WHOLE-HOUSE LIGHTING CONTROLS

Once a luxury, centralized lighting systems are now affordable solutions for many homeowners. They are mainly used in large homes with complex lighting designs

Controllers

Whole-home lighting systems provide a wide range of functions just with the touch of a button. You can command the whole system with a wall-mounted keypad or with a hand-held remote controller or a portable tabletop controller…

Controller from Lutron Portability and wireless are now common. You can kept the controller with you, in your car, or in your home, and command your home’s lighting system with it, with a touch of a button.

Advantages and energy savings

Whole House Control System from Lutron Convenience is the main advantages of whole-home lighting systems.

But they can also be a piece of increased security and a source of energy savings (though not necessarily; many whole-house systems involves switching on too many lights, which surely isn't a way of getting energy-efficiency.)

Prices and Manufacturers

Prices vary with the exact system. Individual lighting controls can be very cheap (some few dollars for a dimmer switch or a timer...), but whole-house packages starting at about $2,000, plus installation are common.

Lutron is particularly well known as a manufacturer of centralized lighting systems for the residential market. But there are other like Hubbell and Leviton.

Installation

Whole-house lighting systems demand careful design, testing and also some programming. Manufacturers often offer installation for their systems.

The goals

A whole-home lighting system is more than just a convenient way of multi-room lighting control via scenes. They offer a wide range of possibilities.

With a whole-house lighting system you can easily define a safe path of light within your home at night, pressing a single button (instead of having to walk from room to room, switching on several lights). And you can also switch off all the lights, in the same way…

And you can combine it with your entry and outdoor lighting, with the same controller. Or connect all that to a security system, or to a audio system, or to video or cooling and heating equipment…

All from within your home or when arriving home, in your car, always using a simple controller (or in some cases, also via phone or computer…).

Multi-room Control: Scenes

Typical whole-house lighting systems provide pre-programmed lighting levels, often called "scenes" or “zones”, responding to different occasions or situations: Morning, Vacation, Dining, Entertaining, Arriving, Departing…

The system can switch on, or switch off, or dim the lights selectively, to meet the occasion and your needs.

A “Vacation” scene, for instance, may replay your daily routine: turning the lights on and off, or lowering and raising the shades as if you were in home.

A “Departing” scene (for when you leave for the day) will switch off the lights or whatever you have defined for that situation. Something that can be achieve by simply pressing a button.

These scenes or zones can be partially pre-programmed, but they usually involve user or installer programming to get a more personalized answer.

Types of controls used in whole-house lighting systems

Typical whole house-systems combine dimmers, photo-sensors, timers, switches and other types of lighting controls, which should be located in appropriate points, in several rooms.

These controls are hard-wired or wireless.