Whether you wish to switch on a few lights, arm the whole house, or fire up the home theater system, there’s a control system with a button on it for you.

Imagine being able to turn on your home lights to just the right levels for entertaining, or have a pathway automatically lit from the garage when you return home.

Imagine being able to shut down the house lights and arm the security system from the bedside before turning in, or waking to just the right amount of lights and your favorite soft music. Or touching a button on a remote control and having the video monitor fire up, the DVD player start the movie and the audio system come on to the right level—all as you sit back and raise your feet.

You can have some or all of this and more with lighting control, home control and remote control systems used in parts or throughout your house. You can control your home’s lights, audio, climate, security all from one control, or from a mix of wall-mounted keypads, remote controls, computers, maybe even touchscreens.

Systems such as these can perform simple commands such as turning lights up or down, or more complicated functions such as combining lights, music, security, climate and more at the touch of a button. It’s all a matter of what you want—and how much you want to pay.

Systems capable of more complicated and complete whole-house control are more expensive. Any of these control systems can be very complicated on the inside, but remember: No matter how complicated the system and its various tasks, it should be simple for everyone to use.

Many lighting control systems also can become a part of larger home control systems, so you may not need separate controls for each. Some companies are also starting to offer lighting and audio control in addition to home control, for all-in-one home control packages.

Types of Control Systems

There are several types of home and lighting control systems available. Powerline carrier and wireless systems are used often for retrofits in homes where new wire can’t be routed. But if your home is a new construction, a "hardwired" control system is the way to go. In some cases, you may have a combination of powerline, wireless and hardwired home control.

Powerline Carrier Systems
The least expensive type of home or lighting control operates over the home’s existing wiring, or powerline. These can range from lamp timers available at a retail store to more sophisticated systems that cost thousands of dollars and require a custom electronics installer.

Wireless Control
Newer wireless lighting control systems utilize radio-frequency technology and are used often for retrofit systems, in conjunction with other wired lighting control systems.

Hard-wired
Control Wired, or "hard-wired," home control systems are the most reliable and expensive. These systems can operate over high-grade communications cable such as Category 5 or 5e, or their own proprietary "bus" cable. That’s why it is best to plan for these systems when the house is being constructed. These systems can cost well into five figures, depending on your needs and the size of your house. Hard-wired systems can perform more tasks at one time and do them quickly and reliably, making them ideal for larger homes. They also integrate more systems in the home, effectively tying together your indoor and outdoor lighting, audio and video, security, even your heating and ventilation systems into one control package.

IP Control
A new breed of home control makes it easier than ever to control all the devices in the home. It’s called IP control, for Internet Protocol. IP systems use today’s computer technology so your home becomes its own little Internet, with every device on the network assigned an Internet address. With IP, your house operates like its own secure Internet via a web server, or a computer network. Watch for more of this and for prices to drop. Here are some important features to look for.

Reliability
In a powerline system, look for one that can modulate the signal strength to overcome interference or the loss of the electrical signal as it passes over your home’s wiring. These systems are better equipped to overcome things that affect electrical signals within a home.

Room by Room
If you plan on having home control in more than one room, look for a multizone control system. These allow for different controls in various parts of the home.

Preprogrammed Scenes and Modes
More extensive systems, from powerline carriers to expensive hard-wired systems, will also be capable of enacting house-wide and local "scenes," which may also be called "modes" or "macros." These allow more than one event to take place in a sequence, such as a goodnight scene that turns off all the lights and arms the security system, or a party scene that turns on lights and music.

Clock It
An astronomical clock allows your home control system to work with a timer that also automatically changes for daylight saving time. With a system containing an astronomical clock, you can set your outside lights to come on at dusk, even though the time the sun sets changes each day.

Works with Others
Home and lighting control systems should also have RS-232 interfaces to communicate with devices such as video projectors and lighting systems.

Means of Control
Home control systems are typically operated by either touchscreens or keypads. Touchscreens feature LCD screens and can be located on tabletop or in the walls. Less expensive keypads are generally located in the wall near a room’s entrance. Each button on a keypad can be programmed to set a scene or operate a single device in that room. The most expensive home control systems generally use touchscreens that allow users to scroll through pages of controls, each one for a separate system such as lighting or audio/video, for example. Some touchscreens today can display video from a DVD, satellite or security camera. Some offer either one-way or two-way wireless RF control. More expensive two-way RF confirms that the signal has been received by the controller.

Universal Remote Controls

A home entertainment system may need a separate control to operate each piece of equipment, from the TV to the audio/video receiver to the DVD player and more. "Universal" remote controls are designed to handle the entire system and save you the hassle of operating several remotes.

There are a few types of universal remote controls. Preprogrammed remotes contain hundreds, if not thousands, of infrared codes to communicate with many popular audio/video makes and models. Programmable remotes can "learn" the infrared (IR) command codes of any audio/video component.

Touchscreen-based remotes present control buttons on a touch-sensitive screen. These screens can be customized to look a certain way and to hold layers of menus, so that only a few buttons are displayed at a time. Some prefer the tactile feel of a "traditional" remote control with buttons. Many remotes today offer a combination of both hard buttons and a touchscreen. Here are some important features to look for:

Programming Method
One method to program a universal remote with the proper codes involves transmitting codes from the old remotes to the new one. A newer method is either through computer software or by downloading codes from a web site.

DIY or Pro
The more a remote control can do, typically the more difficult it is to program. These remotes are often best configured by an audio/video specialist.

Multiple Commands
For ease of control, use a remote that can be programmed to transmit at least one "macro" command (one button executes a string of commands). A common macro, such as movie time, might turn on the TV and the DVD player, and activate the audio/video receiver. More sophisticated controllers "trigger" several actions at once, such as dimming the lights, closing the shades, and starting the entertainment system.

Stylus
A remote control that sports a touchscreen can be difficult for big hands to operate. Look for a remote that comes with a stylus pen, for key-pressing accuracy.

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