How to Enjoy Smart Home Automation in Your Covington, LA Home

Acadian Home Theater and Automation is your local smart home automation installer, dedicated to enhancing and simplifying your lifestyle. With over 12 years of experience under our belts, we offer the residents of Southeastern Louisiana, including Covington, smart home solutions including: home theater systems, security and surveillance, lighting control, motorized shades, energy management, and much more.



SEE ALSO: What It’s Really Like to Live in a Smart Home in New Orleans
Whether you are familiar with smart home technology or are just entering the smart home world, we would love to reveal all the benefits of using this technology. The big question is, why not do it yourself? Today we are going to give you 3 key benefits of hiring a local professional for your next smart home automation project.

We are the best solution in town
With 135 years of combined experience on our side, our team can install any technology you desire. Not only will we design and install a solution that is customized to your lifestyle, but we’ll also do the job right so that you don’t run into problems down the road. Our staff is certified in all of their proficiencies and manufacturers, which means that we know exactly how to install the systems properly in your home. Acadian is a member of CEDIA and the Louisiana Life Safety & Security Association.

We also have a great track record, being known for exceptional service. We don’t just provide services that meet your needs in the present, but we also service our customers for life – knowing that technology is always changing. You don’t have to worry about installing the latest products when you have a professional on your side ready and willing to easily update any system at a moment’s notice. Your investment is worthy of our time and care.

We have a complete set of services to meet all your needsOur core services include:
Security & Surveillance: Keep an eye on your house at all times with remote monitoring, surveillance cameras, and alarm systems. View video footage in real-time on your smartphone or tablet, arm door locks from miles away, and use HD intercom to view visitors before letting them into your property.

Whole House Audio: If you love music and how it can set the perfect mood for any event, you’ll want it in every room. We can install speakers in the walls and ceiling so that they blend in with your surroundings and don’t disrupt your home’s interior design. Wireless controls allow you to stream music from various services easily and expand your music library. We have an audio system for every home size and budget.

Home Theater Systems: Enjoy the ultimate entertainment experience in your own living room with surround sound, HD or UHD picture, and a universal remote. Invest in a full dedicated home theater, or install multiple TVs throughout your home to create a whole house video system. Access your streaming services like Netflix and Hulu, cable, and your movie collection quickly and easily with wireless controls.

Lighting and Shading Control: One of the most fundamental and basic needs has become an incredible technology to enhance your everyday life. Open and close blinds with a remote control device or app on your smartphone. Time the lights to turn on and off at specific times of day, or use occupancy sensors to do the work for you and save energy. Integrate lights and shades together to save money and energy. You’ll love waking up and going to sleep every day with these one-touch controls.

Are you interested in any of these services or having us install a complete whole home solution? Simply fill out this online form to get in touch with us and schedule a discovery meeting.

Enjoy These Smart Features in Your Baton Rouge Home We all love staying connected today and using our phones for many different activities. Today you can brew a cup of coffee, start the laundry, and roast a turkey with your iPhone. And while these smart items may look and sound cool, there are some other more pragmatic connected systems you should consider investing in for your Baton Rouge, LA home. Motorized shades, for one, are not only convenient to control with a mobile device, but they can also help you save energy, protect your home, and simplify your lifestyle. Here are our top three reasons why we recommend you invest in our smart shading solutions.

SEE ALSO: QMotion Motorized Shades Bring Big Benefits to Your Louisiana Home #1: Save Energy Sure caring about the environment seems super trendy right now, but you’ll be surprised by how easy it can be to save energy. Making your home “green” may seem overwhelming and complicated, but in reality, all you need is a plan on how to make the most of your home electronics. Since you can control your shades with your phone, you can easily raise and lower them at any time of day to take pressure off your HVAC system. Lower solar shades, which block UV rays, during the day and keep the house cool without even turning the AC on. We can put your shades on a schedule so they raise and lower at specific times of day, or put sensors in place that detect the sun and trigger them to work when they detect sunlight. Our motorized shades can be integrated with smart lighting and your thermostat to save even more energy. We’ll help you create an energy-saving plan that will not only save our planet’s precious resources, but also lower costs on monthly utilities.

