You can’t move these days without having some sort of smart tech waved in your face, like smart lighting. But if you’re thinking of trying some out, you can’t go wrong starting with smart home security.

This branch of smart home tech features products that allow you to monitor your home inside and out. It’ll also alert you (or the emergency services) should anything untoward happen.

‘With smartphone functionality,’ explains Kevin Spencer, Product Manager at Yale UK, ‘smart security gadgets offer complete freedom to monitor, control and capture live footage of inside and outside of your home wherever, whenever. In short, smart security products have all the benefits of traditional security systems, alongside the benefit of convenience and peace of mind.’

What devices make up a smart security system?

Image credit: Yale

In the world of smart security for your home, there’s a wide range of gadgets and gizmos to choose from. The most popular include the best video doorbells and cameras. And there are even personal delivery lockers that you install at your front door to keep your deliveries safe. There’s also the option to choose between wired or wireless devices. Wireless devices are great as you won’t don’t need to worry about recharging a battery. While battery powered versions are an ideal choice for renters who might wish to take their tech with them when they move on.

‘Although “smart” by nature,’ explains Kevin from Yale UK, ‘smart security gadgets work simply through a Wi-Fi or wireless connection via a smartphone or tablet. This ensures complete flexibility over how to secure or monitor your home. This smart technology allows for the ultimate control, through instant notifications directly through to a smartphone.’

‘This flexibility,’ continues Kevin, ‘allows homeowners to remotely monitor their property whatever the time, wherever the location. This also means homeowners can rely on their own diligence to protect their home. And not relying on neighbours or passers-by to notify you of any unusual activity in or around your home.’

Image credit: Ring

What smart security device should I choose?

If you’re not sure which device to start your smart security set up with, probably the easiest and most practical is a video doorbell. Having the freedom to answer your door and see and speak to callers via your smartphone is a huge bonus when you’re not home. As for your home’s exterior, the best security cameras bulk up the security around your home and give you eyes on your property and boundaries. Some cameras have built-in security floodlights that switch on when the motion sensors are activated, deterring intruders.

The more expansive systems can trigger a loud siren if they detect someone trying to break in. Others can even call the police on your behalf. Indoor cameras give you the ability to monitor rooms in your home, your pets’ behaviour and even troublesome teens. They give you a bird’s eye view of your home’s interior, so you can keep tabs on your family’s comings and goings. Many of the latest models now come with lens covers, too. This affords you added privacy, so you can block the camera without having to turn it off completely.

Invest in a whole home smart security system

Image credit: Netatmo

‘With smartphones and their associated apps seamlessly blending into our day to day lives,’ says Kevin, ‘it’s become an essential part of the smart security market that these gadgets work together as part of a wider ecosystem to make it even more convenient for homeowners.’

So if it’s convenience you’re after, look for security packages that offer a selection of products together. Bulk buying like this is usually rewarded with discounts too, compared to buying devices separately. Bundles vary in size from a simple entry level-worthy two cameras to the semi-professional. These could include the best home security system, cameras, entry and motion sensors and even a panic button.

Control everything centrally

Image credit: Google Nest

Linking your security devices up to a smart home network means you can then control them all via your smart speaker. Google Nest and the Amazon-owned Ring products are obvious choices, but most devices will have the capability to connect to Siri, Alexa or Google Assistant.

‘Yale’s Sync Smart Home Alarm range has been developed to work conveniently with other smart security products in the Yale range,’ explains Kevin, ‘but also to work with brand partners in the smart space. This includes leading voice assistants such as Amazon Alexa and Google Home. Not only does this allow controlling your smart alarm much easier, but this functionality also offers the ultimate convenience to control your smart security products using just your voice.

Staying loyal to smart security brands pays off

Image credit: Simplisafe

For ease of use, aim to buy all of your security devices from one company. Being able to access everything via one app will make your life so much easier. It’ll also be lot less confusing than having to toggle between multiple apps all the time. Do your research before you buy if you know the kind of devices you’re interested in, ideally choosing the brand that offers everything you’re looking for.

