very wide range of technologies can be really helpful. I can help you make this decision with informed knowledge. Coordinate the solution with various installers to minimize the installation disruption to your life and household. Make sure you are left with the appropriate knowledge to use and maintain the new technology.

For example, you decide that you want to improve energy efficiency to minimize AC needs. So upon reviewing your current setup, we tackle this problem with multiple solutions. First we review your AC equipment to see if it should be upgrade or replaced. Let’s assume that your unit is not new but fully functional and not horrible on energy usage. Next we look at your home. Maybe we think about windows. Something simple like upgrading to double pane windows with blinds built inside between the glass panes could be a major enhancement. We might also consider your home insulation. Insulating everything probably doesn’t make sense but enhancing the attic insulation and maybe just doing the west/south facing exterior walls could give us significant enhancements to your ability to control the interior temperatures without needing extensive AC usage. Let’s say when you recently did that roof upgrade you installed some skylights that have the ability to open and close using a manual hand crank. Now we have an opportunity to really think about smart technologies. Using a local contractor we could install a motor to open and close the skylights via the manual hand cracks. The motor could be installed on a “smart switch”. Now that switch can be controlled wirelessly via an app on your phone. Lets assuming you install a whole house fan that you also can control via a smart switch. You would probably set up another switch/controller on your AC system. Now you can use your phone to turn on/off the AC, open/close the skylights, turn on/off the whole house fan, etc…. Depending on the app involved, you could have all of that tied directly to some temperature settings. So if temperature is above X use AC and close everything up. If it is between X and Y; turn off AC, open skylights, and turn on whole house fan (assuming the rain sensor says it is dry). If it is below X, close everything up and turn heater on.

Someone like myself can help you see the effective solutions for today and the long term plan so as equipment is replaced over time you have technology that can work together. There are even AI systems that can monitor, control, and optimize these technologies assuming you make informed decisions about compatibility.

Mobile Monitors/Screens

Do you work from your laptop but need more “screen” to work effectively? Require a solution other than packing up a full size monitor? Technology has come a long way, so let us walk through some options!

Use a locally available TV screen. You should always carry/bring with you an HDMI cable, especially if you do a lot of hotel travel. You may even want to bring a “long” HDMI cable so you can stretch out on the bed while your laptop is connected to the TV on the wall.

Travel laptop monitor are now viable and really allow you to make the “office on the go” not a major productivity hit!

For those looking for a “large screen” solution, a projection screen is the way to go. Most of these can be used with a typical “white” wall but would have much better quality if you bring a screen as well. Keep in mind that these solutions normally do not work well in direct/bright light conditions.

Some upcoming technology will be bendable/rollable screens. They are not widely available yet, but as the technology matures, the price will drop and availability will increase. Give me a call/text/email if you would like some help figuring out the best solution for you!

Online Meetings — Webcam and Headphones

Most of us are now using the computer, tablet, or cell phone for live meetings or recording video content. One of the primary tools for getting this done is a webcam.

Webcams are typically built into any laptop and all-in-one computer setups. If you have a stand-alone monitor, typically you will purchase a USB connected webcam to set on top. Nothing prevents a laptop user from using a USB webcam, and you may find the picture quality greatly improved because your monitor angle does not directly impact your camera and external equipment is typically higher quality.

I highly recommend those using a stand-alone monitor or a laptop purchase a USB webcam to set on top, even if you have a camera in your laptop. For effective meeting experience, you need to be looking directly at your monitor screen and have the camera position be ABOVE your eye level. If you have a laptop sitting on a desk or your lap, and you look down at it, it will add weight to your features and give many viewers an EXCELLENT viewing angle of your nose hairs! Some options are:

All of these models have face recognition technology. Do NOT purchase a webcam that doesn’t automatically focus. You do not want to be adjusting the camera focus point every time you move during a one hour or longer meeting.

Most webcams have a microphone, which is good if you are in a quiet room with soft surfaces to absorb background noise or echoes. Some even of noise-canceling features. Since most of us cannot guarantee a quiet space for all meetings, I highly recommend investing in some cordless headphones. Even an inexpensive Bluetooth stereo headphones with microphone will normally give you a much better audio than if you just use the built-in microphone or the one in the webcam. This is a necessity if you are using your phone or tablet for the meeting or in a noise space. Some options are:

Almost all meeting technology (WebEx, Zoom, Microsoft Teams, FaceTime, etc…) has customizable settings for the webcam and audio. Please take the time to review these features and ensure you have them set to maximize your meeting experience. Depending on your setup, you may find investing in a “light” will improve your video image quality but don’t forget to check your meeting settings. A lot of issues can be resolved, just be adjusting the video and audio settings.

If you need some help recommend the best setup for you and running a few dry runs to make sure it is all working correctly, just reach out!