#2: Save Time Whether you have a lot of windows or not, opening and closing shades can be quite time consuming. Not to mention, it can be frustrating if those windows are hard to reach. Many homes have skylights or high windows to create a more open and airy feel. Connecting your shades to a wireless remote or mobile device allows you to quickly open and close them at any time – even if you’re not in the house! You can group rooms together so all you have to do is hit one button an activate them, or control each and every one. For example, help wake up your kids in the morning by opening all the shades in the bedrooms and letting in the morning sun. Close them all as you leave the house for work. We can also install double roller applications, which include two different types of shades for one window. Lower the solar shade during the day, and the blackout shades at night. Switch them quickly and easily just by hitting a button. You won’t have to wrestle with those blinds anymore, or reach over far to close the drapes.

#3 Protect Your Home You probably wouldn’t naturally think that shades could help protect your home, but you can use them in coordination with a security system. First, shades add privacy keeping onlookers from peering into your home, and they also make you feel safer. Second, shades can be coordinated with audio, video, and lights to make it seem as if someone is home while you are away. The shades will go up and down at varying times to simulate your normal habits. Potential invaders will stay away thinking you are there.

 

How to Use Your Smart Home to Create a Family Environment

There are many reasons you may want to invest in smart home automation, such as saving time and energy. Or perhaps you have a proclivity for technology and enjoy using the latest smart home gadgets. However, did you know that a smart home can help you raise a family and manage a hectic schedule? Whether you have a house full of teens or are nursing a newborn, our automation services can create the right environment for your family in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Continue reading to learn more.

SEE ALSO: Reasons Why You Should Hire a Professional Smart Home Installer  

Create the Right Environment for Newborns

You’ve finally put the baby to sleep and want to remember exactly what calmed them down. Use your smart home system to save the settings for the next evening. Pick the lighting levels, shade selection, music, and temperature using the touch interface on an iPad or in-wall touch screen. You can even label the scene, like “Goodnight Sweetheart,” so you can easily recall it at a moment’s notice. Hit one button and the nursery will instantly transform into a cozy and comforting environment – perfect for putting your baby to sleep and allowing you to get some much-needed sleep.

Wake up the Whole Family Automatically

Fast-forward 10 years and it’s time to wake your kids up and get them ready for school. You can create a ‘Wake up’ setting that helps everyone get out of bed in the morning. Each room in the house can be customized to the person’s preferences.  For example, in your bedroom, the in-ceiling speakers will play your favorite song exactly at 6 a.m. and the volume will slowly get louder as the shades open and let in the morning sun. At the same time, your mirror TV turns on the news so you can catch the traffic and weather report as you brush your teeth. Meanwhile, your daughter’s room lights gently rise to a bright level and her morning cartoon show turns on in the living room downstairs to get her moving. In your teenage son’s room, the shades open to lift his sleepy eyes and his favorite music playlist turns on as well. Your smart coffee pot wakes up too so that there’s a hot cup of joe for everyone downstairs. If you want to check in on any family member, you can use an HD intercom and talk to them through the audio system.

Keep an Eye on Every Family Member

How many times have your kids promised to call you as soon as they got home then left you in suspense for hours? With our security and surveillance solutions, integrated into your smart home, you can get alerts sent to your phone as soon as your kids walk into the house. Watch live video feeds if your boys and girls are home alone so you know they are safe no matter where you are. With whole house audio and video, you can also track what is being watched in every room from a mobile device, making it hard for your kids to view inappropriate movies, shows or games and change parental settings. Smart home controls are also very useful if your children have disabilities or if you are watching over the elderly.  You’ll have all the controls in the palm of your hands at all times for every need.

 

 

Enjoy Whole House Audio/Video Without the Clutter

Investing in a whole house audio/video system for your Baton Rouge, LA residence doesn’t mean you have to sacrifice your clean interior design for the sake of high-quality sound. With the minimalist A/V products from Stealth Acoustics, Acadian Home Theater & Automation can design and install a whole house audio/video system that seamlessly integrates into your Louisiana home. Read on to learn about the options available for hidden technology.