Bear in mind that most smart security companies save the best features for those that sign up to a subscription service, with the most useful being video playback. Expect to pay from around £2.50 per month. Trusted brands include the aforementioned Yale, Google Nest, and Ring, as well as Arlo, Simplisafe, Swann, Hive, Netatmo, Ezviz, Somfy and TP-Link, to name a few.

The post What exactly is smart home security? Here’s everything you need to know appeared first on Ideal Home.

The days are getting longer, spring is almost here, and B&M has a fab new tiki bar and parasol. They look perfect for transforming the most tired and ordinary patios into an exotic retreat.

Available from tomorrow, they’re sure to bring the carefree summer vibes we’re craving. If you’ve been pinning garden bar ideas on Pinterest lately, you’re in good company.

A ‘garden pub’ is actually the garden feature we want the most for summer 2022, according to research by online garden retailer Primrose.

B&M tiki bar set

Image credit: B&M

From February 28th, this fabulous B&M tiki bar will be available in-store and on the B&M website. Keep a beady eye out for it as we predict it’ll sell out in the blink of an eye.

The tiki bar itself comes with two bar stools in matching rattan material, and has a glass top practical for wiping up any spillages. Altogether the set costs £350.

All that’s missing are your cocktail-making supplies, glasses, and some sunny weather. We’re loving that faux thatched roof.

B&M tiki parasol

Image credit: B&M

Take your tropical outdoor living room ideas one step further with this B&M tiki parasol. At just £24, it is a bargain.

Matching the B&M tiki bar, it’ll make it feel like you’re at a beach bar on holiday, as well as providing some shade on hot summer days. This garden shade idea would look great with wicker armchairs and some brightly coloured outdoor cushions.

Together, the parasol and bar will bring a relaxed and beachy feel to your outdoor space. The organic feel and neutral tones will also fit in nicely with existing garden furniture.

Image credit: B&M

Not to mention all the benefits of having your own home bar – no last orders or premium pricing when you’re drinking homemade margaritas and gin and tonics. We recommend making glass name tags and a handwritten menu so guests can place their orders.

A garden bar is above all a great social feature outside when entertaining. People will naturally gravitate towards it just like they might gather around the kitchen island or a barbecue.

The post B&M’s new tiki bar and parasol are hitting stores tomorrow appeared first on Ideal Home.

The coronavirus lockdown saw our favourite pubs shutting their doors, with many of us getting creative at home with cocktails, and free-poured G&T’s one man took his creativity a step further and brought the pub into his own garden ideas. The lockdown project cost him just £802, with many items sourced for free from Facebook marketplace.

Thomas Sherratt, 31 from Stoke-on-Trent told Ideal Home that he had the idea for his very own backyard bar just over a year ago, in the UK’s first lockdown.

Tiki-inspired garden pub

‘With my wife being pregnant and the pubs being shut I needed to do something,’ the dad-of-two said of the unique garden shed idea. ‘We had been talking about doing a home bar but never went through with it.’

Image credit: Thomas Sheratt

Thomas said he came across tiki bars online, thought they ‘looked cool’ and set out to build one of his own. ‘I collected loads of things from reclamation yards to closing down pubs, to skips and Facebook marketplace,’ the electrician said.

Most of the material was salvaged by Thomas for free, including 27 wooden pallets destined for the skip which he used for the bar’s walls and roof (the ultimate pallet idea for a garden); a free double fridge from a restaurant closure, a free log burner and fire bricks from Facebook Marketplace, and a free beer cooler from a bar closing down. 

In progress

Image credit: Thomas Sheratt

He sourced items at a budget price too, including a corrugated roof from a farm (£30), wooden cladding from Facebook Marketplace for £50; and a large table (£60), bar optics (£90), bar signs (£10) and beer glasses (£20) from a pub closure.

‘We started on a piece of the garden that was just a blank canvas of hardwood,’ he added. The project took Thomas eight weeks to build, and he learned how to do it along the way by watching Youtube videos and using forums. ‘I loved every minute of it,’ he said. ‘The best part was when the bar was put in.

