Home Automation

Lol my grandpa had button operated curtains back in the 60s

If I had enough eddies I'd do every window.

I've done it and it's the best! Remote controls next to each set of windows plus voice control through google.

"Hey google, close the blinds" or my morning routine is "Hey google, good morning" which opens the blinds, plays the news headlines, weather and traffic for my morning commute.

It's also possible to close them when sun sets and open during sunrise, but I don't bother with that.

We have curtain openers and love them! Open in the morning, close as it gets dark. Helps control the temps in the house. We’re big fans!

No, but only because I have an unreasonable loathing for the phrase "window treatment."

I may in the future but not planning on it. I almost never raise or lower my blinds. Bedroom curtains stay shut and must in the house stay open. While automating them would serve my inner geek, it adds expense and another thing to troubleshoot when they break.

I did! No regrets. The blinds close automatically at sunset. In the morning the kids' blinds open before school (but only at sunrise), and the blinds in the rest of the house open when we get up.

I wouldblove the front 2 windows to close the blinds at sundown so that the neighbors can't all see straight into my living room at night.

Not really. That is one thing I have no need to automate. We rarely change our blinds. They are almost always open.

If it was super cheap, like $10 per window I would just because why not.

But the cost for what it provides is probably some of the worst ROI in the HA space.

yes. messing with curtain bot 3 today

I bought the smart ikea blinds for 4 transom windows about 20ft in the roofline to help keep the heat out in summer. We originally were going to get pull roller shades and a stick, remote ones through the local window treatment company were super expensive. Can say no complaints yet. We did a hack to hardwire the ikea ones so we dont have to charge the batteries which has helped us not have to climb up there every time. Id love to get them in the rest of the house especially our back glass sunroom.

It makes a lot more sense for blinds than curtains; blinds can be a bit of a pain to open on a conventional chain - I've motorised and automated mine, with power direct to the blinds (which was possible when rewired the house). Really great being able to open/close these with Alexa, and automate + group these. Was relatively cheap too, got majority of parts off of Aliexpress.

My window frames are power actuated. Can open/close from my phone, Alexa, and automatically based on temperature. It is one of the best home automation things I have done. It is for sure the most practical. In the spring and fall, it totally negates the need for heating and in the summer it cuts down the need for A/C to maybe 5-6 days per year.

I have a Switchbot Curtain and just ordered a Tilt with the hope that I can make it work with some vertical blinds that twist but don't need to slide open. I would probably not buy window treatments that have the automation built in. I prefer to be able to change the curtain bit without having to re-buy the technology. The only time I might buy a pre-existing setup is if I could reconstruct it to create my own custom window treatment.

It is actually incredibly easy to DIY the curtains, roller shades and Roman shades themselves. There are roller shade kits that I think just require spray glue to attach fabric to the shade piece. For curtains and Roman shades you really just need to be able to sew a straight line and follow instructions. Small local fabric shops (and maybe places like Joann Fabrics) often have classes or will teach private lessons, and you can sometimes rent time on the sewing machine (plus have staff nearby to troubleshoot and answer questions). If the guys out there think it's not manly to sew, take a cue from my hammock camping friends and call the sewing machine a "thread injector." (And if you're looking for a date, the odds are in your favor when you're the only guy in a class of 8!) My only caveat is that home dec fabric is NOT cheap.

My Switchbots open the curtains at sunrise and start closing them as it gets dark. I live in a fish bowl, and I don't love the idea of people being able to see everything I'm doing at night. The most important thing they do, however, is close the curtains when the inside temp gets to 74, because that means the sun is baking my south-facing glass front doors and the dog is suffering. In the summer they will also turn on the AC.

Have Switchbot curtain robots on one of our windows. I love them and want to put them on all of our curtains.

My wife hates them. End of project.

Remote control, voice control, daylight/sunset, scenes, bed occupancy sensor, light lux sensor, motion sensors, and an nfc tag. I use them all depending on the automation.

Considering, but on the 'tail end' of automations.

In part, the cost individually, as well as the reliability, or so far, mediocrity of Home/HomeKit. May reconsider once I get HA running, but the current place has a LOT of glass in it, so it would be piecemeal and strategically once I believe reliability is actually there.

I would love to, but I think that because I like the window coverings we have. I would rather augment what we already have

I have tons of large windows. I put remote blinds on them about 12 years ago. Only thing I regret is not going black out on them. Tons more options today for controllers and automation than there was when i got them. They weren't cheap. I waited for them to go on sale at Home Depot or Lowes before buying them. Also, go in knowing what you want, know what controllers are available and order it all at once. Buying the controllers with the blinds was 1/4 the price of trying to buy them after the fact. Don't expect your local big box store sales person to know a damn thing about motorized blinds.

The price has to come down considerably. That price-to-convenience factor isn't there to improve my life by automating my curtains.