SEE ALSO: How to Enjoy the Ultimate Entertainment Experience in Your Louisiana Home  

Hidden Speakers

The issue with trying to hide speakers in bookcases, or behind other more appealing décor is that you end up muffling the sound. By using in-wall speakers, you can enjoy hi-fi audio and eliminate unsightly clutter. These in-ceiling speakers are small and can match the shape and size of your recessed lighting so you don’t even notice them. We can even paint the speaker grill to match the walls, or even completely conceal them with dry wall. You and your guests will be able to focus on the beautiful sound and how beautiful your home looks, instead of all the A/V equipment.

Control4 Features Add Sophistication & Luxury to Everyday Experience in Baton Rouge & Beyond

Everyone enjoys spending time at home, which is why having more control of your living spaces and their technology is more important than ever. Imagine having a centralized place where you can control your network and all of its connected devices, including your HVAC system, lighting, security system, and video and audio systems. In the modern world, it’s become a necessity!

Though you can set up these systems yourself, having the knowledge and expertise of a professional Control4 dealer like us takes the headache out of a home automation system installation. The days of fumbling through multiple apps to manage various devices are over—it’s time to upgrade your lifestyle with Control4 home automation! 

Read below to explore all the benefits it has to offer Baton Rouge, LA, homeowners.

MORE ON HOME CONTROL: Improve Smart Home Automation with Josh.ai

Professional System Design & Installation Keeps You Connected Everywhere

A solid home network is the foundation of your Tampa smart home. Not only can a robust infrastructure support the seamless functionality of sophisticated smart home systems, but it also supports high-definition audio-video entertainment and so much more. 

Keep reading to explore why home networking requires more than just a basic setup and calls for professional expertise.

Elevate Your Lifestyle With Motorized Blinds and ShadesThat Anticipate Your Needs 

Motorized shades are a perfect solution for luxury homes with dozens of windows. At that point, it’s not practical to go to each window to manually open and close your window treatments. Instead, opt for shades you manage through apps, Amazon or Google Home voice commands, remote controls, or touchpads. Control one at a time or all of them simultaneously.

The result is a more comfortable, eco-conscious home with the perfect amount of natural light at any given time. When working with a professional, you take the benefits a step further by adding automation so your shades anticipate your needs without you lifting a finger. 

Below are some ways to automate shades in your New Orleans, LA, home. 

Get the Most Out of Your Smart Technology with the Right Partner 

Smart home technology is now a must-have feature of our everyday lives. When building a new home, working with a contractor, architect and interior designer is no longer enough. You also need someone to help with all your technology needs to have a truly live-in-ready home once construction ends. So how do you know which smart home company to partner with in Tampa, FL? Below we outline some things to consider when looking for a technology partner.

Add the Benefits of Smart Home Technology Without the Clutter

Are you hesitant to add smart technology to your space because you worry it’ll ruin the interior design you worked so hard to achieve? Technology and design don't have to be rivals when you incorporate hidden automation features into your New Orleans, LA home.

You'll be able to enjoy seamless control, greater comfort and high-performance AV while avoiding the clutter usually associated with technology.

Below are some of the unique ways to ensure it flows seamlessly with your desired aesthetic.

As more people work from home and families isolate themselves, strong networks are more important than ever

There’s no getting around it: We are living through an unprecedented event with the COVID-19 outbreak. Unprecedented, however, does not mean insurmountable or apocalyptic. People are still working, and families are adapting to these changes as best they can. There are certainly still roles for businesses and homebuilders to play even as we all adjust to the massive disruptions caused by this epidemic.

For businesses, you need to find new ways for your workforce to do their jobs while taking appropriate safety precautions. For builders, the reality is people will be spending more time than ever at home with children attending classes online and families needing a stress outlet through media and home entertainment. In both cases, a strong network is crucial to helping your customers adapt and thrive in this new environment. This blog will go through several reasons why you need to focus on providing network solutions for your clients in the New Orleans region.

Free software update offers simpler controls, more customization options, easier access to favorite rooms or activities, and much more

 
With any home automation system, the most important piece is the control system. It’s what you use to manage everything in your house, so the system needs to be intuitive, responsive and powerful.