The finished result

Image credit: Thomas Sheratt

‘We have pumps on the go and we have loads of beers from lagers to craft beers, as well as spirits,’ he told us. ‘We also do take passion in keeping it local and getting a load from local breweries and distilleries,’

The Tiki Junglebar has a thatched roof, working bar taps, neon signs, and is complete with trailing plants, free tiki masks from Facebook Marketplace and a living wall made from wooden pallets. It even has multiple signposts with names of different bars, pubs and breweries from around the world, pointing in the direction of his own favourite drinking spots.

Image credit: Thomas Sheratt

‘We only offer invites as we are not a proper pub but when we do it’s a great time, whether it’s [watching] the football or rugby, or we decide to have a film night in the bar, every occasion is just as good,’ he said.

Thomas documented his journey on his Instagram page (@the_tiki_junglebar), amassing over 9,000 followers – and he has since entered The Tiki Junglebar into this year’s Cuprinol Shed of the Year contest.

‘We have entered into this year’s Shed of the Year competition, so any votes would be a massive help,’ he added. ‘We would love to win and have the award showing in the bar!’

The post DIY-er brings the pub to his own backyard in a tiki-inspired garden shed project that cost £802 appeared first on Ideal Home.

Over the last few years a new phrase has started appearing in building circles, ‘fabric first’ or a fabric first approach. Fabric first is a simple concept for making comfortable, sustainable and affordable-to-heat homes by focusing on insulation, putting in good windows, reducing draughts and optimised orientation and design to capture as much of the sun’s heat as possible.

In other words getting the stuff that the building is made from, fabric, right rather than the technology of how you heat it.

It is one of those logical ideas that is so obvious that you already know it! Despite this I am constantly amazed at how often the plans we hear for sustainable homes, whether from the government or homeowners, focus on low carbon technology for heating – heat pumps, bio-mass, hydrogen boilers etc etc – rather than on saving it. It is the equivalent of having a hole in a bucket and obsessing about how to keep filling it up rather than fixing the hole.

Image credit: Future PLC/ Robert Sanderson

How does fabric first reduce heating bills?

If you fix the hole (stop your building losing heat) you can be far less interested in generating heat because a properly insulated, super air-tight house with a good ventilation system requires no heating system. You, the kids, dog, computers, oven and electrical kit provide the heat you need on all but the coldest of days.

While no heating is the logical conclusion of a fabric first approach there is much the approach has to offer all homes. Not only does it reduce heating bills but living in a house that is not losing heat, that has no draughts or cold spots is utter luxury. Once you’ve experienced it you will never want to live in a normal (cold) house again.

A well insulated house is also a healthy house. Badly insulated homes often suffer from condensation and damp leading to mould, which has very poor health implications.

A further reason I am such an advocate of a fabric first approach is because while technology eventually goes wrong, insulation does not. I appreciate it is hard to get excited by insulation but it can last hundreds of years with no running costs and doesn’t break down on Christmas morning with 15 coming for lunch.

Image credit: Future PLC/David Giles

Beyond the possibly mundane insulation and draught proofing there are things to get more excited about in the field of fabric first.

How does computer modelling help with fabric first?

One of the most important is the use of computer modelling to optimise the way a house uses insulation and passive solar design to create super efficient self-heating living machines: scavenging just the right amount of the sun’s warmth while losing as little heat as possible.

Image credit: Future PLC/Douglas Gibb

There are several computer programmes that help to achieve this, we use Passive House Planning Package (PHPP) in my office and it is a wonderful thing. During our design process we model the building to test what heating it will need and what effect changes in the size, location and orientation of both the building and its windows will have, so we can optimise the form.

We explore the most cost effective place for insulation and make an accurate estimate of what heating bills will be before it’s built, driving down running costs and CO2 emissions. This should be the focus for sustainable homes, embedding clever thinking in the house fabric through good design and building. Done right it will never need servicing or break down. It will not only make you happy and healthy but benefit the generations to come.

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