These attributes are precisely what you get with Control4’s OS 3 software update. OS 3 is a free update for users with an EA-category system, and it delivers “over a thousand new features and interaction enhancements,” according to the Control4 website. These improvements range from tweaks to the interface to higher-quality music streaming, and much more. As a smart home company in New Orleans that installs Control4 systems, we’re here to show you some of the changes OS 3 will bring to your automation system.

SEE ALSO: How to Make Your Daily Tasks Simple with Smart Home Control
GREATER CUSTOMIZATION
Every home automation system is different because every home is different. With OS 3, Control4 has made it easy to customize your interface exactly how you want it to be.

As just one example, you can now pick a photo from a selection of preloaded wallpapers for every room in your house. For a more personal touch, you can also upload your own images. These wallpapers make it easier to see which room you’re interacting with. If you have wall panels in your home, you can take a picture of the area around the panel and set it as the home screen to help the panel better blend in with your décor.

The most substantial change in terms of customization, though, is OS 3’s new Favorites system. You can now select favorite rooms or favorite activities and access them in seconds by pinning them to your home screen. OS 3 also lets you customize your interface further by adding, removing and rearranging icons. This eliminates clutter and gives you faster access to your most-used apps. Favorites are also synched to individual devices so that you can have certain selections on your phone and different ones on a remote, wall panel, etc.

SIMPLIFIED CONTROLS
Letting you select favorites is just one way OS 3 has made controlling your devices simpler. Anything you’ve chosen as a favorite can be accessed from the main Rooms Screen, from lighting control and motorized shades to your smart security system and speakers. OS 3 has also added gesture control for activities like your cable or satellite TV guide, as well as sliders for volume control.

Speaking of volume control, OS 3 has made managing media throughout your home a breeze. An Active Media bar instantly shows you what’s playing when you select a room and lets you adjust the volume, change tracks or see the quality of the music being played.

For media control at a broader level, the new Sessions system lets you see and control media anywhere in the house. You can raise or lower the volume in individual rooms or systemwide, add or remove rooms from different media Sessions, or turn various devices on or off. Now if you want to turn off your outdoor speakers but leave music playing everywhere else, you can use Sessions to simplify the process.

MISCELLANEOUS IMPROVEMENTS
Here are a few other highlights from the OS 3 update. Systems with OS 3 can now support Master Quality Authenticated (MQA) music streaming from services like Tidal, the highest quality audio available for discerning listeners. The icons within the app have also been tweaked by making them larger and the text easier to read. New filtering options also make it easier to monitor the status of individual systems across the home.

OS 3 represents a significant change to your Control4 system, with a multitude of improvements we haven’t even mentioned yet. To learn more, call us today at (225) 442-9849, click our contact page or type a message in the chat box at the bottom of your browser.

Everything you need to know about motorized shades and automated lighting

 It’s getting warmer in Louisiana and it might be time for some smart home spring cleaning. Though smart home technology is a significant upfront investment, it can truly pay off in the long run: You’ll see excellent returns via economic and energy savings to justify the cost. Not to mention you’ll enjoy these features as soon as we install them. Today, we’ll specifically discuss motorized shades, automated lighting and outdoor updates.

 Are you ready to freshen up your Baton Rouge, LA, home for spring? Keep reading to see our suggestions that enhance your home’s aesthetic while saving you money.

SEE ALSO: 3 Smart Lighting Control Benefits That Might Surprise You 

Motorized Shades

We can’t think of a more stylish, customizable example of conserving resources than motorized shades. You conserve resources just by changing your drapery -- and we’ll help you find the color, texture and fabric that matches your home. Read this blog for a comprehensive list of QMotion designs that Acadian Custom installs!

The Secret Reasons Why Lighting Control Is a Bright Idea

Our customers have enjoyed lighting control benefits that have enhanced their comfort and sense of convenience within their Baton Rouge, LA, homes. Sure, we love hitting one button and turning off the lights downstairs when we’re cozy in our bedroom, but what about the hidden advantages a smart lighting user has?

We want to highlight those less-discussed benefits of lighting control in this blog. Keep reading to see which perks should make you look more closely at installing an automated lighting system.

SEE ALSO: How Can Smart Lighting Control Benefit Your Health? 

You’re Can Conserve More Energy

You can change the world one light bulb at a time, in more ways than one. Just by using the LED bulbs necessary in a lighting control installation, you’re cutting energy costs by up to an impressive 90 percent.

Smart Technology Helps Diminish Holiday Stress

The holidays are supposed to be a time of relaxation and celebration, but they can also create a lot of stress, especially if you’re the person hosting the festivities. Decorating, cooking, and entertaining are all demanding, so anything that helps to simplify your routine is an especially valuable holiday gift.

You can make the most wonderful time of the year even more magical with smart home automation, which unifies all the smart technology in your home so you have streamlined, simple control of your devices from one central interface. It changes the way you interact with your home, taking advantage of your smart home network to add convenience and comfort to your lifestyle. Keep reading to learn about how you can optimize your Lafayette home for the holidays with these different home technologies.

 SEE ALSO: RAISING A FAMILY WITH HOME AUTOMATION IN BATON ROUGE 

Control4 Automation

Our brand partner, Control4, is an industry leader when it comes to customized, easy-to-use control systems, allowing homeowners and their families to access and adjust their technology from a touchscreen remote, smartphone, or tablet. You don’t have to stop what you’re doing to answer the front door or lower the window blinds, and working with a smart home automation company like Acadian Home Theater & Automation ensures that all of your devices are brought together on a strong, reliable network.

 

Everything you need to get the most from your Baton Rouge home’s new whole home audio installation

It’s hard to think of some aspect of your life that isn’t made better with music. Chores, work, parties, holidays, birthdays and other family celebrations all get a little easier and more fun if you have some tunes playing in the background. So why not make it as easy as possible to enjoy your favorite audio content?

The best way to expand and simplify your listening experience is to install a whole home audio system. That way you can enjoy almost any type of audio in any room of your house, no matter the source.

These systems may seem complicated at first glance, but with a few tips up your sleeve you will have no problem navigating the world of whole home audio. That’s why we put together this guide for Baton Rouge homeowners so you can make better decisions for your home. Read on to learn more.

SEE ALSO: HOW TO ENJOY THE ULTIMATE ENTERTAINMENT EXPERIENCE IN YOUR LOUISIANA HOME

THE FUNDAMENTALS

If you want to make it easier to listen to music in your home, the baseline components of a whole-home audio system are easy to acquire. You can link several wireless speakers together and create a DIY audio system that stretches across your home.

Discover How A Control4 Dealer Can Enhance Your Baton Rouge Home In 2019

Whether you already have a Control4 system in your smart home or you are looking to work with a dealer to give your Baton Rouge property a smart technology upgrade, Acadian Home Theater & Technology is here to help you understand how you can get the most from your home automation system. Acadian is the only Diamond Control4 dealer in Louisiana, gaining recognition for our commitment to high-performance custom installations. We’re dedicated to keeping our clients informed about the most exciting smart technology. In this blog, we look at the latest Control4 updates that will increase the functionality of your Baton Rouge home in the new year.

SEE ALSO: WHAT ARE THE BENEFITS OF WORKING WITH A CONTROL4 DEALER? 

Stay Connected With Intercom Anywhere

Intercom Anywhere is Control4’s new product for helping homeowners monitor their property and communicate with different rooms. Your mobile device becomes part of your intercom system, so if someone arrives at your front door, you get an alert directly to your smartphone. From there, you’ll be able to see who is at the entrance through your video doorbell and communicate with them directly. If it’s a delivery person with a package, you can unlock the door remotely so they can make a secure drop-off. Intercom Anywhere also allows you to interact with people inside your home. If your kids leave their phones in their bedrooms while they’re in the living room, you can call them through your Intercom Anywhere system to get in touch quickly.

Expand Your Music Services

With a Control4-enabled multi-room music system, you’re able to access a wide variety of streaming music services and play them anywhere in your home. The latest Control4 OS 2.10.4 features an Add Music driver that allows you to add supported native streaming services to your Control4 system from your touchscreen remote or app without needing to schedule an appointment. These native streaming services now include Amazon Music, which is compatible with both Amazing Music Prime and Amazon Music Unlimited subscriptions, and Deezer HiFi, which delivers high-fidelity music in a lossless FLAC format.

Upgrade Your Home Network

Your smart home automation system needs a robust network to function properly. Every connected device adds more strain to your network, and consumer-grade networks aren’t designed to meet the needs of a comprehensive Control4 system. That’s why Control4 dealers are trained and tested on essential networking standards with the Pakedge Certified Network Administrator curriculum, which is designed to give professionals the tools and knowledge to provide you with the strongest, most secure network. You don't want to have a support team coming to your home for every small networking issue you might have, and Pakedge's BakPak Remote Management allows Control4 professionals to monitor your network and fix common problems without having to send a truck out.

Want to learn more about what a Control4 dealer like Acadian can do for Baton Rouge home? Reach out to one of our experts by calling 225-650-7840, filling out our online form, or by sending a message in the live chat window at the bottom of your screen.

Smart Lighting Helps You Feel Energized And Save Money

With a brand new year comes the promise of self-improvement as we make resolutions to improve our lifestyles, but keeping those promises to ourselves can be a challenge. Smart home technology can play an active part in making your new year’s resolution stick well into 2019. As manufacturers find new ways that smart devices add convenience and comfort to your daily routine, they create new opportunities to make yourself feel better. At the forefront of these developments is smart lighting control.

In our latest blog, we look at how smart lighting control can help you accomplish three common new year’s resolutions. Keep reading to find out how you can achieve personal goals while making your New Orleans home more beautiful.

SEE ALSO: LOWER YOUR ENERGY USAGE WITH SMART LIGHTING CONTROL 

Be More Productive

Do you have trouble getting out of bed in the morning? Do you work from home and struggle to be productive throughout the day? Tunable circadian rhythm lighting is a smart home solution that helps you feel more motivated by automatically adjusting lighting to stimulate the development of the hormones that energize you. Your body’s circadian rhythm is what regulates natural processes throughout the day, and that rhythm is synchronized to the movement of the sun because throughout most of history, the sun has dictated much of human behavior.

Hear Music Anywhere In Your Mandeville Home

Modern technology is built on the idea of creating maximum convenience for the end user. We can access entire libraries of information by pushing a few buttons on the tiny computers in our pockets. We carry music around with us at all times, listening to it on wireless headphones and speakers that can fit inside of a small bag. Homes have refrigerators that monitor the amounts of regularly used items and let you replenish your stock from a touchscreen in the door.

The convenience factor of smart home technology is a big reason why it’s grown in popularity so much over the past decade, and multi-room audio is consistently one of the most in-demand services from our Mandeville clients. Keep reading to learn how a whole home sound system expands the range of your media, provides simple control, and blends in seamlessly with your décor.

 SEE ALSO: DO YOU NEED SUBWOOFERS FOR YOUR MULTI-ROOM AUDIO SYSTEM? 

Hear High-Performance Audio Anywhere In Your Home

The main convenience of multi-room audio is right there in the name: you’ll be able to listen to your music anywhere in your home, inside or outside, thanks to a network of speakers united by a smart home control system. The holidays are right around the corner, and a multi-room audio system makes entertaining easier by giving you control of the music all around your house from your smart device.

Our brand partner, Control4, offers an exceptional multi-room audio system. It runs a variety of streaming platforms, including Deezer, iHeartRadio, Pandora, Napster, Spotify, TIDAL, and Tunein.

Tie Your Baton Rouge Home’s Technology to Your Internal Clock

 We spend most of our days indoors. It’s a fact. Studies have shown that the average American is spending more and more time inside, and this affects our minds and bodies. Have you ever spent the day indoors and then felt shiftless and uncomfortable all night? If you ever worked in an office with no windows and harsh fluorescent lighting, you probably recognize that feeling of being drained by your surroundings.

That feeling is a result of your body’s circadian rhythm being interrupted by a lack of exposure to natural light that energizes and soothes you during the day and into the night. Keep reading to learn more about circadian rhythm and how a smart lighting control system for your Baton Rouge home can boost your body’s natural processes.

 SEE ALSO: LOWER YOUR ENERGY USAGE WITH SMART LIGHTING CONTROL